Recommendations for Schools A Literature Review of the Transition of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students: Trends, Barriers, and Recommendations Anna Brady, M.S. Ed. & Lillian Durán, Ph.D. Introduction Inclusion Criteria Barriers Limitations Family Specific Acceptance or feelings of shame/embarrassment about the child’s disability7,8 Level of acculturation8 Limited English proficiency7,9,10,11,12,13,14 Cultural communication styles, such as eye contact and other non-verbal communication methods8,15 School Specific Staff’s erroneous assumptions complicate their interactions8 Deficits in the cultural reciprocity1,3,7,9,12,16 Transition assessments not culturally sensitive1 Racial and cultural stereotypes7,10,12 Participants: CLD transition students in special education (ages 14-22 years) CLD recent graduates (ages 18-27 years) Parents of CLD transition students Teachers of CLD transition students Articles: Published in English language from 1995-2015 Literature review articles accepted Conducted only in the USA Included at least one theme (trends, barriers, recommendations) Dearth of research on CLD transition-aged students with disabilities Most studies compared White students with all other CLD groups Lack of randomized controlled trials, therefore, results from the included studies should be interpreted with caution CLD is “defined and characterized by the interactions and comparisons between people of different cultures within a given environment”1. In the USA, CLD students are of minority cultures and/or their first language is not English1. Children who receive special education services must have a disability that is described under one of the 13 categories of IDEA, and their disability must adversely affect their education2. Students with disabilities fare worse than their nondisabled peers in terms of: Postsecondary education and Employment outcomes3,4. CLD students with disabilities face additional barriers to transitioning than their White peers with disabilities5,6. Future Research Explore specific ways that postsecondary outcomes differ between and within minority groups Assess the effectiveness of the types of interventions recommended for teachers (e.g., culturally responsive transition planning, transition assessments, and teachers’ interpersonal skills) Explore the effects of training of both pre-service and in-service transition educators Current Trends All students with disabilities have post-secondary outcome “gaps” compared with their general education peers7,8,17 “Gaps:” lower postsecondary outcomes in levels of education and economic status8 CLD students: Disproportionately represented in certain categories in special education1,5,18 Larger percentages are school aged1 Population increasing at a faster rate compared with Whites1 CLD students with disabilities: Have even greater gaps than White students with disabilities8 Parents less likely to be involved in transition meetings at school than parents of White children with disabilities5 Fare worse than their White peers with disabilities in the areas of employment, postsecondary education, and engagement1,4,17 College attenders are more likely than their White peers to either drop out or spend a longer time completing their program19 Less likely to be employed than their White peers with disabilities4 Less likely to be engaged in both postsecondary education training and employment than their White peers with disabilities4 Research Questions Recommendations for Schools 1.) What are the current trends of CLD students with disabilities who transition from high school to post-high school environments in the USA? 2.) What are the current barriers faced by CLD students with disabilities who transition from high school to post-high school environments in the USA? 3.) What practices have been found to improve transition outcomes for CLD students with disabilities in the USA? Ask families their specific plans for their child1,13 Engage in culturally responsive communication during transition assessments, demonstrated by: Understanding, Respecting, and Supporting CLD families’ views about transition1,17,20 Avoid having a deficit view of CLD families6,10,12,16 Increase positive interactions with families by: Cultivating honesty and Building trust9,20,21 Become cognizant of prejudices and biases and how these impact their interactions with CLD families14,16,21,22, Understand underlying Western assumptions in special education and disabilities and how these assumptions compare with other cultures’ views14,21,22,23 Provide pre-service teachers with placements in diverse settings21,24 Methods Three-step search process Databases (ERIC, Education Source, Academic Search Premier, Professional Development Collection, and Psych Info) Ancestral (looking up references) Hand search of 4 journals 33 sources (articles, NLTS-2, training manuals, and reports) met criteria Studies included surveys, interviews, and focus groups Coded for: Participants’ characteristics Purpose of the article Types of barriers, trends, and recommendations Contact Us! Anna Brady. M.S. Ed. Utah State University Center for Persons with Disabilities anna.brady@usu.edu Dr. Lillian Durán University of Oregon Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences lduran@uoregon.edu