1. 1 PA Community on Transition: Career Assessment Practice Group PowerPoint Community Based Assessments

2. 2 PA Community on Transition: Career Assessment Practice Group PowerPoint The purpose of the Career Assessment Practice Group and this supporting PowerPoint and the is to deepen our understanding of the assessment process and promote and share effective ongoing assessment practices and lead to enhanced post school outcomes of transitioning youth. For additional information, please contact Stacie Dojonovic, Group Leader from Pittsburgh Public Schools, at staciedj@yahoo.com. For additional information, please contact Stacie Dojonovic, Group Leader from Pittsburgh Public Schools, at staciedj@yahoo.com.

3. 3 Join the Career Assessment Practice Group Please expand your learning and dialogue with other transition stakeholders interested in career assessment. Also, obtain supporting resources and share your tools and strategies. Please expand your learning and dialogue with other transition stakeholders interested in career assessment. Also, obtain supporting resources and share your tools and strategies. To connect to this work, participate in the www.sharedwork.org interactive website (see instructions on following page). To connect to this work, participate in the www.sharedwork.org interactive website (see instructions on following page). www.sharedwork.org

4. 4 Join the Career Assessment Practice Group To access the site, please follow these simple instructions: To access the site, please follow these simple instructions: –Visit www.sharedwork.org; Click on the national community of practice on transition www.sharedwork.org –Take a minute to register (complete requested information) –When in the site, in the left column, click on Pennsylvania –Click on Career Assessment –Click on the button on the top right to “Join this Mailing List” (this will allow us to email one another directly from the site) –Review the information and respond to the discussion thread –Visit weekly!

5. 5 Accessing Resources on www.sharedwork.org www.sharedwork.org Visit www.sharedwork.org Visit www.sharedwork.orgwww.sharedwork.org Click on the national community of practice on transition Click on the national community of practice on transition Take a minute to register (complete requested information) Take a minute to register (complete requested information) When in the site, in the left column, click on Pennsylvania When in the site, in the left column, click on Pennsylvania Click on Career Assessment Click on Career Assessment Click on the button on the top right to “Join this Mailing List” (this will allow us to email one another directly from the site) Click on the button on the top right to “Join this Mailing List” (this will allow us to email one another directly from the site) Review the information and respond to the discussion thread Review the information and respond to the discussion thread Visit weekly! Visit weekly!

6. 6 Community Based Assessments The Key to Successful Transition

7. 7 What are the Next Steps? Now that you have described and evaluated the environment the young person is placed in through the completion of a Job Analysis, what are your next steps? Now that you have described and evaluated the environment the young person is placed in through the completion of a Job Analysis, what are your next steps? Job analysis will define the environment to compare the individual’s performance. Job analysis will define the environment to compare the individual’s performance.

8. 8 Challenge of Transition Assessment mandated through IDEA required component of transition. Assessment mandated through IDEA required component of transition. Without Assessment how do you make decisions about youth’s outcomes? Without Assessment how do you make decisions about youth’s outcomes? Most important data is the data we can obtain from an individual actually performing on the worksite. Most important data is the data we can obtain from an individual actually performing on the worksite. Feedback from work place supervisor who see them every day on the job is a logical place for people to be in the assessment process. Feedback from work place supervisor who see them every day on the job is a logical place for people to be in the assessment process.

9. 9 Challenges of Assessment of Cognitive Disability: Rationale for Community Based Assessments Covert, invisible Covert, invisible Variable, not static Variable, not static Environmentally contingent Environmentally contingent Ecological validity & prediction Ecological validity & prediction

10. 10 Challenges of Assessment of Cognitive Disability: Developmental Issues (cont’d) Psychosocial changes Psychosocial changes –Emancipation issues Parents / authority Parents / authority –Executive functioning skills still forming –Immaturity vs. cognitive deficits

11. 11 Common Shared Problems Limited self-awareness; Unrealistic goals Limited self-awareness; Unrealistic goals Poor organization, anticipatory skills Poor organization, anticipatory skills Processing problems/speed Processing problems/speed Transition problems = generalization Transition problems = generalization Academic and communication skills Academic and communication skills NO two youth with LD are alike! But they do share some problems. NO two youth with LD are alike! But they do share some problems.

12. 12 Assessment for Transition Formal Assessment vs. vs. Community Based Assessment Community Based Assessment

13. 13 Community Based Assessment is Functional Assessment “the analysis and measurement of specific behaviors that occur in real environments and are relevant to life and vocational goals” (Halpern & Fuhrer, 1984) “the analysis and measurement of specific behaviors that occur in real environments and are relevant to life and vocational goals” (Halpern & Fuhrer, 1984)

14. 14 Community Based Assessment is Functional Assessment Involves interaction between behavior and environmental conditions and demands Involves interaction between behavior and environmental conditions and demands Determines the impact of disability Determines the impact of disability

15. 15 Environmental specificity and goal directedness characterize CBA and differentiate it from traditional assessment. Environmental specificity and goal directedness characterize CBA and differentiate it from traditional assessment. –Measure of what a person can or cannot do –in particular situations –under certain conditions –in light of unique demands Community Based Assessment Characteristics

16. 16 Community Based Assessment Characteristics For transition, the situations, conditions and demands are those relevant to work and post-secondary education/training For transition, the situations, conditions and demands are those relevant to work and post-secondary education/training Process, not instrument Process, not instrument

17. 17 Community Based Assessment Characteristics Strengths and weaknesses, not diagnostic focus Strengths and weaknesses, not diagnostic focus Spans a young person’s school to work life Spans a young person’s school to work life Uses varied tools and procedures Uses varied tools and procedures

18. 18 Community Based Assessment Characteristics Ultimate measurement in natural environment (Community based experiences so important) Ultimate measurement in natural environment (Community based experiences so important) Personal involvement critical to self- understanding, investment and success Personal involvement critical to self- understanding, investment and success

19. 19 Foundation Skills Model Two People with disabilities are more often dismissed from jobs due to poor attendance, tardiness and lack of social skills than because of their work skills (e.g., Shafer, Banks & Kregel, 1991)

20. 20 Community Based Assessment for Transition Developed by OVR and Pittsburgh Public Schools in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh, Department of Rehabilitation Science Developed by OVR and Pittsburgh Public Schools in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh, Department of Rehabilitation Science Specific Training Modules Specific Training Modules A Manual A Manual Additional resources and tools including job analysis Additional resources and tools including job analysis Lets take a look! Lets take a look!

21. 21 Food for Thought: Community Based Assessments Do you currently use any formal community based assessment process? Do you currently use any formal community based assessment process? Are you able to obtain valuable, usable information from those assessments? Are you able to obtain valuable, usable information from those assessments?

22. 22 Join the Career Assessment Practice Group Please expand your learning and dialogue with other transition stakeholders interested in career assessment. Also, obtain supporting resources and share your tools and strategies. Please expand your learning and dialogue with other transition stakeholders interested in career assessment. Also, obtain supporting resources and share your tools and strategies. To connect to this work, participate in the www.sharedwork.org interactive website (see instructions on following page). To connect to this work, participate in the www.sharedwork.org interactive website (see instructions on following page). www.sharedwork.org

23. 23 Join the Career Assessment Practice Group To access the site, please follow these simple instructions: To access the site, please follow these simple instructions: –Visit www.sharedwork.org; Click on the national community of practice on transition www.sharedwork.org –Take a minute to register (complete requested information) –When in the site, in the left column, click on Pennsylvania –Click on Career Assessment –Click on the button on the top right to “Join this Mailing List” (this will allow us to email one another directly from the site) –Review the information and respond to the discussion thread –Visit weekly!

24. 24 References Career Assessment: The Ongoing Journey (LeConte 2006): http://sharedwork.org/documents/CATheOngoingJourney1.ppt Career Assessment: The Ongoing Journey (LeConte 2006): http://sharedwork.org/documents/CATheOngoingJourney1.ppt http://sharedwork.org/documents/CATheOngoingJourney1.ppt A Guide to Functional Vocational Evaluation: http://www.seattleu.edu/ccts/func_eval/index.asp. A Guide to Functional Vocational Evaluation: http://www.seattleu.edu/ccts/func_eval/index.asp. http://www.seattleu.edu/ccts/func_eval/index.asp Position Paper of the Interdisciplinary Council on Vocational Evaluation and Assessment by Smith F., Lombard R., Neubert D., Leconte P., Rothernbacher C., & Sitlington, P. For additional information, please visit http://www.vecap.org/council-t.html. Position Paper of the Interdisciplinary Council on Vocational Evaluation and Assessment by Smith F., Lombard R., Neubert D., Leconte P., Rothernbacher C., & Sitlington, P. For additional information, please visit http://www.vecap.org/council-t.html. http://www.vecap.org/council-t.html Additional tools developed by local transition teams in Pennsylvania, which can found on the Career Assessment Practice Group page of the PA Community on Transition shared work website, located at http://www.sharedwork.org/section.cfm?ms=5&ms2=44&as=14 3&ShowAll=0&ShowFolder=612#Repository. Additional tools developed by local transition teams in Pennsylvania, which can found on the Career Assessment Practice Group page of the PA Community on Transition shared work website, located at http://www.sharedwork.org/section.cfm?ms=5&ms2=44&as=14 3&ShowAll=0&ShowFolder=612#Repository. http://www.sharedwork.org/section.cfm?ms=5&ms2=44&as=14 3&ShowAll=0&ShowFolder=612#Repository http://www.sharedwork.org/section.cfm?ms=5&ms2=44&as=14 3&ShowAll=0&ShowFolder=612#Repository