Secondary Transition Related Resources
This page contains resources related to secondary transition in the following areas:
- Secondary Transition Planning
- Transition Assessment
- Post-School Outcome Goal Statements (PSOGS) & Annual IEP Transition Goals & Objectives
- Self-Advocacy & Self-Determination
- Person-Centered Planning
- Assistive Technology
- Other Connecticut State Agencies
- Additional Secondary Transition Resources
Secondary Transition Planning
Related Resources
- NTACT - Effective Practices and Predictors Matrix (July 2019)
- NTACT - Evaluation Toolkit (2016)
- NTACT - Guide to Developing Collaborative School-Community-Business Partnerships (2015)
- NTACT - Taxonomy for Transition Programming 2.0 (2016)
- NTACT - Transition Education and Services from Birth to Adult for Individuals with Disabilities: Research and Data Connections for Success
- U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) - A Transition Guide To Postsecondary Education and Employment For Students and Youth With Disabilities (Revised August 2020)
- OSERS Letter on the Important Collaboration Between Special Education and Vocational Rehabilitation Partners Related to Secondary Transition (August 31, 2020)
- NTACT, TransCen, and Workforce Innovation Technical Assistance Center (WINTAC) – Pre-Employment Transition Services: A Guide for Collaboration Among State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies and Education Partners (May 2020)
Transition Assessment
Defining Transition Assessment
Transition assessment is an ongoing process of gathering information that will help students, educators, and family members make informed decisions about life, during and after high school.
The results in a student’s transition assessment will fuel the development of meaningful goals and objectives on the IEP (Individualized Education Program). Functional literacy and numeracy, basic computer competence and self-advocacy are foundational skills that each student needs to learn.
The purpose of transition assessment is to identify a student’s strengths, preferences, interests, and needs and then assimilate these findings into a rigorous school program complete with realistic postsecondary goals, a challenging course of study, practical real-life community experiences, extra-curricular activities, and paid work, as appropriate, for an individual student. What and how many different transition assessments will be used will vary from student to student. The findings of one assessment, for example, may indicate the need for another assessment in an area that the initial assessment identified. No one size fits all.
One’s preferences and interests also may change over time. Transition assessment will guide a student from self-awareness to career awareness to career exploration and ultimately, to career decision making. At any time along this continuum, a student may discover an interest, previously unexplored, that may lead to a new postsecondary goal. A student may also change his/her mind several times during the high school years when given the opportunity to explore various post-school options.
(Excerpt from CSDE Transition Assessment Resource Manual, 2008)
Related Resources
- NCWD/Youth – Career Planning Begins with Assessment: A Guide for Professionals Serving Youth and Educational and Career Development Challenges (2005)
- NTACT - Age Appropriate Transition Assessment Toolkit 4.0 (2016)
- Transition Coalition - Assessment Reviews
- Transition Services Liaison Project - QuickBook of Transition Assessments (2005)
- Zarrow Center for Learning Enrichment, The University of Oklahoma - Transition Assessment Web Sites
- Zarrow Center for Learning Enrichment, The University of Oklahoma – List of Transition Assessments for Students with Significant & Multiple Disabilities
Post-School Outcome Goal Statements (PSOGS) & Annual IEP Transition Goals & Objectives
CDSE Resources
Related Resources
- CCSSO (Council of the State School Officers) - College and Career Readiness Standards and Research-Identified Transition Skills (October 2016)
- NCWD/Youth - Guideposts for Success 2.0: A Framework for Successful Youth Transition to Adulthood (2019)
Self-Advocacy & Self-Determination
Related Resources
Connecticut Resources
- CT Community of Practice (CT CoP) - Youth Advisory Board (YAB) & Resources for Students
- CT Department of Developmental Services - Self-Advocacy
- CT Department of Developmental Services - Self-Determination
- CT Student Transitions Resource (STR)
- CT Youth Leadership Project, Inc. (CT-YLP) - Youth Leadership Forum (YLF)
Other Resources
- EnvisionIT (EIT), The Ohio State University Nisonoger Center
- I’m Determined Project, Virginia Department of Education
- National Gateway to Self-Determination
- NCWD/Youth – Youth in Action! – Becoming a Stronger Self-Advocate
- NTACT Research to Practice Lesson Plan Starters – includes Student-Focused Planning and Student Development (i.e., academic skills, employment skills, and life skills)
- TEST (Translating Evidence to Support Transitions) Practice Guide: Supporting Student Led Transition Planning for Students with Emotional Behavioral Disturbance (December 2018), UMASS Medical School & Transitions ACR
Person-Centered Planning
What is Person-Centered Planning (PCP)?
PCP is “a family of approaches for discovering what is most important to a person and specifying the opportunities, accommodations, and assistance that will give the person the best chance of experiencing what is most important.”
(John O’Brien, Jack Pearpoint, and Lynda Kahn, 2010)
Related Resources
Connecticut Resources
- CT Department of Developmental Services - Charting the LifeCourse
- CT LifeCourse Integrated Services & Supports, 4.23.2019
Other Resources
- Charting the LifeCourse (CtLC) (University of Missouri-Kansas City Institute for Human Development, UCEDD)
- MAPS: Making Action Plans
- PATH: Planning Alternate Tomorrows with Hope
- RENEW: Rehabilitation for Empowerment, Natural supports, Education, and Work (Institute on Disability/UCED, University of New Hampshire)
Assistive Technology
CSDE Resources
- Assistive Technology and Educational Transition (pages 33-35), Connecticut Assistive Technology Guidelines for Ages 3-21 (Updated March 2019)
- Determining the Need for Accessible Education Materials (AEM) and Acquiring AEM from the Appropriate Sources
- National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS) and National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC)
Related Resources
Connecticut Resources
- CT Tech Act Project
- Technology & Transition: A Resource Guide to Creating and Sustaining an AT Team at the High School Level (CTTAP & SERC, 2012)
Other Resources
- NTACT Assistive Technology Annotated Bibliography (2016)
- PACER's National Parent Center on Transition and Employment, Assistive Technology for Transition Success
Other Connecticut State Agencies
Department of Children and Families (DCF)
- Speak Up: Your Legal Rights in DCF Care
- State of Connecticut Adolescents in Care Bill of Rights and Expectations
- State of Connecticut Adolescent Needs Prior to Transitioning from Care
Department of Developmental Services (DDS)
- Employment First
- LifeCourse Planning
- Real Work For Real Pay: A Benefits Guide for Individuals Served by DDS (2012)
- Self-Advocacy
- Self-Determination
- The Career Planning Process: A Guide To Person Centered Planning in Connecticut (2012)
- Transition Resources
- Transition Timeline
- Transition Timeline in Spanish
Department of Labor (DOL)
- Community-Based Vocational Training Programs for Students Receiving Special Education Application Form - online
- American Job Center Connecticut
- CT Hires
- CT Young Worker Health & Safety Team
- Employment of Minors
- Labor Market Information for Students
- Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s Workforce
Student Publications
- A Look at Connecticut’s Entry Level Occupations (2016)
- CT Career Paths (2019)
- CT Job Journeys
- Connecticut’s Manufacturing and Other Middle-skills Jobs (2017)
Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS)
Department of Aging and Disability Services (ADS)
- Bureau of Education and Services for the Blind (BESB)
- Bureau of Rehabilitation Services (BRS)
- Bureau of Disability Determination Services
- Connect-Ability
- CT Tech Act Project
- Driver Training Program
- Independent Living Program
- Level Up/Level Up Brochure
Additional Secondary Transition Resources
General Resources
- CCRS – College and Career Readiness & Success Center at American Institutes for Research
- CEC DCDT – Council for Exceptional Children Division for Career Development and Transition
- CPAC – CT Parent Advocacy Center - Transition to Adult Life
- CT CoP – CT Community of Practice
- NCSET – National Center on Secondary Education and Transition
- NCWD/Youth – National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability
- NDC – National Deaf Center on Postsecondary Outcomes
- NCDB - National Center on Deaf-Blindness, Transition Recommendations
- NTACT – National Technical Assistance Center on Transition
- PACER’s National Parent Center on Transition and Employment
- SERC – Secondary Transition Initiative
- Transitions ACR – Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research, UMASS Medical School
- Transition Coalition
- U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services - A Transition Guide To Postsecondary Education and Employment For Students and Youth With Disabilities (Revised May 2017)
- WINTAC - Workforce Innovation Technical Assistance Center
- Y-TAC – Youth Technical Assistance Center
- Zarrow Center for Learning Enrichment, The University of Oklahoma
Postsecondary Training and Education Resources
- Going to College
- Institute of Educational Sciences (IES), National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) - College Navigator
- NCWD/Youth - Making My Way Through College (2015)
- Think College!
- U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights – Transition of Students with Disabilities To Postsecondary Education: A Guide for High School Educators (March 2011)
- U.S. Department of Education, The Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)
Employment
- American Job Center - CareerOne Stop
- Career One Stop - My Skills My Future
- JAN – Job Accommodations Network
- My Next Move: What do you want to do for a living?
- NTACT – Competitive Integrated Employment Toolkit (2017)
- O*NET
- United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor and Statistics - Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH)
- Workforce GPS
- Youth Rules! Preparing the 21st Century Workforce
Independent Living Skills
- NCWD/Youth - Disability Disclosure Resources
- NCWD/Youth - Helping Youth Develop Soft Skills for Job Success: Tips for Parents and Families (2011)
- NCWD/Youth – Making the Move to Managing Your Personal Assistance Services (PAS): A Toolkit for Youth with Disabilities Transition to Adulthood (2010)
- NCWD/Youth - Taking Charge of Your Money: An Introduction to Financial Capability (2016)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy - Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success
The websites and links from this page are for informational purposes only and have not been officially approved or endorsed by the Connecticut State Department of Education.