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This study explored the postsecondary transition experiences of young women who were deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) at a higher education institution in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 17 undergraduate women who were DHH and enrolled in a higher education institution in the KSA. The data were analyzed thematically and inductively using qualitative analyses software. Eight themes emerged from the data analysis. These themes reflected a wide range of transition experiences among students who were DHH, including their previous experiences in high school, their current experiences in higher education, and preparation to make the transition from college to work. Implications for future research and practice are discussed and include further exploration about the impacts of postsecondary education programs in supporting positive outcomes and working to close the gaps between policy and practice.

Research suggests youth with disabilities are less likely to experience positive outcomes compared to peers without disabilities. Identification of in-school predictors of postschool success can provide teachers (e.g., special education, general education, career technical education), administrators, district-level personnel, and vocational rehabilitation counselors with information to design, evaluate, and improve transition programs. The purpose of this systematic literature review was to examine secondary transition correlational literature to identify additional evidence to support existing predictors and identify new predictors of postschool success. Results provided additional evidence for 14 existing predictors and identified three new predictors. Limitations and implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Opportunities for inclusive postsecondary education for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities are becoming increasingly common at institutions of higher education in the United States. Although inclusive postsecondary opportunities benefit the entire campus, this may be especially true for students enrolled in teacher education programs. This research used qualitative methods to better understand how participation in an inclusive postsecondary course impacts pre-service teachers. Four primary themes emerged from the data, including (a) "Self-Efficacy in Teaching," (b) "Comfort with People with Disabilities," (c) "Inclusion," and (d) "Acceptance." Implications for practice and research are discussed.

In this study, we examined the structural validity of the Secondary Transition Fidelity Assessment (STFA), a measure of secondary schools' use of programs and practices demonstrated by research to lead to meaningful college and career outcomes for all students, including students at risk for or with disabilities, and students from diverse backgrounds. Drawing from evidence-based practices endorsed by the National Technical Assistance Center for Transition and the Council for Exceptional Children's Division on Career Development and Transition, the instrument development and refinement process was iterative and involved collecting stakeholder feedback and pilot testing. Responses from a national sample of educators (N = 1,515) were subject to an exploratory factor analysis resulting in five measurable factors: (a) Adolescent Engagement, (b) Inclusive and Tiered Instruction, (c) School-Family Collaboration, (d) District-Community Collaboration, and (e) Professional Capacity. The 5-factor model was subject to a confirmatory factor analysis that resulted in good model fit. Invariance testing on the basis of geographical region strengthened validity evidence and showed a high level of variability with regard to implementing evidence-based transition services. Findings highlight the need for consistent and regular use of a robust, self-assessment fidelity measure of transition service implementation to support all students' transition to college and career.

There are a multitude of benefits associated with employment, which many individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) are not afforded due to their struggles to find and maintain work. These poor employment outcomes are in part being addressed by the over 240 postsecondary education (PSE) programs for students with IDDs that exist on college and university campuses in the U.S., many of which include work experience as a program component. A sequential mixed methods study, featuring a quantitative survey and qualitative interviews, was conducted to explore barriers faced by PSE program staff when facilitating work experience engagements. Findings include the identification of common barriers to facilitating paid work experience for students in PSE programs as being: (a) "transportation issues," (b) "employer perceptions of the abilities of people with disabilities," (c) "inadequate number of staff hours to support students in the workplace," and (d) "finding time in the students' schedule." A discussion about these findings, including implications and recommendations for future research, has also been provided.

Washington State University, Responsibility Opportunity Advocacy and Respect (WSU ROAR) is an inclusive 2-year residential postsecondary education program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. WSU ROAR is a recognized comprehensive transition program located in rural eastern Washington. Within the program, there are four pillars: WSU ROAR workshops, Washington State University audit courses, employment experiences, and independent living. Individualized instruction guides the WSU ROAR workshops to allow students to develop their independence. Students also participate in audit courses in inclusive settings on campus to gain skills to help with future employment opportunities. Peer Allies, who are students traditionally enrolled at college, provide meaningful social and academic relationships by partnering with the students in WSU ROAR. This program description discusses the development of the postsecondary education program and its adaptation to meet its goals while addressing the challenges of being a rural university in eastern Washington. This program description also describes how the WSU ROAR program adapted to a remote learning platform during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this study, in the United States, the authors used multilevel growth modeling to examine the impact of an intensive, year-long professional development program on teacher self-efficacy for formative assessment tasks. They further examined the relationship between self-efficacy and observed implementation of formative assessment practices in the classroom. Participants included 189 teachers from 17 schools across nine districts in a northwestern state. Results showed a significant (p < 0.001) growth in self-efficacy through six measurement points. The relationship between self-efficacy and classroom practice was found to be weak-to-negative, suggesting higher levels of self-efficacy were not necessarily associated with successful implementation of formative assessment. These results signal a need to support teachers' abilities to provide accurate self-assessment, examine additional variables that may influence a teacher's successful implementation of formative assessment, and critically examine the use of self-efficacy as an outcome variable in the study of teacher professional learning.

Implementation of Response to Intervention (RTI) has been developed with the goal of increasing the efficiency and efficacy of the identification process for students at risk of/with learning disabilities. While this goal is well-intentioned, the implementation of RTI has faced challenges at the district level. Understanding the current implementation practices of RTI within school districts can provide insight into how the theory and goals behind RTI are being interpreted, thus providing evidence for the benefits of implementing RTI as well as uncovering the challenges that district face as they implement this pre-referral model. The purpose of this mixed methods study w to examine how RTI is translated into everyday implementation across elementary and intermediate schools. Findings suggest that achievements occurred within the culture, however, inconsistencies and misunderstanding of RTI lead to the misimplementation of components within the model. Implications for research and practice are further discussed.

This systematic review evaluated the effect of speech interventions with the addition of speech generating devices on vocalizations of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and complex communication needs. This review synthesized information across 18 studies published in the past three decades (1990-2023) with the primary focus on the facilitative effect of SGDs on the speech production of individuals with ASD, and further highlighted the role of SGDs on the development of natural speech when combined with appropriate intervention strategies. These studies involved a total of 108 participants aged 3 to 13 and were thoroughly coded according to participant demographics, design, pre-and post-speech measure, intervention strategy, methodological rigor, and type of verbal operant. SGD-infused interventions combined with evidence-based practices can lead to increases in children's expressive language and social communication utterances. Despite the promising outcomes, optimal outcomes are associated with some of the participants' prelinguistic predictors as measured before the interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young women with disabilities face multiple barriers in making the transition from high school to meaningful careers. This study used focus groups and individual interviews with high school girls with disabilities, college women with disabilities, high school special education teachers, school administrators and employers to examine career development and transition needs for young women with disabilities. Barriers and supports were identified in four major categories: a) individual/interpersonal skills, b) career options, c) school system issues, and d) disability needs. Recommendations for practice are discussed.

This chapter examines legislative actions throughout the past century that have influenced education and employment for individuals with disabilities while discussing ways that these actions reflect the broader social, political and economic goals of the American education system, and implications for individuals with disabilities who participate in adult education programs.

Youth with disabilities encounter multiple systemic barriers to post-school success, including racism and discrimination. Critical consciousness is the foundation of culturally responsive and anti-racist work and supports self-determination and vocational outcomes expectations among marginalized youth. While secondary special educators are interested in learning more about culturally responsive practices such as critical consciousness, they lack institutional support and resources to implement these practices. In this article, we present an ecologically based conceptual framework of Critical Consciousness in Secondary Special Education and Transition (CCSSET) to demonstrate how special education teacher preparation programs and school administrators can leverage funding, laws, policies, and resources to support critical consciousness among teachers and students. Implications for research and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we describe the conceptualization and development of the Secondary Transition Fidelity Assessment (STFA), a measure intended for use by high school leadership teams to examine secondary programs and practices demonstrated by research to lead to meaningful outcomes for secondary students with and without disabilities. We describe our conceptualization and development efforts, which resulted in a measure with six critical features: adolescent engagement, district-level capacity, school-level capacity, community engagement, family engagement, and professional capacity. Based on stakeholder feedback, we revised the STFA and developed an instruction manual and action planning guide to support the self-evaluation of secondary programs and practices using data from the STFA. Recommendations for the field related to research, policy, and practice are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Positive teacher-student relationships provide adolescents with disabilities the confidence to explore new challenges in and out of the classroom. Goal-setting and self-determination skills have been consistently shown to promote healthy transition adjustment among students with disabilities. Despite the growing awareness of the importance of positive teacher-student relationships and self-determination, there is a paucity of specific strategies designed to improve teacher-student relationships while supporting self-determination for adolescents with high-incidence disabilities. This practitioner-focused article describes the Adolescent Goal-Setting Intervention (AGSI) and how it can be implemented in an educational context to promote teacher-student relationships and self-determination.

Under-employment for individuals with disabilities is a worldwide epidemic, which Singapore has addressed by significantly increasing employment rates for this population. Providing work experiences for youth with disabilities at community-based job sites has been shown to increase positive post-school employment outcomes. To provide these opportunities, employment specialists benefit from developing partnerships with businesses. For this study, 14 Singaporean employment specialists, from five different schools and one government agency, were interviewed to better understand strategies utilized to nurture these valuable partnerships with businesses. Data suggest effective partnerships include (a) direct support for employers, (b) job matching, (c) job customization, (d) involving businesses in the school community, and (e) parent involvement. Implications and recommendations for future research are also discussed.

The purpose of this systematic review was to (a) systematically review the literature to identify National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 secondary analyses articles published since 2009 that met the quality indicators for correlational research, (b) further extend the findings of Test et al. by identifying additional evidence to support the existing in-school predictors of post-school success, and (c) identify any new in-school predictors of post-school success for youth with disabilities. Based on the results of this systematic review, results of the analysis added additional evidence to nine of the Test et al.'s predictors further expanding the literature base to support evidence-based predictors of post-school success. Limitations and implications for research and practice are discussed.