Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 52, December 27, 2024
By October 1, 2025, all candidates for an endorsement as a
Transition Specialist will be required to complete a program aligned to the
Advanced Specialty Set for Special Education Transition Specialist (2015),
published by the Council for Exceptional Children, 2900 Crystal Drive, Suite
1000, Arlington VA 22202-3557, and available at
https://exceptionalchildren.org/standards/specialty-sets-specific-practice-areas.
(No later amendments to or editions of these guidelines are incorporated.) The
standards effective until September 30, 2025 are as follows:
a) Foundations - The competent transition
specialist understands the philosophical, historical, and legal foundations of
special education.
1) Knowledge - The
competent transition specialist understands:
A) theoretical and applied models of
transition;
B) transition-related
legislation in the fields of special and career and technical education,
rehabilitation, labor, and civil rights;
C) the roles of federal, State, and local
legislation and implications for providing transition services at the local
level;
D) history of national
transition initiatives; and
E)
research on student outcomes and effective transition practices.
2) Performance - The competent
transition specialist meets the performance standards set forth in Section
28.100(a)(2).
b) Characteristics of Learners - The
competent transition specialist understands the impact that disabilities have
on the cognitive, physical, emotional, social, and communication development of
an individual and provides opportunities that support the intellectual, social,
and personal development of all students (ages 3-22).
1) Knowledge - The competent transition
specialist understands:
A) implications of
student characteristics with respect to post-school outcomes, environments, and
support needs; and
B) school and
post-school services available to specific populations of individuals with
disabilities.
2)
Performance - The competent transition specialist meets the performance
standards set forth in Section
28.100(b)(2).
c) Assessment - The competent transition
specialist understands the educational assessment process and uses various
assessment strategies to support the continuous development of all students.
1) Knowledge - The competent transition
specialist understands:
A) formal and informal
career and vocational assessment approaches; and
B) formal and informal approaches for
identifying students' interests and preferences related to post-school goals
and educational experiences.
2) Performance - The competent transition
specialist:
A) matches skills and interests of
the student to skills and demands required by vocational or employment
settings, community residential situation, and other community participation
options;
B) interprets results of
career and vocational assessment for individuals, families, and
professionals;
C) in collaboration
with individuals with disabilities and agencies, designs, implements, and uses
program evaluation procedures to assess and improve the effectiveness of
transition education and services, including evaluation of students'
post-school outcomes; and
D) uses a
variety of formal and informal career, transition, and vocational assessment
procedures.
d)
Planning for Instruction - The competent transition specialist understands how
students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional
opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners. The specialist understands
instructional planning and designs instruction based on knowledge of the
discipline, students, community, and curriculum goals.
1) Knowledge - The competent transition
specialist understands:
A) job-seeking and job
retention skills identified by employers as essential for successful
employment;
B) career and technical
education methods and curricula;
C)
the range of post-school options within specific outcome areas; and
D) transition planning strategies that
facilitate information collection and input from appropriate
participants.
2)
Performance - The competent transition specialist:
A) identifies a variety of outcomes and
instructional options specific to the community for each post-school outcome
area;
B) assists teachers to
identify, in conjunction with the student, appropriate educational program
planning team members;
C) evaluates
students' educational programs with respect to measurable post-school goals and
alignment of those goals with instructional activities;
D) monitors student, family, and agency
participation in transition planning and implementation; and
E) demonstrates procedures to ensure the
inclusion of specific transition-related goals in the educational program
plan.
e)
Learning Environment - The competent transition specialist uses an
understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a
learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active
engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
1) Knowledge - The competent transition
specialist understands:
A) methods for
providing work-based and other community-based education for individuals with
disabilities; and
B) methods for
linking appropriate academic content to transition-related goals.
2) Performance - The competent
transition specialist:
A) identifies and
facilitates appropriate modifications within work, residential, career and
technical training, and other community environments;
B) assesses and develops natural support
systems to facilitate transition to specific post-school environments;
and
C) develops residential,
work-based, and other community-based educational programs for individuals with
exceptional learning needs.
f) Collaborative Relationships - The
competent transition specialist uses knowledge of effective written, verbal,
and visual communication techniques to foster active inquiry, collaboration,
and supportive interaction among professionals, parents, paraprofessional
educators, and students.
1) Knowledge - The
competent transition specialist understands:
A) methods and strategies for increasing
families' knowledge and skills about transition-related issues and topics,
including transition-focused educational program development;
B) procedures and requirements for referring
students to community service agencies;
C) methods for increasing collaborative
transition service delivery through interagency agreements and collaborative
funding; and
D) strategies for
involving individuals with disabilities in all levels of collaborative
transition program planning and evaluation.
2) Performance - The competent transition
specialist:
A) systematically identifies
family service needs related to transition outcomes and assists families to
connect with support networks;
B)
involves individuals with disabilities, families, and community agencies in
establishing transition-related policy;
C) assesses and uses student support systems
to facilitate the post-school transition of individuals with
disabilities;
D) provides
transition-focused technical assistance and professional development in
collaboration with family members for educators, community agency personnel,
and other relevant transition stakeholders;
E) collaborates with and participates in
transition-focused interagency coordinating bodies;
F) develops coordinated interagency
strategies to collect, share, and use student assessment data, with appropriate
input and authorization of students and families;
G) uses strategies for resolving differences
that may arise in the implementation of interagency agreements or the provision
of transition services for individuals with disabilities; and
H) identifies future post-school service
needs using transition planning documents in conjunction with relevant
agencies.
g)
Professionalism and Ethical Practices - The competent transition specialist
understands teaching as a profession, maintains standards of professional
conduct, and provides leadership to improve student learning and well-being.
1) Knowledge - The competent transition
specialist understands:
A) the scope and role
of a transition specialist; and
B)
the scope and role of agency personnel related to transition-focused education
and services.
2)
Performance - The competent transition specialist demonstrates positive regard
for the capacity and operating constraints of community organizations involved
in transition-focused education services.