The transition from high school to postsecondary education for students with learning disabilities: A survey of college service coordinators

Federal legislation requires that students with disabilities receive services to assist them in the transition from high school to post-secondary life. Transition services must address students ’ understanding of their disability, learning strengths and weaknesses, career decision–making skills, and preparation for the increased demands of postsecondary education. This study surveyed coordinators of spe-cial services for students with disabilities at 74 colleges and universities in New York state. Respondents provided their perceptions of how well the students they served had been prepared by the transition services they had received in high school. Overall, little satisfac-tion with transition services was expressed. Respondents were most satisfied with high schools ’ provision of updated evaluations for students prior to enrollment in college, and they rated students ’ preparation for self-advocacy as the greatest weakness of current tran-sition services. In the 1976–1977 school year, imme-diately following the passage of theEducation for All Handicapped Children Act, 796,000 students were served in public schools under the clas-sification of specific learning disability. By 1997–1998, the number of students so identified had risen to 2,726,000