1. National High School Center Summer Institute What’s the Post-School Outcomes Buzz? Jane Falls Coordinator, National Post-School Outcomes Center Washington, DC June 19, 2008

2. What we’ll share:  Post-school outcomes across the country  Coordinated look at secondary indicators  Strategies to improve response rates, “representativeness”, and outcomes  Tools and resources

3. National Post-School Outcomes Center: Who we are, what we do NPSO is a national technical assistance and dissemination center funded by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). University of Oregon SSET and TACS/WRRC

4. NPSO Charge Assist State Education Agencies to develop practical and rigorous data collection systems to describe the further education and competitive employment experiences of youth with disabilities as they transition from high school to adult life (Part B, Indicator 14)

5. IDEA Purpose To ensure that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs and prepare them for further education, employment, and independent living. Source: IDEA Final Regulations Sec. 300.1 (a)

6. Transition ~ starts when children are very young and…

7. continues throughout life

8. Part B - SPP and APR Requirements Indicator #14 Percent of youth who had IEPs, are no longer in secondary school and who have been  competitively employed  enrolled in some type of postsecondary school,  or both, within one year of leaving high school. (20 U.S.C. 1416(a) (3) (B)).

9. Indicator 14 Calculation NUMERATOR = Unduplicated sum of: # competitively employed (CE) + # enrolled in postsecondary school (PSS) + both CE and PSS DENOMINATOR = # of respondents to survey/interview (always provide #s)

10. Federal Requirements: SPP and APR 4 secondary transition indicators 1.% of youth who graduate 2.% of youth who drop out 13.% of youth with transition components in the IEP 14.% of youth who achieve post-school outcomes

11. Critical Interrelationships Quality IEPs Staying in School Graduating Positive post-school outcomes

12. Using Transition Indicators to Improve What We Do Post-School Outcomes ~Indicator 14~ Postsecondary education and/or training Employment Independent living Dropout Rate ~Indicator 2~ Why? Appropriate programs? Address student and family needs? Graduation Rate ~Indicator 1~ Expectations and standards? Various pathways available? Linkage to post-school environments? What’s the Quality of Our IEPs? ~Indicator 13~ Measurable post-school and annual goals Transition-related assessments Course of study, services, and activities Coordination of services Why or Why Not? Not so Good?Good? Dr. Paula Kohler (2006) NSTTAC

13. What did States report in 2007 SPP/APR?  30 states are conducting census; 23 states are sampling; 6 states did not report  53 states plan to use a survey; 5 states didn’t specify method; 1 state plans to use extant data  43 states defined competitive employment; 39 states defined postsecondary education Source: NPSO analysis of SPP/APR Indicator 14 submission Feb. 2007

14. PSO Challenges  Accurate contact information  Locating former students - dropouts  Honesty of responses  “Representativeness of respondents (bias)

15. What is a Response Rate?  Measure of response achieved in collecting survey data  The ratio of the number of completed surveys to the total number of surveys that were intended to be completed

16. Response Rate Calculation NUMERATOR = # of respondents to the survey/interviews DENOMINATOR = # of school leavers including those who graduate, leave with certificate (etc), age out, drop out in the school year minus drop outs who returned and those who died (always provide #s)

17. How High a Response Rate?  What is important is whether respondents are representative!  States must use their data regardless of response rate  Describe respondents  Use data with caution

18. How Do You Know When There Is Bias?  Assess how survey respondents are different from target population  Key characteristics:  gender  race/ethnicity  disability category  type of exit  age

19. Solutions to Challenges  Fully engage youth and families  Consider data collection efforts  Share what you know  Reflect on bias  Caution users to the limitations  Activate activities to enhance response rate, representativeness, and student outcomes

20. It really matters…. Quality IEPs Staying in School Graduating Positive post-school outcomes

21. Rigor, Relevance, Relationships

22. Use the data to guide school programs

24. One of many NPSO resources

25. Jane Falls jafalls@uoregon.edu 541-346-0354 http://www.psocenter.org