College Readiness Among High School Students with Special Education Needs

A large number of students who are graduating from high school are not prepared to be successful in a postsecondary environment. The purpose of this study was to determine what college readiness skills high school students with special educational needs developed prior to graduation. Through qualitative methods, interviews were conducted and data was collected with four high school students with differing categories of disabilities, gender and post secondary expectations. Findings from the study indicated that the students\u27 high school experiences impacted their high school performance, time management and self-advocacy skills, knowledge of services offered at college and meaningful relationships with staff and peers. The findings also indicated that students who were average to above average academically in high school were prepared for college; however they felt unprepared regarding services and programs available to them in the postsecondary setting. An area of recommendation is for schools to increase focus on time management and organizational skills and curriculum for all high school students