Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Preparing Students
With Disabilities
for School-to-Work
Transition and
Postschool Life
STOCK PHOTO IMAGE
Department of Labor, 1991), and onethird of students are not prepared for
even entry-level work (U.S. General
Accounting Office, 1993).
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COUNSELING 101
appropriate. The core elements of workforce preparation for students with disabilities are the same as those for their
nondisabled peersawareness of interests and aptitudes, exposure to career
options, and assessing and building
skillsbut they require more extensive
and individualized support from school
personnel and other adults.
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COUNSELING 101
Source: Levinson, E. M. (2002). Best practices in school-based vocational assessment. In A. Thomas & J. Grimes (Eds.), Best practices in school psychology IV (pp.
15691584). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.
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Conclusion
For most people, work is essential
to a livelihood, a sense of worth and
accomplishment, and overall life
satisfaction. Unfortunately, a disproportionate number of students with
disabilities or low academic performance do not go on to experience
steady, satisfying, or gainful employment. Schools must give more focus,
in both time and resources, to
preparing noncollege track students
for work or postschool training. A
comprehensive transdisciplinary
approach to both assessment and
planning are essential elements of
programs that successfully prepare
students for postschool life. PL
References
Brown, D., & Minor, C. W. (1989).
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