EDCE 7050
Autism
Secondary School and the Transition to Adulthood
During secondary school, planning for post-school life for students with autism extends to career exploration and the use of environmental inventories to assess better matches to the student's needs. The course addresses the breakdown of needs specific to secondary school adolescents with autism. During this period, the parents and the student, and the IEP team work together and develop experiences that lead to participation in post-school life activities. In this course, directs additional attention toward students with autism who have significant, social, emotional, and sensory challenges but not accompanying language or intellectual disability. (formerly known as Asperger's syndrome.)
Parents often face barriers to participation in the transition planning collaboration. The course discusses how to overcome those barriers, such as parental disability, terminally ill parents or intellectually disabled parents, and other challenges that complicate the future of the student. The course addresses when those barriers cannot be overcome; guidance is provided on how to work with the student when the parent is unable to provide the support the student needs to transition successfully.
Student participation in goal development, IEP attendance, sharing their goals, or leading their IEP meeting requires direct instruction about the process. Communication skills are foundational for effective transition planning. This course outlines research-based methods to communicate and understand the motivations of the students. During secondary school, literacy continues to be a focus and includes how technology is used to facilitate learning and provides engaging experiences directed toward life-long learning. The Four Lenses of Learning and The Five Reading, Writing and Talking Processes are used to structure activities. There are multiple pathways for students with autism to achieve post-school goals. This course instructs teachers on the development of pathways toward graduation and a satisfactory post-school life outcome for students with autism.
