Examines variables influencing integration of severely handicapped students into less restrictive school environments. Specifically presents research and practice findings related to (1) opportunities for interaction; (2) the social behavior of handicapped and nonhandicapped individuals; (3) activities typically used in transition efforts; and (4)…

This literature review discusses supported employment as one aspect of the transitional linkage between school and work that can augment the quality of life for individuals with moderate and severe disabilities. It then focuses on job matching, one aspect of supported employment training programs within public school settings, with an emphasis on…

This information brief explains the Transition Service Integration Model, an approach to integrating service systems at the point of transition for youth with significant disabilities. It explains that the Transition Services Integration Model is designed to combine the resources of school and postschool systems in sharing the costs of a…

This article reviews five categories of critical characteristics of high-quality secondary-level vocational instruction programs that increase the likelihood that students with severe disabilities will obtain paid community employment upon graduation. Categories include location of instruction, curriculum, instructional strategies, transition…

Transition planning to assist students with severe disabilities to move from school to a positive adult future is of great concern for the young people and their families and friends. For more than a decade, the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) within the U.S. Department of Education has researched quality of life issues in transition…

This paper summarizes current knowledge on the transition to adulthood of youth with serious emotional disturbance in terms of epidemiology, effective interventions, and program models. The first section is introductory and provides definitions and characteristics of transitional youth noting special developmental tasks, outcomes for young adults,…

This paper reviews the literature examining the lifelong challenges to family members represented by the birth of a child with severe disabilities. The paper addresses issues of family life, the systems that affect families, and current and future concerns related to having a child with severe disabilities. Studies addressing families of infants,…

Sheltered workshops for severely disabled persons should be reformed to emphasize job placement, transition to more independent work environments, and retraining and replacement of workshop staff. A national policy on the employment of disabled persons focusing on supported employment, least restrictive work environments, and career development is…

This conference report focuses upon transition issues for those individuals with profound multiple-sensory impairments. It contains presentations, reactions, and syntheses of discussions by working groups. The keynote address, by H. D. Bud Fredericks, is titled "Those with Profound Handicaps: Who Are They? How Can They Be Served?."…

Eight papers presented at a September, 1985 forum concerned with the school to work transition of handicapped youth are presented. Papers were developed as part of a project, "Transitional Programming for Handicapped Youth: Interdisciplinary Leadership Preparation Program at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign). An introductory…

This background paper seeks to clarify the concept of transition for students with severe disabilities and to describe New Hampshire's response to the federal school-to-work initiatives. A conceptual framework is presented for linking educational outcomes more closely with improved adult life expectations. The framework seeks to encourage local…

Presented originally at four conferences (held during 1984-1985), the 12 invited papers contained in this document were part of a federally funded project, the National Network for Professional Development in Vocational Special Education. Project objectives included training of teacher educators in employment preparation for the handicapped,…

Discusses theoretical bases and practical applications of therapeutic leisure and recreation programs in assisting children with mild, moderate, severe, and profound handicaps to become more accepted by their normal peers. Examples show how such activities can be designed to create an environment to facilitate the educational treatment of…

This compilation presents five papers on issues and research in special education. "Qualitative Research in Special Education: An Evaluative Review" (Charles A. Peck and Gail C. Furman) explicates some of the epistemological assumptions underlying qualitative research methods, reviews examples of qualitative research, evaluates the contributions…