The impact of the student directed transition planning lessons on the self-advocacy and decision making skills of students with disabilities: a mixed methods analysis

Abstract

The purpose of transition services within special education is to prepare students for post-secondary education, employment, and independent living. Self-determination reflects the belief that all individuals, including those with disabilities, have the right to make decisions regarding their own lives. Because self-advocacy and decision-making skills are crucial to the success of students with disabilities in order to overcome the challenges in their adult lives, learning these skills is critical. Teaching and promoting these skills within the provisions of transition services for youth with disabilities has become an expectation of the federal government with the reauthorizations of IDEIA in 2004 and the Americans with Disabilities Act in 2009. The Student-Directed Transition Planning (SDTP) lessons provide a vehicle for teaching students the self-determination skills necessary in order to self-advocate and make decisions. The purpose of this two phase, explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to examine the impact of the Student Directed Transition Planning (SDTP) lessons on the self-advocacy and decision making skills of ninth grade high school students with disabilities. The results of this study support that the Student Directed Transition Planning (STDP) lessons is an effective instructional intervention for improving the self-advocacy and decision making skills of ninth grade students with disabilities.