Working with Youth
in Transition
Overview of Transition From Evaluation to
Inception
Dr. Karen Wolffe
wolffe@afb.net
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
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
Transition Competencies
Overview
• Student self-evaluation tool
• Practitioner evaluation tool
• Parent/SO evaluation tool
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
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)
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
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
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)
Student Self-Evaluation Tool
• Application of compensatory skills
– Addresses alternative techniques or disabilityspecific 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
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)
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
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
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
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
Correlation of Resources
to Transition
Competencies Checklist
gets you to inception!
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
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)
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)
Resources
Chapters:
• Transition planning for the world beyond
school (A Parents’ Guide to Special
Education for Children with Visual
Impairments)
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)
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)
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)
Thank you for your interest
and participation!