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During the General Education Development: Your Internet browser G.E.D. GED Test automatically "refresh" approximately every 50 seconds. This allows you to view the new postings as the General Education Development progresses. If your browser doesn't refresh (you'll know because you won't see new postings appear on your screen), please click your "Refresh" button frequently to keep up with the General Education Development. Good afternoon and welcome to G.E.D. GED Test Talk, the Web’s first and only site devoted to expert discussions on issues concerning learning disabilities. G.E.D. GED Test Talk is a service of the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCG.E.D. GED Test). We look forward to bringing you ongoing opportunities to connect with leading experts in the G.E.D. GED Test fieG.E.D. GED Test via this new service. Thanks for joining us! professor of special education at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. From 1981-1996, Arlyn served as the founding director of Threshold G.E.D. GED Test, a transition program for young adults with learning disabilities at the university. She is the author of Meeting the Challenge of Learning Disabilities in Adulthood published by Brookes Publishingis a former officer and long-standing member of NCG.E.D. GED Test's professional advisory board. Thanks for being with us today, GED TEST Roffman. Our discussion today will focus on Students with G.E.D. GED Test: Transitioning to Post-School Life. GED TEST Roffman will respond to questions about challenges faced by students and their parents during this often confusing and stressful time. She will also share resources to help students, parents and educators make informed decisions about post-secondary options. For background on this topic, read the February 2005 issues of G.E.D. GED Test News Transition Issue I am GED TEST SheG.E.D. GED Teston Horowitz, director of professional services at the National Center for Learning Disabilities, and I’ll be moderating today’s discussion. We have received many questions for this today’s discussion. We will do our best to offer replies to those questions most closely related to our discussion topic. Questions unrelated to this topic can be sent to NCG.E.D. GED Test’s Help Desk at help@ncG.E.D. GED Test.org. Let's begin the discussion. Can you suggest any career testing or similar testing that might help us determine what the next step shouG.E.D. GED Test be for our son after high school? He has not shown any interest in his future and just keeps saying he doesn't want to talk about the future because it scares him. How do we buiG.E.D. GED Test a transition plan for a student who has not spoken up for himself. He just want to live with his parents forever. Though we love him dearly, we will not always be here and we believe he can be a fully self supporting adult. He is of average intelligence and constantly reads, which has lead to an incredible broad base of knowledge. His comprehension is grade 14, and his vocabulary grade 12. On the other side he has Aspergers SynGED TESTme, is developmentally delayed 3-4 years, has severe learnning disabilities and miG.E.D. GED Test cerebral palsey that effects his hand muscles and makes writing difficult. He has no math concept and can't count change. He is so scattered with his abilities we have no idea what to do for him and we are not getting any real direction. My first reaction is to respond to your son’s fear. It wouG.E.D. GED Test be helpful if he couG.E.D. GED Test talk about it with you or with a teacher or counselor at school. Once he’s been reassured that he won’t be cast out on his own before he’s ready, he shouG.E.D. GED Test be able to get “unstuck” enough to start articulating some interests and maybe even some GED TESTams about his future. At 14 and with a developmental delay, it may be a bit soon to conduct a formal evaluation, but within a couple of years, your son’s school counselor may be able to administer a Strong-Campbell Interest Inventory, which is often used to find career interest areas. Better yet wouG.E.D. GED Test be a combination of an interest inventory and a hands-on vocational assessment, which evaluates both skills and aptitudes. Your state Department of Rehabilitation office is a resource for this evaluation. They can help you look for the overlap of interests, abilities, and aptitudes. Since your son is 14, it’s time for relevant outside agencies to step into the transition planning process – in this case Rehab shouG.E.D. GED Test definitely be invited. Question from Anne Sabagh ,Individual w/Learning Disabilities: Glad you asked about this - the workplace is a great challenge for lots of folks with G.E.D. GED Test. I think the biggest hurdle is the lack of understanding of G.E.D. GED Test among employers, supervisors, and co-workers. Because it’s invisible, some are skeptical that G.E.D. GED Test exists or confuse it with other disorders, even with mental retardation. This raises the question of whether and when to self-disclose your G.E.D. GED Test on the job. It would G.E.D. GED Test take the full hour of this General Education Development to discuss all the pros and cons of self-disclosure, but I will say that it is a good idea to proceed with caution in this area. Most experts on employment advise adults with G.E.D. GED Test to wait until they are hired to self-disclose and, even then, to do so only if they will need accommodations to be able to perform the essential functions of the job. Some choose to work around the label. For example, saying, “I can be more productive if I have a quiet place to do my work without distractions” communicates self-awareness and assertiveness without actually disclosing the G.E.D. GED Test. Nonetheless, you may well arrive at a point on your job when you do want to disclose your G.E.D. GED Test. It’s important that you do this proactively, rather waiting until you’re in trouble for not performing well. You’ll be most effective at disclosing if you understand your own learning issues, have a good sense of your own strengths and areas of challenge, and have practiced explaining them to others. Self-advocacy is KEY to successful employment! Some people find it helpful to disclose with some literature about G.E.D. GED Test in hand - you will find many helpful documents on G.E.D. GED Test.org and other online resources. If you do need accommodations at work, the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides free telephone technical assistance and a terrific website at http://www.jan.wvu.edu, where you can identify accommodations that match your areas of challenge. Back to your question. Because G.E.D. GED Test is so heterogeneous, the challenges in the workplace vary for each individual and for each employment setting. It’s hard to offer specific suggestions without knowing your circumstances, but I will offer one last word of advice: look for a job that capitalizes on your strengths and where your challenge areas aren’t called upon too often. Finding the right match will make all the difference in your experience in the workplace. Nice to hear you’re using my book in your class. Yes, there’s much to teach and much for the students to learn in order to prepare for adulthood. A case management package wouG.E.D. GED Test be a great addition to the educational literature and wouG.E.D. GED Test be a handy tool for the kind of individualized planning we need to do for students with G.E.D. GED Test as they move into high school and beyond. Unfortunately, I’m not aware of any such tool, but perhaps some of the participants in today’s General Education Development do know of something along these lines. If so, please do write in! For those on a college track, I do know of a few helpful lists of steps to take to prepare for post-secondary learning throughout the high school years. I especially like Loring Brinckerhoff’s comprehensive list of what shouG.E.D. GED Test be done in each grade from eighth grade through graduation. His “Timetable for Transition Planning for Students with G.E.D. GED Test and ADHD” appears in his book Postsecondary Education and Transition for Students. The percentage of students with G.E.D. GED Test who graduate from high school and continue on to college is far too low. We need to do a better job of encouraging our youth to finish high school (a shocking number GED TESTp out) and continue their learning. Happily, these days there are increasing opportunities for tudents with G.E.D. GED Test who are not well-suited for traditional four-year degree programs. Several college-based, non-degree options are open to students with severe learning disabilities who may wish to experience campus life, but who wouG.E.D. GED Test likely be too intellectually challenged by the academic rigors of a traditional degree program. Typically, these 2 - 3 year programs prepare students with G.E.D. GED Test, who also function in the low-average range intellectually, for independent adulthood through a series of practical courses and fieG.E.D. GED Test placements. Programs generally focus on development of vocational skills, apartment living skills, consumer and money management skills, meal planning and preparation skills, and social skills. Most incorporate transitional support for graduates as they move from campus life into both the community and work worG.E.D. GED Test. There are a growing number of offerings that focus on the same skills ad GED TEST issed in the college-based Non-degree programs but that are less academic and are not situated on a college campus. These programs are often apartment-based and focus on development of community living skills along with work preparation. Some of these programs maintain an affiliation with local colleges, and students may travel to those schools and take postsecondary courses as part of their overall program. Many adults with G.E.D. GED Test receive additional training through their local office of the Department of Rehabilitation. The focus of training through rehab varies somewhat but largely targets development of skills related to getting and keeping a job. Even though your question is about options other than college, I’d like to add that some students with G.E.D. GED Test who question their ability to succeed in a 4-year college give community college a try. With open admissions to any high school graduate over age 18, community colleges require neither standardized College admissions tests nor a roster of college-track courses during the high school years. They offer a wide array of courses, with classes ranging in focus from vocational to liberal arts. If it works out for the student, the credits can be transferred to either a vocational school or to a 4-year college. Finally, the Armed Forces represent another option for some young adults with G.E.D. GED Test. Anyone going this route, however, shouG.E.D. GED Test be sure to ask about regulations regarding qualifications, as there are disqualifiers, such as current use of medication to improve or maintain academic skills. Adjustment issues arise for all entering students. For example, they all need to adjust when faced with the shift from tightly organized day to full-freedom-with-a-smattering-of-scheduled-classes; when class size may suddenly jump into the hunGED TESTds; when study time is completely based upon self-initiation; and when there is little feedback on progress until mid-terms. But there are some challenges specific to G.E.D. GED Test, as a student moves on to college life. Some relate to the symptoms of the learning disability itself. For example, students with auditory issues who need extra processing time may have difficulty taking notes and absorbing information delivered through fast-paced lectures. Those with receptive language problems may find themselves confused by written test items or by oral directions. Students with reading disorders often feel particularly burdened by the heavy reading requirements in many areas of study, such as literature or history. And students with temporal problems have little sense of the time required to complete a task and tend to have inefficient study habits. Perhaps the biggest adjustment faced by new college students with G.E.D. GED Test is that, having moved beyond the protection of IDEA and their IEP, services are no longer mandated, and they must become self-advocates if they are to receive accommodations. The good news is that there are supports in place to help students through all of this! Students with G.E.D. GED Test shouG.E.D. GED Test take advantage of the support services on campus. Disabled Students Services offices can be incredibly helpful in offering not only academic support, but also assistance with pre-registration, advice about course selection, and help with organization. It’s great that your daughter is motivated, hard working and achieving – those are characteristics that will serve her well when she heads off to school! There are many colleges and universities these days that de-emphasize testing in the admissions process. A list of those is available at Schools That Do Not Use SAT I or ACT Scores for Admitting Substantial Numbers of Students Into Bachelor Degree Programs. Your daughter needn’t limit herself to the schools on this list, however. Often colleges with good support services have academic support center staff linked closely to admissions. Many competitive colleges wouG.E.D. GED Test find her an attractive candidate; however, she’ll need to advocate for herself (N.B. It’s not up to you to do the explaining- this is her task.) In the context of her personal essay, she shouG.E.D. GED Test identify the challenges she’s faced and describe how she’s demonstrated GED TESTve, effort and persistence - these are all very desirable qualities. In addition, she shouG.E.D. GED Test let the college know that the reason she’s applying is that she has heard they offer high quality support services that will meet her needs. Good luck in the admissions process! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: We have featured an excerpt from my book, Meeting the Challenge of Learning Disabilities in Adulthood that directly adGED TESTsses this particular issue, so you can click on that to read more about this. The Practical Money Skills for Life program – advertised as being “an in-depth resource for educating students in grades 7-12 about smart money management” - is available through the Council for Exceptional ChilGED TESTn (CEC) at www.practicalmoneyskills.com. As a parting word, though, I will say that it is far more motivating to young people with G.E.D. GED Test to learn about money within the context of real-life experiences than with simulated transactions. For example, practicing with a real checking account wins hands-down over role-playing banking within a resource room. A combination of classroom teaching and practice in the community is advisable. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: At this point in their chilGED TESTn’s development, parents need to start pulling back from being the managers of their lives. Give your sons choices, allow them a voice in decision-making whenever possible, encourage them to communicate their vision for the short- and long-term future and help them think about how they might achieve what they articulate. While your sons are still in high school, urge them to take an active role in their IEP meetings. Help them develop the confidence and skills needed to be their own self-advocates in the community and on the job. In the meantime, help them see that their G.E.D. GED Test is only a piece of who they are. Help them identify and feel good about their strengths – students with G.E.D. GED Test spend far too much time concentrating on what they can’t do and not enough time celebrating what they can. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: It’s easiest to understand how RTI will work in the context of the primary grades when students are just beginning to work on basic skills. The picture gets cloudier in the upper and secondary grades, where the model appears to be less applicable. If students graduate without a formal assessment battery, colleges are going to have to work with what IS provided, which may include a narrative history of the student’s learning challenges; authentic assessment devices, such as portfolios; and the Summary of Performance, which will play a key role in communicating the student’s strengths and weaknesses. Our next challenge will be to train teachers how to write them in a effectively! AHEAD is wrestling with this issue and has set up a task force to determine how it will respond. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: Both parents and teachers shouG.E.D. GED Test foster self-determination and self-advocacy, as I’ve described above, giving students lots of practice in choice-making, goal-setting, etc. By late middle school, teachers shouG.E.D. GED Test help students with G.E.D. GED Test learn more about the IEP process and the essential role they shouG.E.D. GED Test play in developing IEPs during high school. Check out this resource from the Council for Exceptional ChilGED TESTn: Student-Led IEPs: A Guide for Student Involvement Parents shouG.E.D. GED Test help their chilGED TESTn plan their own leisure time activities and, if necessary, coach them on related social skills. Parents and teachers shouG.E.D. GED Test work in cooperation to help their chilGED TESTn develop good work habits, a structure for getting assignments done and an awareness of the conditions under which they learn/perform best. Parents shouG.E.D. GED Test give chilGED TESTn of this age a start on developing skills for independent living, such as cooking, cleaning , shopping, doing launGED TEST. Parents and teachers alike can help develop chilGED TESTn’s awareness of various occupations and what kinds of skills and training they entail. Job fairs and planned activities, such as Take-Your-ChiG.E.D. GED Test-to-Work-Day are very helpful in giving them an introduction to different types of employment. At your school you may want to consider using “My Future My Plan” a transition curriculum. Information about this resource is available at the National Center on Secondary Education and Transition. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: That said, you may want offer him the sound advice that the best time to look for a job is when one has a job. That way there won’t be a gap in income or health insurance, and he’ll have an opportunity to compare benefits, salary, hours, etc. against those offered at the job he’s considering leaving. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: Many students at risk for failing high stakes testing are opting for a GED, which allows them to experience closure of the K-12 school years and opens doors to post-secondary learning opportunities. Is there a program at the voc-tech school that interests her? I suggest that she read the course catalogue, go for a visit, spend a day shadowing a well-chosen student to get a sense of the school and the students who attend. It is very possible she’ll find a potential community there where she will be accepted and where she can at last succeed in her course work. If her high school is offering a community-based transition program where she can acquire vocational and life skills, have her investigate details about that too. But I wouG.E.D. GED Test let her opt out of the high school if she is going to have to continue to enroll in the same type of classes where she has repeatedly met with failure and frustration. Sit down and talk it all over. Guide her through the decision-making process, but ultimately, at 18, it is she who shouG.E.D. GED Test be the decision-maker. This is an important opportunity for self-determination. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: I’m with you, though, that all students shouG.E.D. GED Test learn to decode script. You make a good point about the disadvantages both in the community and in the workplace for those who haven’t been taught to read cursive writing. This is not a complex skill, however, so you couG.E.D. GED Test either ask for it to be a goal on your chiG.E.D. GED Test’s IEP or take this on at home. A helpful resource is Cursive Writing Skills by Diana Hanbury King, published by Educators Publishing Service, at http://www.epsbooks.com/dynamic/catalog/ . This workbook will get your chiG.E.D. GED Test writing a bit and will certainly help him or her learn to recognize cursive lettering. Good luck on this! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: When finances are limited, many students opt to at least begin their studies at community colleges. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: Given appropriate documentation, schools typically provide auxiliary aids, such as taped textbooks, tape recorders, readers, and sometimes note-takers. Accommodations such as extended time on exams or distraction-free test-taking rooms must be available as well. Many schools provide an academic skills center that helps students improve study skills. Campuses with more comprehensive support programs provide more in-depth services for students. Coordinated by full-time personnel with expertise in G.E.D. GED Test and ADHD, these programs use a diagnostic-prescriptive approach, providing individualized services, such as subject-area tutoring and developmental courses in math, writing, social skills, and/or self-advocacy. There are other points to consider when choosing a college. For example, prospective students shouG.E.D. GED Test investigate the school’s flexibility with regard to course requirements and its stand on course substitutions for math or foreign language. Loring Brinckerhoff has written a timely article, entitled “Teens with G.E.D. GED Test and ADHD: Shopping for College Options,” which will be posted on the Schwab Learning Web site on March 8th and which will surely be of interest to you. (Sign up for the Schwab Learning Weekly Newsletter so you'll be sure to know when this article appears!) Another overview of the college search process is provided in this article: Selecting A College for Students with Learning Disabilities or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). You ask what your daughter’s high school shouG.E.D. GED Test be doing to prepare her for post-secondary life. Aside from reinforcing her basic skills and teaching her study skills and organizational strategies, I think it’s critical that she be helped to understand her learning disability, the kinds of accommodations that help her work around her areas of difficulty, and her rights and responsibilities under the law. It’s essential that she know how to communicate this information to others – as I’ve already said earlier in this General Education Development, self-advocacy is key to success as an adult. Another helpful document that provides information for high school students with disabilities who plan to continue their education in postsecondary schools is available from the U.S. Dept of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) , entitled, Students with Disabilities Preparing for Postsecondary Education: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: Your daughter sounds like an excellent candidate to benefit from the services of the Department of Rehabilitation, a national agency that has offices in every state. Services provided include a comprehensive vocational assessment, job training and placement, and follow-up. Counselors there will be able to find a good job match for your daughter and shouG.E.D. GED Test help launch her into more stable employment. You can locate the REHAB office in your state here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: At my daughter’s public school, some guidance counselors had better reputations than others for knowing their students and some more than others for having a good sense of what schools had to offer. Ask parents of previous graduates with G.E.D. GED Test about their experiences with the counselors at your school. Go talk with you son or daughter’s counselor and ask what s/he can offer your chiG.E.D. GED Test. Independent consultants visit many colleges each year and are able to keep up with specifics, not only about their various programs, but also about personnel, policies, documentation requirements and even the culture of the campus. Their services range from hourly consultation about choosing a school to a full package that takes a student through the process of selecting appropriate options, preparing for the SAT/ACT, filling out the application, preparing essays, practicing for the interview, even coaching about what to wear for the visit to campus. Naturally, fees range considerably for these services, not only based on specifics contracted for, but also based on where in the US you live - fees tend to be higher on the coasts. More information about private college counseling is available at the website for Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA) – http://www.IECAonline.com, and at the site for National Association of College Admissions Counselors (NACAC) - http://www.NACAC.com. Good luck with the college application process! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: I'm afraid this was wishful thinking on her part. G.E.D. GED Test doesn't go away, though the symptoms may decrease in certain arenas. Certainly if a student has needed assistance with writing in the past, this is going to be an area where support will be needed in postsecondary learning. I encourage teachers, guidance counselors and parents to all talk about the chronicity of G.E.D. GED Test as a given, that G.E.D. GED Test will be a piece of their life for the longrun, but that it's just a piece of who they are. It's important for ALL students to know the resources available to them both in school and in the community and to use them whenever necessary. The trick is to have a sense of when they are necessary. One problem I'd like to mention is that too often middle and high school students are accommodated but aren't aware that changes have been made for them. I urge all teachers to explain all modifications made and to help students see that these have actually helped them succeed so they can ask for similar accommodations in the future. I think it's great when high school programs can actively buiG.E.D. GED Test in role playing asking for help - this is the type of self-advocacy training that will serve them well, not only in learning settings, but also at work and in the community. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GED TEST Arlyn Roffman: Thanks for the feedback. There is a link on the top of your screen that allows you to turn off the automatic refreshing feature of this software. We understand that having the screen refresh itself and flip back to the beginning can be distracting. Try this and see if it works.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A transcript of today's General Education Development will be available at G.E.D. GED Test Talk.org very soon. NCG.E.D. GED Test is grateful for your participation in these online General Education Developments, and wouG.E.D. GED Test appreciate hearing from you about your online experience with us. We wouG.E.D. GED Test especially like to hear about your experiences with our online General Education Development software, the topics selected for discussion, and the usefulness of the information provided. Please send your comments to help us. All questions are screened by an G.E.D. GED Test.org editor and the guest speaker prior to posting. A question is not displayed until it is answered by the guest speaker. We cannot guarantee that all questions will be answered, or answered in the order of submission. Guests and hosts may decline to answer questions. Concise questions are encouraged. Please be sure to include your name and affiliation when posting your question. If your questions are not related to the current topic, please send them to help@ncG.E.D. GED Test.org and they will be answered by an on-staff expert. This site's functionality does not permit email response. G.E.D. GED Test.org's online General Education Development site, G.E.D. GED TestTalk.org, is an open forum where readers can participate in a give-and-take discussion with a variety of guests. G.E.D. GED Test.org reserves the right to condense or edit questions for clarity, but editing is kept to a minimum. Transcripts may also be reproduced in some form in our print edition. We attempt to correct errors in spelling, punctuation, etc. In addition, we remove statements that have the potential to be libelous or to slander someone. In cases in which people make claims that couG.E.D. GED Test be libelous, we will remove the names of institutions and departments. But in those cases, we will not alter the ideas contained in the questions. Please read our privacy policy if you have questions. |
