Aligning Transition and Standards-Based Education: Issues and Strategies (original) (raw)

The introductory chapter, by Carol Kochhar-Bryant and Diane Bassett, compares the principles and assumptions that undergird both transition services and standards-based education, discusses issues and tensions surrounding the alignment of the two educational service models, and examines transition as a unifying framework for creating bridges between them. The chapters that follow are designed to describe how such alignment is occurring in actual practice in school and community systems. They provide examples of practices and models for bridging standards-based education and transition services. Chapter 2, by Michael Wehmeyer, examines the question of what constitutes access to that curriculum, how we achieve it, and how we ensure that the skills and abilities emphasized in transition services are incorporated into the general education curriculum. Chapter 3, by Pat Longo, addresses two additional questions: Why have standards-based education and transition services remained separate? How can IEP goals and objectives be aligned with priority curriculum standards to assist in making curriculum more relevant and useful to students as they transition to life after school? Chapter 4, by Jim Patton and Audrey Trainor, defines and examines the role of applied academics in the educational world of standards and access to the general education curriculum. It addresses the need for curricular review and innovation, particularly at the secondary level, and examines the curricular, instructional, and evaluative implications of applied academics within the demands of current policy and practice. Chapter 5, by Jane Williams, highlights the role that school-to-careers strategies, academic content standards, workplace competencies, and industry 9 Preface ix skill standards have all played in standards-based education initiatives for students transitioning to adult life, with a review of the status of their implementation in the states. Chapter 6, by Martha Thurlow, Sandra Thompson, and David Johnson, addresses traditional and alternative assessments, the relationship of the transition process to standards-based assessment, and the role of the IEP in decisions about students' participation in assessments. Chapter 7, by Sharon DeFur and Brenda Williams, examines the impacts of cultural diversity on transition implementation and explores the role of standards-based reform in bridging the cultural divide. Chapter 8, by Mary Morningstar, explores the role of parents and families in secondary school programs in the era of standards-based education. It provides an overview of research related to parent involvement, benefits and barriers to familyschool collaboration during transition planning and services, and impacts of standards-based education reform on families and youths. Strategies, resources, and information for involving parents are also provided. Chapter 9, by Gary Greene, discusses the issue of increased high school graduation requirements for all youths as a result of standards-based education and its impact on students with disabilities. The chapter presents a unique model containing four potential transition pathways into, through, and beyond high school for youths with disabilities. Chapter 10, by Jim Martin, Jamie Van Dycke, Lori Peterson, and Robert Walden, shows how deliberate planning and instruction must occur for successful transition from high school to postsecondary education. Nine factors associated with successful transition from secondary to postsecondary education are described. Finally, Chapter 11, by Diane Bassett and Carol Kochhar-Bryant, provides a window to the future by exploring emerging trends and directions for transition and standards-based education. The principles and goals of standards-based education and individualized transition planning are not mutually exclusive, but their alignment requires the best of our thinking and our commitment. Transition is not just a program or a project or a set of activities that has a beginning and an end. It is a vision and a goal for unfolding the fullest potential of each individual, and it represents a systematic framework for planning to fulfill that potential. It is hoped that readers will expand the dialog about these issues with others who are concerned with the successful passage of youths with disabilities from school to adult life.