Transition Strategies in Special Education 6
Lecture 6:Notes
6.0 Vocational and Career Development of Children with Disabilities
6.1 Introduction
The role of vocational training and career development to persons with disabilities cannot be underestimated. Issues that include conceptualization of vocational education, job-accommodation model, developing work experiences, career development in relation to individuals with disabilities will be explored.
The student, teachers and employer perception will also be explored and contextualized to Tanzania. Factors that determine vocational placement and careers that include the business industry, the economy, consumers, workplace support systems and job creation strategies will be addressed. Barriers to employment will also be discussed.
6.2 Youth with disabilities
Youth with disabilities face difficulties resulting from attitudinal, environmental, and organizational barriers not only in initially accessing and entering school, but also as they transition from school age youth to working adults. With a focus on facilitating a better understanding of the issues, challenges, and solutions associated with the design
and implementation of career development services for youth with disabilities, this article describes the status quo for students with disabilities in South Korea and then discusses career development services that potentially reduce variation, help facilitate optimal career development, and promote future employment opportunities.
The educational dropout rate for youth with disabilities is disproportionate to that of their nondisabled peers, resulting in difficulties for them in accessing vocational training and employment.
While the need to vocationally engage and prepare youth with disabilities for postsecondary education and employment is both intuitive and well documented, barriers to effective implementation in both developed and developing countries.
Early career interventions within school settings have been shown to improve work outcomes of youth with disabilities yet systematic and equitable career development service provision is lacking Regardless of how disability is acquired, or the level of interaction one may have with persons with disabilities, disability remains a part of the human condition.
In fact, disability is the one minority group that anyone can join at any point across the lifespan. Yet, while universal, disability is manifested in individuals, families, local communities, and society through the lens of culture.
The term culture conceptualizes ways of living among groups and encompasses subconscious ways of “thinking, behaving, and believing”. Given this quality, the nuances of culture are not readily apparent to outsiders. Culture influences everything, not only individual behavior, but also theory, policy, and service delivery.
It is at the intersection of culture, theory, and policy that this article examines how model-driven vocational services can support developmentally appropriate, culturally sensitive, and solution-focused services in different contexts.
6.3 Global Status of Youth with Disabilities and Education
It has been suggested that disability has a bidirectional relationship to poverty, meaning the presence of a disability increases the likelihood of the individual living in poverty, while someone living in poverty is, in turn, more likely to acquire a disability. This relationship is due to a number of contextual factors such as limited access to education, healthcare, and suitable employment opportunities.
Regardless, conservative estimates project that 10% of the world’s population possess a disability, with the number likely higher due to poor reporting or individuals not identifying as having a disability. Disability is more common among women and youth, the groups often having limited access to formal educational opportunities.
In the United States in 2009, students with disabilities were twice as likely to drop out of high school, half as likely to seek out post-secondary education, four times more likely to be imprisoned; and they can expect to face higher adult unemployment rates, leading to poverty rates three times as high as their non-disabled counterparts.
Successful employment for youth transitioning from school to work is closely linked to career exploration and development fostered during the school years. In fact, a longitudinal study in the United States by Schmidt-Davis (2000) found better employment outcomes, increased self-esteem and self-
determination, and less need for Social Security benefits among students who received rehabilitation services, including vocational rehabilitation counseling and guidance, case management, consultation, assessment, and advocacy. While the evidence supports the value of career development services for youth with disabilities, systemic barriers to service access still exist.
education as foundational to the successful transition to work or higher education. The right to an education is also clearly articulated in the laws and human rights agenda and throughout the entirety of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Yet, limited access to education is a concern regarding many youth with disabilities.
From a global perspective, youth with disabilities are often not enrolled, or start school later than peers, and drop out of school at higher rates. It has been reported that 93 million children have a disability, and many children with disabilities are not enrolled in school for reasons ranging from lack of accommodations to family members feeling that the individual is unable to benefit from education.
The lack of social inclusion and access to education limits potential occupational attainment later in life. With a dominant ideology that a high quality education is critical for upward social mobility, educational achievement is a critical dimension of empowerment, societal participation, and overall human well being.
Unfortunately, youth with disabilities are often segregated into separate classrooms or schools instead of being included in the mainstream educational system; or they may simply be viewed as unable to benefit from an education and kept at home by family.
6.4 Vocational Services for Students with Disabilities
In developed countries like US, the purpose of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Perkins Act is to provide technical training and education to students who do not necessarily plan on going to college. The act requires schools to provide parents and students with:
- Vocational education opportunities, which should be offered to the student by the beginning of ninth grade or one year before the student enters the grade in which vocational education is offered
- Eligibility requirements for enrolling in vocational education.
In addition, students with disabilities are entitled to receive:
- An assessment of interests, abilities, and special needs as well as other special services designed to help students enrolled in vocational education transition into postschool employment or training.
- Career assessment, planning, training, and school-to-work transition services. IDEA requires schools to provide services to students with disabilities that will help them make a successful transition from school to posts chool activities—such as work, continued training or education, and other aspects of community living.
- By age 14, a student should have a transition plan incorporated into their IEP that specifies what services the student needs to make a successful transition from high school to work and community living, what career activities the student should undertake, and who will be providing the required services.
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