Interviews were conducted with parents of mentally retarded youth who had completed their education at special education centers or in Educable Mentally Retarded classes within regular high schools of the Allegheny Intermediate Unit (Pennsylvania). Students included 72 individuals who left the special education centers in 1987 (1-year follow-up);…

The literature review describes the ideal of "a school for all" which integrates children with and without disabilities from a European perspective. Topics covered include a historical review of discrimination against the disabled, the establishment of private special schools, the increasing role of public educational authorities in…

Vocational education is an important component of the bridge leading from school to employment for special needs youth. Studies indicate that special needs youth are not being adequately prepared for work. Unemployment and underemployment of special needs youth seem to stem from three causes: lack of interpersonal skills, lack of job-related…

The career development program for students with mental disabilities should be integrated into the total special education curriculum, should provide training of specific skills needed in particular jobs as well as a general orientation to the world of work, and should relate academics to activities of daily living. The program should begin at the…

This report documents the Innovative Pathways study of nonconventional year 12 and 13 programs at 7 schools, considered successful in assisting "at risk" students in their transition from school to the work force or further education and training. Elements of good practice are documented that contributed to and assisted students'…

This report summarizes results obtained for the first cohort of students (n=98) with disabilities involved in the pilot Transition Project begun in 1989 in New South Wales (Australia). Students were in either special schools (56 percent), special classes in regular high schools (40 percent), or integrated regular settings (3.5 percent). Of the…

This study investigated the post-school adjustment of mildly handicapped twelfth-grade students 2 years after they graduated or left high school. Two types of handicapped individuals were interviewed: 65 students in self-contained, vocational education programs and 46 students in resource programs. Students in both groups had unemployment rates…

This report focuses on the transition situation of mentally retarded (MR) youth in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The county is served by two Intermediate Units: IU2 (1170 MR students) serves the Pittsburgh School System and emphasizes mainstreaming, with the mildly handicapped attending neighborhood schools and severely handicapped attending a…

This study investigated the adult adjustment one year after leaving school of 130 individuals with behavioral disorders who graduated from Iowa special education programs in 1985 and 1986; the adult adjustment of 70 dropouts was also investigated. Adjustment areas examined included: living arrangements, leisure activities, mechanisms used to cope…

This study investigated the adult adjustment of students with mental disabilities in high-school graduating classes of 1984 and 1985, 1 and 3 years after they exited high school. Two hundred sixty students from the class of 1984 were interviewed 1 year out of high school; 166 from this same class were interviewed 3 years out of school. Three…