Factors associated with the employment status of handicapped youth were investigated in a sample of 462 youths from nine Vermont school districts. All students from these districts who exited high school between 1979 and 1983, and who had been receiving special education services, were identified. Interviews were conducted with 301 youths to solicit current employment status, employment and training history, and use of social services. Additional information regarding educational history, age, and community demographics was obtained through individual student records. Employment outcomes were related to secondary vocational and training experiences, controlling for geographic location, gender, and level of functioning. Results indicated that over half the sample were employed; that most of the youths found jobs through the “self-family-friend network”; that part-time or summer work during high school were predictors of percentage of time employed since high school and current wages. These findings were discussed in terms of their implications for researchers, service providers, and policy makers.
A policy study initiated in 1996 investigated implementation of the transition mandates of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in nine sites across the United States. Five sites were identified as model sites because they had a national reputation for effective implementation of transition policies and practices, while four were identified as representative sites demonstrating progress in the face of challenges typically associated with local level implementation. Visits to each site included in-depth interviews, observations, and document reviews. Following the visits, procedures associated with qualitative inquiry were used to prepare individual summary reports and conduct a cross-case analysis. Results of the cross-case analysis are presented, including factors supporting and posing challenges to implementation.
A multistate, qualitative policy study, conducted from 1989 to 1992, investigated how 6 states and 12 local school districts implemented the least restrictive environment (LRE) provision of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Eight sites were relatively high users of separate facilities for educating students with disabilities, and 10 were low users. Six factors, including financing and the state-local context, influenced the implementation of LRE. Although the LRE policy has influenced the way that states and districts educate students with disabilities, the federal law and regulations have little control over how leaders view the policy, the structure and political realities present, and the recursive nature of policy systems at all levels.
Factors associated with the employment status of students with and without handicaps were investigated in a sample of 133 youths from nine Vermont school districts. Students with handicaps who exited high school in 1984-85, and who had been receiving special education services, were identified and compared to non-college-bound, vocationally oriented students without handicaps. Two sets of interviews were conducted, one in 1986 and one in 1987. During these interviews, information was obtained on current employment status, employment and training history, social service utilization, and residential status. Additional information regarding educational history, age, and community demographics was obtained through individual student records. Employment, educational, and residential experiences were compared across both groups of former students.Results indicated that students without handicaps had more favorable post-high-school employment outcomes than students with handicaps. Across groups, males were more likely to be employed than females and employment was positively associated with paid work experiences during high school. Vocational class experience was positively associated with later employment for handicapped but not for nonhandicapped students. Although some changes in employment status over the 2-year period did occur, the majority of former students remained in the same employment status (full time, part time, or unemployed) for both years. The results of the study help to put the employment status of youth with handicaps into context and suggest both similarities and differences between students with and without handicaps in employment correlates.Over the past two decades, there have been substantial changes in the organization and delivery of educational and other developmental services to persons with handicapping conditions (Laski, 1985;Singer & Butler, 1987). Efforts have been made to provide such services within less restrictive settings, to enhance the ability of persons with handicaps to participate more fully in the life of the community (Biklen, 1985; Heal, Haney, & Amado, 1988). Within this context, an important social policy objective has been to increase the employment opportunities afforded to such individuals. Recently, a number of follow-up and longitudinal studies concerned with the postschool employment status of students with handicapping con-
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