IEP and TRANSITION PLANNING

FACILITATOR’S GUIDE FOR IEP and TRANSITION PLANNING

by: Jessica Cooke, Shawn Freeman, and Rebecca Sutherland

Target Audience:  The target audience for this professional development is middle and high school special education teachers who work with students with disabilities of transitional ages.

Course Outcome: To inform special education teachers of IEP transition planning and implementation according to the guidelines of IDEA.

Learning Target: By the end of this transition presentation, when writing a transition goal, I will be able to write a goal based on the strengths and preferences of the individual student by evaluating the student’s transition assessments on 2 out of 3 assessments.  

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the role of the special educator in transition planning
• Understand the importance of transit planning in the IEP
• Understand how to develop and implement transition goals and objectives

Materials:

• Projector
• Powerpoint
• Youtube Video
• Projection Screen
• Laptop
• Technicalities
• Handouts of assessments performed by students with disabilities
• Pens

Hook: Facilitators provide four student profiles and four student transitional goals/services for audience to match the profiles with the appropriate student.

Profile1:John is a high school sophomore who likes computers.  

Profile 2: Sally is a high school senior that has a passion for working on cars.

Profile 3: Bobby is a 14 year old student who is expressing interest in the culinary arts

Profile 4: William is in the STEM program for engineering.

Service 1:.Special Education teacher has an local engineer visit the classroom.

Service 2: Special Education teacher assists student in researching colleges that specialize in computer programming.

Service 3: Special Education teacher enrolls student in mechanics class at the school’s vocational center

Service 4: Special Education teacher coordinates for hands on experience at a local restaurant.  

Answer Key:

Profile 1 and Service 2

Profile 2 and Service 3

Profile 3 and Service 4

Profile 4 and Service 1

Explain and Model

Facilitators will explain the reasoning behind the hook activity. The special educators matched the scenarios to the student’s interests but there is a lack of data as evidence of the necessary transition services for making appropriate goals. Transition goals and services need to be based on the data driven by transition assessments to remain in the guidelines of IDEA. The goals and services should be formed on the student’s strengths and interests.

Facilitators will begin the process of explaining IEP and Transition Planning with the use of PowerPoint and youtube videos.

IEP and Transition Planning Professional Development Outline:

I. Importance of appropriate preparation and application of practices governing IEP meetings and transitional planning.   

1. When should transition begin?  Short clip on the importance of transition
2. “The No child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires schools and educators to use instructional programs and practices grounded in scientifically based research.( FEDC Issue Brief,2011, p.2)
3. IDEA states that transition planning should be included in the student’s IEP at the age of 16

II. Assessments

1. Importance of assessments for documentation and data
2. Offer a variety of assessments to meet the student’s specific disability
3. Sample assessments
1. Work Personality Profile
2. Combined Assessment- Facilitators will allow for a  few volunteers to take the  assessment and explain the importance of including independent living, education, employment, self-determination and other assessments in their own created transition assessment..
4. Assessments Explained - Short-clip about the importance of transition assessments for the student.

III. How to develop transition goals and objectives

1. The importance of goals and objectives meeting the individuality of the student’s strengths and needs.
2. Evaluating the assessments and designing specific goals and objectives that are specific to the student’s interests and strengths.
3. Assessments lead to goals

IV. Services to meet students needs

1. Goals lead to services Explanation of how to take assessments and create goals
2. What are transition services?
1. Transition services are a “combination of activities that will lead the student to reach his/her postsecondary goals including instruction, related services, community experiences, development of employment, and other post school adult living objectives” (Cort, R.H., 2011).  
2. Federal Law states that transition services needs to be included on the IEP when the student turns 16.  
3. Some states mandate that transitional services need to start earlier than age 16 (e.g. age 14 or 15).  These mandates are allowed however, it is not allowed for a state to allow transitional services to start later than age 16.  

V. Conclusion

1. When using the information presented in today’s PDP, special educators should know the importance and procedures for creating and implementing useful transition goals and services.

Evaluate and Close

Allow approximately 15-20 minutes for this activity.Attendees break-up into groups of 5. They are provided with 3 assessments that students with disabilities have performed. Groups must evaluate  the assessments and create a transitional goal and related service for each student. The results will be shared with the entire audience and discussed for thoughts and adjustments. Close with the thought of the importance of transition goals meeting the student’s individual strengths and interests.

References

FEDC Issue Brief. (2011). Evidence-based practices to support effective transition for young                adults with disabilities leaving high school. WestEd Center for Prevention &

            Early Intervention

Cort, R. H. (2011). Transition planning and services for students with disabilities. New York State

Department of Education. Retrieved from

http://www.p12.nysed.gov/specialed/publications/transitionplanning-2011.htm

Assessments

Transition assessments play a key role in developing and implementing transition goals, objectives and services. The assessments can vary according to the students that are being assessed but should all assess the same categories of information. “The instrument assesses employment, education, daily living, leisure, health, self-determination, communication and interpersonal relationships (Flexer, Baer, Luft, & Simmons, 2013, p. 107).” The assessments should be evaluated in order to plan the student’s future beyond high school. The planning should include goals and objectives that the student will begin to work toward as they explore their strengths, weaknesses and interests. The goals and objectives serve as a stepping stone to the student’s future as they transition out of high school. This is not an option as the student transitions to high school, it is required as part of FAPE and IDEA. By law, it must begin before the age of 16 but some school districts begin the transition planning process at the age of 14.

 Some schools will provide pre-planned assessments for special educators to use to for students with disabilities to help in the transition planning of the IEP. A special educator should have their own set of assessments that can be modified for specific students. They should always include the categories mentioned by Flexer, et al. When creating an assessment, it is important to include questions or statements that will assess the many categories related to transition. In this class, I was able to assess various assessments on the various levels and review them. I created my own transition assessment to use on my students with learning disabilities. Special Educators that work with different disabilities would need to modify their questions to meet the needs of their students. My assessment included two or three questions from all categories in order to perform a quick assessment for the student at the beginning of the year. This assessment allows me to have an idea of areas to cover in instruction to prepare the student for transition. As their annual IEP date approaches, I would offer a more intensive assessment for more specific details of their preferences and strengths. This would allow me to create goals and objectives specific to the student’s transitional needs. This is important for preparing the student for a successful transition.



 Sutherland Quick Assessment
Sutherland Transition Assessment

 Sutherland T-Chart Evaluation of Published Assessments

Sutherland T-Chart Assessment





 Flexer, R. W., Baer, R. M., Luft, P., & Simmons, T. J. (2013). Transition planning for secondary students with disabilities. (4th ed.). New York City, NY: Pearson.

Group Transition Presentation

District Transtion Goals

I teach on the high school level. It is our responsibility as special educators according to the law and the district to prepare our students with disabilities for the transition from high school to post-secondary school or services. This includes by law creating transition goals for the change by helping the student start the journey to reach the goal. The post-secondary goals should be based on the student’s needs, preferences, interests, an d strength according the Newport News Public Schools website. The goals should include post-secondary education, career and technical education, employment, continuing education, adult services, independent living, and community participation. It should include statements related to the activities needed to assist the student in reaching post-secondary goals and their course of study whether in a school setting, vocational setting or community program. According to my district, many individuals can be involved in this process. They include the student, parents, teachers, counselors, therapist, adult agency representatives, and anyone else vested in the student’s independent living activities. The district currently offers several transition services to our students both with and without disabilities. These services compromise Informal transition assessments. transition planning with attendance to IEP meetings, career and technical course referrals, referral source to local agencies, transition data collection, and tours of local agencies and schools. All of this is offered to create a smooth transition for the student with disabilities within the school district.

Assistive technology is an important part of the transition process and the transitional process. If the student has supports that are currently being used at the high-school level, they need to be included in the transition process. This would occur in the Summary of Performance (SOPS) upon graduating high school or aging out of special education and public school. Currently, assistive technology is used in my current school in several ways. Some students with poor eye-sight are allowed to use school issued I-Pods to allow them to increase the screen size for reading and taking notes. The use of speak to script dictation is allowed on assessments and standardized tests. Students may also have a word processor or laptop for classwork and note-taking during class instruction time. Audio versions of books, assessments and literary texts is also available for students with disabilities that are audio learners. The state allows assistive technology provided that it can be proven with data that it will enhance the student’s educational progress. The school is willing to use assistive technology for the benefit of the student. However, the general education and special education teachers need more intense training in order to properly assist the student with proper use of the assistive technology.

The school district provides the option and resources for the case managers and special education teachers to assist in the transition from high school to post-secondary services. However, there is a gap between what the district offers. The district places all of this information on their website but the case managers and special educators are not given formal training on how to use the transition services that are offered. This results in the goals being written on the IEP but not obtained. The special educators think writing the goal is the end of the transitional training. The district needs to implement more training and communication regarding transition services within the special education department.

Newport News Public Schools. (2016). Transition services. Retrieved February 20, 2016 from:

                http://www.nnschools.org/sped/transition.html

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