Transition Issues Facing Youth with Severe Disabilities: Parents' Perspective

Abstract

At a time when the transition from school to work and community life for students with handicaps has become a major national concern, the need for information to help guide transition planning is acute. Parents of youth with handicaps are an important and frequently overlooked data source in transition planning. The present study surveyed parents of high school students with severe handicaps throughout Oregon. Parents were asked to project the service needs of their son/daughter at graduation, 5 years after graduation, and 10 years after graduation. They were also asked to rank the features of adult service programs that they desire for their children, and to describe the source of their own information about post-school opportunities and services for their sons and daughters. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for planning and developing appropriate post-school services for students with severe handicaps.

Keywords

parent perspectives transition from school to work and adult life survey of post-school needs

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