Supporting Student-Led Transition Planning for Students with Emotional Disturbance

Abstract

Young adults with mental health difficulties are capable of successfully engaging in school, training, and employment. The support these individuals receive as they progress through secondary education can help them realize their potential in life after high school. Many times, teachers see different results for these students such as high school drop-out, lower rates of post-secondary education and employment, and even higher rates of involvement with law enforcement, poverty, and homelessness upon their exit from high school; however, with the right information, resources, and determination teachers can make a lasting impact on these students. To help students with emotional disturbance experience post-secondary success, teachers need resources to assist them with planning and preparing for students’ transition from high school into education and training programs and employment in young adulthood. This practice guide will offer practical ways to plan for these students’ successful transition from high school to post-secondary life, which can lead to positive outcomes for students with emotional disturbance.

Barriers to Implementing Student-Led IEPs

“…Barriers identified in existing literature include (a) difficulty in moving beyond the engrained notion that special education teachers are the leaders of the process, (b) a belief that students do not possess the skills necessary to lead the process, (c) the significant amount of time required to guide students through the process, (d) low levels of student attendance at meetings, (e) scheduling challenges, (f) concerns about meeting duration, and (g) administrator concerns (Cavendish & Connor, 2018;Danneker & Bottge, 2009;Doronkin et al, 2020;Mason et al, 2002). Other pieces of literature only describe obstacles anecdotally (e.g., Biebel et al, 2020;Hawbaker, 2007). In their review of literature describing IEP development, Blackwell and Rossetti (2014) called for additional research focusing on barriers to student participation in IEP meetings.…”

Promoting Successful Transitions in High School Students With Emotional Disturbance in Saudi Arabia: Educators’ Voices

“…The researcher collected the data through a semistructured interview with all participants to explore their opinions about providing transition services to students with ED in Saudi schools. The interview questions were developed after reviewing the literature (e.g., Biebel et al, 2018;Carter et al, 2009;Conley et al, 2014;Peterson et al, 2013;Stein et al, 2016) and IDEA (2004). The last set of semistructured interview questions included 12 questions: five about participants' demographic information and seven about transition planning and services for students with ED (see Table 1).…”

“…To adequately plan and implement transition services supporting students with ED, schools must also encourage teamwork and involve the family. A family's participation, indeed, promotes students' self-confidence to lead their IEP; families provide valuable information about the student's disability and related issues and offer supportive decision-making related to the goals and required resources of the IEP (Biebel et al, 2018).…”

“…The published literature prioritizes planning transition services for students with ED (Ministry of Education of Saudi Arabia, 2015). For example, Stein et al (2016) described how the transition to adulthood was more difficult for students with ED than for students belonging to other disability groups because students with ED generally lack the skills required for a successful transition, such as cognitive skills, ethical reasoning, social recognition, and self-identity formation (Biebel et al, 2018).…”

“…Some researchers have suggested that extra attention should be given to identifying students with ED and providing them with appropriate transition services. In this regard, Biebel et al (2018) asserted that these students are often disadvantaged because they are ignored by the transition services and planning opportunities currently offered by schools. According to Akinola and Dunkley (2019), students with ED face significant challenges in transitioning to adulthood because of the symptoms of ED, including limited social skills, poor cognitive skills, and limited motivation, which worsen students' academic performance and employment success.…”