What are the roles and responsibilities of school counselors when working with students with disabilities?
Page 5: Assist with Transition Planning
According to legislation related to people with disabilities, transition planning consists of the development and implementation of activities designed to prepare students with disabilities for postsecondary options, such as work, college, or supported living. Transition activities are individualized and are typically designed to address skills or knowledge relevant to the students’ postsecondary goals. The level of a school counselor’s involvement with transition planning depends on the school district’s resources.
Amy Milsom, PhD
Assistant professor
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Department of Counseling
and Educational Development
Although transition planning is considered to be a primary role of school counselors in working with students with disabilities, in practice this is not always the case. Listen as Amy Milsom from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro discusses her findings (time: 0:58).
Informing students about the world of work is an important step toward gaining an understanding of skill sets necessary for careers. Dr. Milsom discusses what skills students might need for successful transition to the world of work (time: 1:11).
Transcript: Amy Milsom, PhD
Transition Planning as a Primary Role of School Counselors
I actually conducted some research looking at the roles that school counselors assume with students with disabilities. Looking at K–12, the majority did not actively participate in the transition planning for students with disabilities. When I looked more specifically at the high school counselors, they said that they did not. Time is limited for them, as it is for every other educator. I think a lot of it is that they don’t often have a lot of training. They don’t feel comfortable that they know a lot about what students with disabilities need, and/ or they might not feel comfortable working with those students. They may not feel they’re effective. So, rather than try to do things that they don’t think they’re qualified for, they may just step back and hope that somebody else takes care of it. It might be again that other people in the schools are already assuming those responsibilities, and there’s no need for the school counselor to jump in because there are others who are doing everything that that student might need. So, again, it’s not clear but those are some pretty common reasons.
Transcript: Amy Milsom, PhD
Informing Students About the World of Work
When we talk about career planning, career and life-span development is what you plan to be doing with the rest of your life. All students can benefit from understanding what’s out there in terms of jobs—the world of work, as we say. What kinds of jobs are there? Why is one job maybe a better fit than another? What are the requirements—the educational requirements, the skill requirements—of engaging in one job versus another? So part of what school counselors should be doing with all students is helping them to explore the world of work. Another component of that, though, is self-knowledge. Individuals need to know what they’re good at, what they’re not good at, what they like, what they value, what they think they might value in the future. So, school counselors should be also helping students to understand themselves a little better. Now for students with disabilities in particular, self-knowledge, I think, is particularly important and often addressed in the scope of that transition plan. Individuals need to know about self-determination skills, self-advocacy. Students need to speak up for themselves, ask for what they need. Well, how can you ask for what you need until you know what you need? Do you know what you’re good at, you know what you’re not so good at, you know your limitations?
In order to assist students with their transition plans, school counselors should be knowledgeable and up-to-date about the options available for all students in postsecondary pursuits.
Transition Support
All students, including those with disabilities, may benefit from understanding what types of jobs are available in society. However, students who are transitioning into a career immediately after high school, rather than continuing their education in a postsecondary environment, have different needs. Students must recognize what they enjoy doing as well as what they value. In assisting students with disabilities in preparing for postsecondary transitions, it is important to recognize the number of ways that the school counselor may participate. Some transition supports may overlap and help both those students who are transitioning directly to work after high school and students making the move to postsecondary education.
Transition Support That School Counselors Provide for Students with Disabilities
- Include students with disabilities in all of the career-development activities offered to the general student population.
- Administer interest inventories to help students identify possible future jobs.
- Administer aptitude tests and review these instruments with students to help identify areas of strength.
- Provide exposure (e.g., through job shadowing) to various careers.
- Refer students to various organizations (e.g., colleges, businesses) for information.
- Help students to request accommodations for college entrance exams.
- Connect students with college disability-services offices.
- Provide skills training in relation to self-advocacy and assertiveness.
- Collaborate with rehabilitation counselors.
Activity
Read about one of Mr. Hunter’s students and write brief answers to the questions below.
Andrea is an eleventh-grade student who has been deaf since birth. Her parents sacrificed a lot when she was young in order to prepare her for kindergarten. They got her involved with the local Deaf community, taught her sign language, and supported her as she learned to read lips. They have also been strong advocates for her throughout his school years, attending every IEP meeting and often requesting additional, reasonable services that the school was not readily providing. They would even call teachers to remind them that, in addition to providing outlines of their lectures, they should be sure to face Andrea when speaking so that she could read their lips.
As a result, Andrea is well adjusted, academically successful, and interested in attending a four-year college. What her parents have not realized, however, is that—in their efforts to make sure she has received the services she needs and deserves—Andrea has reached the eleventh grade without ever having to personally request assistance. Mr. Hunter feels confident, based on Andrea’s participation in career-development activities offered through classroom guidance, that Andrea possesses self-knowledge and accurate expectations for what college will be like academically and socially. But Mr. Hunter is unsure whether Andrea understands the need to speak for herself.
- What skills will Andrea need to learn in order to succeed at a four-year college?
- How can Mr. Hunter help Andrea to develop these skills, and how can he assist Andrea’s parents in helping her?
- What skills will Andrea need to learn in order to succeed at a four-year college?
While speaking with Andrea about college, Mr. Hunter recognizes her lack of self-advocacy skills. He knows that Andrea will need these skills in order to be successful in her future setting. Andrea will have to learn how to educate others about her deafness. She will need to learn to instruct others how best to communicate with her. She will also need to learn to identify the resources in her environment (e.g., Office of Disability Opportunities, local Deaf chapter, local interpreters).
- How can Mr. Hunter help Andrea develop these skills as well as assist Andrea’s parents in helping her?
Mr. Hunter might meet with Andrea and ask her to create a checklist of instructional needs for her teachers and peers to use in the classroom. For example, Andrea may write on her checklist that she needs to instruct teachers to face her when they speak to her. Mr. Hunter can help Andrea to develop these skills by having her practice each item with her current teachers. Mr. Hunter and Andrea can also role-play proactive responses to negative encounters in the school. Mr. Hunter can also meet with Andrea and her parents to encourage them to gradually hand over responsibilities (e.g., making her own appointments for one-on-one meetings with her teachers, initiating meetings with Mr. Hunter about financial aid support for college, obtaining and maintaining a part-time job). He explains that this will foster independent living skills without overwhelming Andrea. Mr. Hunter will also educate Andrea about disability laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and other civil rights legislation.
