Parent Involvement in Transition Planning for Students with Learning Disabilities

Abstract

Post-secondary education is a path that many individuals take after high school. For students with learning disabilities, post-secondary education is an attainable goal regardless of the academic difficulties they may face. In order to make a successful transition to post-secondary education, it is necessary that students, as well as parents are actively involved in the transition process. Research has highlighted the importance of parent involvement. When parents are involved in their child’s education students experience improved motivation and confidence in academics (Ames et al., 1993), improved school behavior (Epstein, 1987), and have more consistent attendance in school (Falbo et al., 2001). Pape (1999) discovered that students whose parents are involved make better transition, produce quality work, and develop realistic goals for life after graduation. Although parent involvement has been linked to positive outcomes for students, parents choose not to get involved for many reasons. Low parent involvement can be attributed to issues related to transportation, differing opinions of parents and educators, lack of understanding about the school system, and the perception that they are inferior to others involved in the process (Turnbull, 1997). Another reason for the lack of parent involvement is lack of knowledge (Lovitt and Cushing, 1999; Turnbull, 1997). It is necessary for educators and professionals to promote parent involvement in their organizations. Understanding the barriers to parent involvement will allow organizations to create ways in which parents can be more actively involved. This paper focuses on one strategy, increasing knowledge through training sessions, in which to increase parent involvement in the transition process.