Transition Services for Youth with Disabilities - Essay Example

Transition services and plans for youth with disabilities are now mandated under the recently enacted 'Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1990. Barone et al. (1991) explained that youth is the crucial time when an individual requires friendship and social interaction to disrupt the barriers of apprehension. Severely disabled students often are deprived of good communication and comprehensive skills which strengthen social relationships and they often feel secluded and isolated.

The concept of Inclusion of youth with disabilities in regular classrooms helps to build a healthy and motivating relationship among the students. This concept not only enhances career-related outcomes but also reinforces the sense of belonging to the Human family. Families have a critical impact on the successful transition from school to adult life for young adults with disabilities. The involvement of the parents in the transition process is mandatory as they will have a better idea of their children's temperament, interests, and abilities.

On the contrary, parents may sometimes become very emotional and overprotective which may act as a hindrance to the development of the students. Parents often tend to underestimate their children or hold unrealistic high expectations of them when compared to regular children. As Jean E. Ness explains parents are always have confusion between the abilities and motivations of their children. Special Education and Support SystemIndividuals with disabilities require more vigorous and dedicated training when compared to normal students as they have to overcome the many additional hurdles of life.

Special education should be directed towards the assessment and instruction of students for a smooth transition from school to post-secondary activities like employment or post-secondary education. If special education teachers do not take a proper interest in motivating students then there will be a potential increase in several dropouts. The support system should be concerned, organized, and focused on the goal of the transition process for students. Self-determination and MotivationOne of the reasons for poor post-school outcomes are that students with disabilities leave school without self-determination.

Students who do not have the motivation to plan and manage their lives will leave school without the skills necessary to secure a meaningful job. During the transition process, high-risk youth should be identified and their morale should be boosted with self-confidence and mastery of self-management skills. Several recent models of student involvement in transition planning include creating a self-directed individualized education program (IEP). 

The idea of going to a new campus or community is of big concern both for students as well as for parents. It will be very difficult for the students to acclimatize to the new environment. Hence educators should ease the student transition into high school by providing a challenging and supportive middle school environment and designing interactive sessions between middle and high school. Special care should be taken for the students opting for post-secondary education or employment or quality living.