District Implementation of Research-Based Practices for Transition Planning With Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Youth With Disabilities and Their Families

Abstract

Post-school outcomes are poor for youth with disabilities, in general, but even more discouraging for certain subpopulations of individuals with disabilities, particularly those from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds. The authors discuss structural inequalities in public schools which potentially contribute to the poorer transition outcomes of CLD youth with disabilities compared with their White peers with disabilities and identify 11 research-based practices (RBPs) for supporting CLD youth with disabilities and their families during the transition planning process. A study is subsequently described involving the development and implementation of a survey measuring the degree to which these 11 RBPs are being implemented in public school districts. The survey was administered during 2011 to 2016 to interdisciplinary transition teams representing more than 90 school districts in the United States who were attending state capacity-building transition services training institutes. Group consensus was sought on the 11 items appearing on the survey. Results from the study found that most school districts were not implementing any of the RBPs to any significant degree, school staff were in need of cultural competence professional development training, CLD families of transition-aged youth with disabilities lacked access to quality resources and supports, and CLD youth with disabilities lacked opportunities to strengthen their self-determination skills. Implications for practice and future research on this topic is presented and discussed.

Transition Planning: Voices of Chinese and Vietnamese Parents of Youth With Autism and Intellectual Disabilities

“…Instead, the educators were more interested in their own information and perspectives about their youth. They also lacked training to collaborate with families from diverse backgrounds (Gothberg et al, 2019).…”

“…In the last decade, studies that focused on linguistically diverse families of students with disabilities have continued to indicate that poor interpretation and translation services are often provided in school meetings (e.g., Lo, 2008;Lo & Wu, 2009). School districts also acknowledged that they often are not able to hire interpreters and translators who were knowledgeable about special education and familiar with the culture of the families who they provide the services (Gothberg et al, 2019). Poor quality of interpretation and translation services often does more harm than good.…”

“…Gothberg and her colleagues (2019) surveyed 90 school districts in the United States about whether or not they had implemented any of the 11 research-based practices (RBPs) for transition planning with diverse youth with disabilities and their families that were identified by Greene (2011). They found that most school districts did not fully implement any of the RBPs.…”

Facing Double Jeopardy: The Transition Experiences of Latina Family Caregivers of Young Adults With Disabilities Living in a Rural Community

“…Finally, many rural communities are experiencing substantial growth in Latino populations (J. Johnson, & Strange, 2009), and schools are generally not prepared to ensure the engagement of culturally and linguistically diverse families (Achola & Greene, 2016; Barrio, 2017; Gothberg, Greene, & Kohler, 2019; Ramirez, 2003).…”

National Picture of the Self-Determination Characteristics of Secondary School English Learners With Disabilities

“…For example, ELs with disabilities who express goals in formal transition planning meetings have encountered teacher biases and experienced a lack of culturally responsive opportunities to express self-determination (Povenmire-Kirk et al, 2010). Few school districts report implementing research-based practices recommended for transition planning with ELs with disabilities, particularly culturally responsive practices focused on improving student selfdetermination in transition planning (Gothberg et al, 2019). Yet, culturally relevant pedagogy is an initial step in fostering postschool transitions, invoking perceptions and experiences about adulthood and disability across diverse families (Harry et al, 1999).…”