Describes strategies to smooth students' transition to middle school, listing programs and activities prior to the school year, during the summer, and during the school year. Considers adolescents' changing developmental needs. (JPB)

Middle schoolers move into high school with mixed feelings of apprehension and excitement, but generally hopeful of graduating in four years. Transition programs that support students most effectively provide different activities that help students to start on the road to high school success.

To investigate issues in transition to kindergarten for children with special needs, we explored several sources of information (peer-reviewed literature, government websites, parent surveys, and interviews with professionals). We found that administrative issues like lack of integration and the evaluation of services available to children and…

Young adolescents entering high school look forward to having more choices and making new and more friends; however, they also are concerned about being picked on and teased by older students, having harder work, making lower grades, and getting lost in a larger, unfamiliar school. For middle school students, including those who have been labeled…

Young adolescents entering high school look forward to having more choices and making new and more friends; however, they also are concerned about being picked on and teased by older students, having harder work, making lower grades, and getting lost in a larger, unfamiliar school. For middle school students, including those who have been labeled…

Author describes a program which has reduced the bewilderment of entering students and, at the same time, has provided an effective means of orientation and exploration. (Editor/CB)

A template-matching strategy was successfully used to facilitate transition between preschool and kindergarten for preschoolers with disabilities. Differences between instructional environments in sending and receiving classes were identified, and an intervention was implemented in the preschool to more closely align preschool and kindergarten…

To examine the role of family support and coping in the adjustment of adolescents with chronic illness (CI) transitioning into college, college freshmen and sophomores (N[subscript chronic illness] = 32, N[subscript primarily negative life event] = 53, N[subscript primarily positive life event] = 16) were administered standard measures. CI group…

This exploratory case study focuses on a returning Hispanic combat veteran and his perceptions and experiences regarding transition from a military setting to a higher education setting. Focus is placed on a cohort-based transition educational program of studies designed to provide coping skills that foster resiliency so as to minimize…

Results of this review of college student retention research suggest that students from rural communities face additional challenges adjusting to large colleges and universities compared to students from urban and suburban areas. Research that describes the additional challenges faced by rural students while transitioning to large institutions is…

This packet provides a variety of information pieces to help early childhood educational programs prepare young children with disabilities for transition out of one program and into another. The booklet opens with sample thoughts children may have when anticipating transition. Next, 20 possible differences among programs are specifically…

Describes the results of a study undertaken in the UK, in which the views of primary pupils, secondary pupils, parents and teachers were ascertained in regard to the transition process from primary to secondary school. Results showed that bullying was a major concern for all groups, followed by fear of getting lost, increased workload and peer…

Evaluated relative effects of two enhancement programs for minority and white first-year students entering university (n=175). Minorities had greater satisfaction ratings and awareness of individual differences. Students showed improved adjustment regardless of treatment condition, suggesting comparable effects for 10-week classroom-structured…

In this article, the author discusses a transition program called "For Freshmen Only." This program serves as a worthwhile service that juniors and seniors can offer incoming freshmen; it offers opportunities for ninth graders to develop positive relationships with upperclassmen; it gives participants a leg up as they entered the more competitive,…

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate student perceptions of the impact of a course developed to assist students with learning disorders, both learning disabilities and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), transition and adjust to a university environment. Students' perceptions of the impact of the course over time were…