The article I researched gave helpful suggestions and data for developing a transition plan for a student with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Person-Centered planning allows the individual to participate actively in their transition planning. Data has shown that more student participation in transition planning is associated with more positive vocational rehabilitation outcomes. The article includes a study that explores strategies and supports used to help transition-aged students with ASD which include the following: individualized preparation for meetings, informal activities to build rapport between the planning facilitator and student, flexible meeting designs, distance attendance, and support for alternative means of communication.
In order to individualize Preparation Meetings, the facilitator met with each student and family prior to the transition meeting to discuss topics to be covered and people to be invited. This is beneficial for students with ASD because it lessens anxiety by making the meeting and events more predicatable to the student. To build informal rapport, students talked to the facilitator about topics of interest during the initial meeting. The facilitator then created follow-up activities structured around these interests. For example, one facilitator prepared "Ramen" and played video games with the student and another went shopping for disney cartoon books. The transition plan must also have flexible meeting designs which allow for the student to take breaks when needed, or to only attend a portion of the meeting. Distance Attendance is used when students with ASD did not want to actively participate in the meetings. For example, the facilitator accommodated these students by allowing them to be at a further distance for the meeting and even allowing the use of "Skype" for the student to be present at a distance. Supported participation for students with ASD means to accommodate the communication needs of the individual. Does the student use an Assistive Communication Device? Can the student signal with gestures (thumbs up/down)?
The article went on to describe plans for future research when transition planning for students with ASD. These plans include the following: examining the effects of varying degrees and styles of planning, future work on increasing youth involvement, and examining new digital technologies to implement in the transition meetings. Overall, this was a very interesting article and gave me several ideas to share with my colleagues on transition planning. I would like to discuss strategies my colleagues have used in the past or experiences when visiting a student's home. I observed an IEP of a middle school student but I am going to ask my AP if I can observe a transition planning meeting for one of our high school students in the future. I would recommend this article to any professional who works with students with ASD.
Hagner. D., Kurtz. A., May. J., Cloutier.H., Person-Centered Planning for Transition-Aged Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Journal of Rehabilitation. Pg. 4-10. 2014.
