A pilot study investigated what long-term significance programming at the Lewiston (Maine) Alternative Vocational Center (LAVC) has had on the occupational and employment status of special needs graduates. The sample (n=21) was the 1989 class of graduating seniors, who were interviewed and surveyed with a mail questionnaire. The participation rate…

The booklet describes the Maine Medical Center's Summer Youth Employment Training Program conducted in 1986, 1987, and 1988 providing disabled high school students with work experience under close supervision. The first section describes program benefits and the incorporation of the program within the Hospital Industries program which screens,…

Persons with learning disabilities are choosing to attend college in increasing numbers. They bring with them special needs that must be met if they are to be successful. Federal legislation mandates that education programs receiving federal funds cannot discriminate against persons with disabilities. This places the burden of accommodation on the…

This module, intended for use by special education teachers, defines pragmatics as the ability to use verbal and nonverbal language to take part in a conversation, based on the situation and the conversational partner. It provides responses to seven frequently asked questions about pragmatics and the transition from school to working life for…

The report on the transition of handicapped youth to adult and working life in member nations of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has four parts: the first states the aim of the study, its scope, and the activities undertaken; the second outlines the major issues which emerged; the third describes innovations and…

The report, which is part of a series, provides a summary of a 1985 meeting. The meeting was intended to (1) provide an overview of the Secondary Transition Intervention Effectiveness Institute's programs, (2) discuss how participants could be involved in the Institute's programs, and (3) develop a format for networking the results of federally…

This final report describes the goals and activities of the Mentor Project, a feasibility study involving the use of handicapped employees as mentors to assist handicapped youth to make the transition from school to work. The first section details the context of the study, including the project's conception of the mentor experience, a review of…

The article presents results of a national survey which collected demographic and descriptive data from U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) transition grant awardees. The awardees received funding under five separate categories: youth employment; post secondary projects; service…

This directory provides basic information on all research projects receiving funding, as of December 1987, from the Division of Innovation and Development, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education. The projects included are the field-initiated and student-initiated grants, most of the directed competitions, and the…

Using tests that are neither reliable nor valid, school districts are currently categorizing large numbers of children as unready for entrance into kindergarten and first grade. Parents are being asked to wait a year before sending their children to public school classes or to place them in a pre-kindergarten class. Other children complete…

The sample parent handbook contains handouts used with a series of four meetings in which parents of preschool handicapped children learn how to be their child's advocate. The first meeting is on Testing and the Individualized Education Program (IEP) and includes: "Evaluation Responsibilities,""Questions You May Want To…

The guide, developed by the Secondary Transition and Employment Project (STEP) in Idaho, is intended to provide students with mild, moderate, or severe handicaps with hands-on community work experience in order to determine vocational preferences and to provide instruction in work-related skills, functional academics, and job-seeking skills. Work…

The guide, developed by the Secondary Transition and Employment Project (STEP) in Idaho, provides an overview of its sequential vocational curriculum intended to help students with mild, moderate, and severe handicaps to: (1) identify their vocational preferences and aptitudes; (2) use community resources to find out about jobs; (3) observe and…

This manual is designed to help schools in the development, implementation, and evaluation of activities that assist individuals with special needs in making vertical transitions from school to postsecondary training or employment and horizontal transitions between the school, home, and community. It presents, in section 1, a model that…

This paper reviews problems and recommendations related to the transition of youth from school to work following special education programs in Minnesota. The results of several state-wide studies are reported. The studies include: (1) a review of the employment status of former special education students, (2) a survey of needs, (3) a study of the…