Working with Youth in Transition

1. Working with Youth in Transition Overview of Transition - From Evaluation to Inception Dr. Karen Wolffe wolffe@afb.net

2. From Evaluation to Inception • Begin with the end in sight: What are the student’s expectations for life? • relationships, work, living arrangements, recreation, etc. • Evaluate the student in natural environments whenever possible to determine skill levels & knowledge

3. Transition Competencies Checklist • How tool is administered & rationale • Timeline for completion—annual • Explanation of coding—forced choice • Time commitment—20-30 minutes • Asterisks explained for facilitator • Reminders: No “right/wrong” answers, self-evaluation tool, add to career portfolio

4. Transition Competencies Overview • Student self-evaluation tool • Practitioner evaluation tool • Parent/SO evaluation tool

5. Practitioner & SO Tools • Parallel the Student Evaluation Tool—same ten competencies are assessed • Completed hard copies can be compared using Word or Excel files in braille or print • Can form the basis for a team discussion (led by the student, if possible) concerning readiness for employment

6. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • An understanding of work based on real life experiences • Youngsters learn about work through personal experiences at home (chores), community activities (helping out at civic or organizational functions), and school (active involvement in classroom or school projects)

7. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Application of leisure & socialization skills • Addresses the need for youth to develop & engage in interpersonal relationships • Also considers young people’s needs to engage in healthy, enjoyable activities during their free time

8. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Application of problem solving skills • Focuses on the need for youth to learn how to recognize that they have difficulties or problems & take logical steps to resolve them • Youth are also asked to indicate to whom they go for assistance, if they are unable to independently resolve a problem

9. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Application of self-advocacy skills • Focuses on the importance of young adults addressing their disability-related needs with others in a proactive & positive manner • Encourages youth to assume responsibility for their own affairs (setting medical or vocational appointments, for example)

10. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Application of compensatory skills • Addresses alternative techniques or disability-specific skills (O&M, reading & writing with braille or optical devices, using assistive technology, etc.) that young people need to master in order to live & work without unnecessary external supports

11. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Knowledge of career options & sources of information • Relates to the student’s need to learn about a broad range of jobs through resources available nationally & locally (popular career fields, specific companies in near locale that are hiring—whom to contact & where to go)

12. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • An understanding of levels of ability and impact with regard to placement • Helps young adults analyze their need for assistance in the job seeking area and how they learn best on-the-job

13. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Mastery of career counseling content areas • Focuses on self-awareness, career exploration, job seeking skills, job maintenance skills, and employment skills

14. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • Evidence of participation in work experience opportunities • Addresses the need for young adults to have as many work experiences (paid or unpaid) as possible while they are still in school

15. Student Self-Evaluation Tool • An understanding of employer concerns • Addresses the need for young adults to be familiar with employers’ greatest concerns about hiring individuals with visual disabilities & understanding how to allay their concerns

16. Correlation of Resources to Transition Competencies Checklistgets you to inception!

17. Resources Books/curricula: • Skills for Success • Navigating the Rapids of Life: The Transition Tote System • Transition Planning for Students with Visual Disabilities • Preparing for Work: Career Exploration, Job Seeking Skills, & Job Keeping Skills for Students with Disabilities

18. Resources Chapters: • Growth and development of youths & Career education for children and youths with VI (Foundations of Education) • Transition for Students who are Blind or have Low Vision (Handbook of Transition for Youth with Disabilities)

19. Resources Chapters: • Transition planning and employment outcomes for students who have visual impairments with other disabilities (Educating students who have visual impairments with other disabilities)

20. Resources Chapters: • Transition planning for the world beyond school (A Parents’ Guide to Special Education for Children with Visual Impairments)

21. Resources Articles: • The transition from school to adult roles and responsibilities (Insight) • Employment-related experiences of youths who are blind or visually impaired: How are these youths faring? (JVIB)

22. Resources Articles: • Skills for success: Career education for young people with sight problems (Insight) • The status of Canadian youth who are blind or visually impaired: A study of lifestyles, quality of life and employment (Elsevier International Congress Series)

23. Resources Articles: • The social network pilot project: A quantitative comparison of the lifestyles of blind, low vision, and sighted young adults (JVIB) • Career education for students with visual impairments (Re:View)

24. Thank you for your interest and participation!