Cluster
Predictor
2020). Students who are independent with functional living skills including communication skills have better outcomes (Pillay & Brownlow, 2017; Anderson et al., 2017) so developing these ADL and IADL tasks are essential and AT can support in- dependence with skill acquisition and performance. It is not uncommon for students with disabilities, especially those with autism, to lack independence with daily living skills regard- less of intellect (Kim et al., 2024). The IADL and ADL tasks can translate into paid employment (Corkrean & Schwind, 2019) and must be taught. If students can perform tasks that re- quire more executive function skills with more steps such as IADL tasks (or chores), then they may perform other jobs for employment (Laverdure & Schwind, 2024). If a student can do laundry, they could work at a spa or a resort. If they can cook, they can work at a restaurant. If they can take care of their pet, they could work at a vet or a pet store. Specific evidence-based teaching strategies used for the development of transition skills (Ohio Employment First, 2018) should be utilized to teach the predictors and are identified in Table 4. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles can be implemented when teaching students transition skills to promote access, engagement and participation (Eismann et al., 2017). The use of UDL principles can promote inclusion, a pre- dictor of transition success in the policy cluster in Table 1 (Ohio Employment First, 2022). Presenting information and allowing students to demonstrate their knowledge in a variety of ways in the inclusive setting can promote success and engagement. ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY AND THE PREDICTORS OF TRANSITION SUCCESS The predictors and the teaching strategies can be support- ed with AT. The United States Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (2024) identifies AT in three cat- egories – low-tech, mid-tech and high-tech devices as defined below: Low-tech – devices that are readily available, inexpensive and typically do not require batteries or electricity such as pencil grip, page holder or modified scissors Mid-tech – devices that are usually digital and may require batteries or another power sources such as a calculator, au- dio book or digital recorder High-tech – devices that are typically computer based, likely to have sophisticated features, and can be tailored to the specific needs of an individual student such as a tablet, screen reader or voice recognition software Using a case study, the teaching strategies and transition predictors will be applied with AT supports. The case study demonstrates a continuum of skills from elementary school through high school. Throughout the case study, underlined words indicate a transition predictor.
Career Development Cluster
Career awareness, Occupational courses, Paid employment/work experience, Career and technical education (CTE) and Work study Interagency collaboration, Parental expectations and involvement, Student support, and Transition programs Self-care, Independent living skills, Social skills, Travel skills, Community experiences, Self- advocacy, Self-Determination, Goal setting, Youth autonomy and Decision making, Psychological empowerment and Self-realization Exit exam requirements, High school diploma status, Inclusion in general education and Program of study
Collaborative Systems Cluster
Student Skills Cluster
Policy Cluster
Table 1 - Predictors of Post-Secondary Success by Cluster as identified by Ohio Employment First.
Activities of Daily Living (ADL) (AOTA) • Bathing/showering • Toileting and toilet hygiene • Dressing • Eating/swallowing • Feeding • Functional mobility • Personal device care • Personal hygiene and grooming
Table 2 - List of Activities of Daily Living.
Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) (AOTA) • Meal preparation and clean up • Shopping • Care of others including the community
• Care of pets • Child rearing • Use of communication devices • Safety and emergency maintenance • Community mobility and navigation • Financial management
• Home establishment and maintenance • Health management and maintenance • Religious observation Table 3 - List of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living.
Note: Retrieved from the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework-4. https://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/Advocacy/Federal/ coding/OT-Practice-Framework-Table-1-Occupations.pdf
• Chaining • Community Based Instruction (CBI) • Computer Assisted Instruction • Mnemonics • Self-monitoring and Self- Management • Video Modeling • Prompting • Self-Advocacy and Self- Determination
Table 4 - Evidence Based Teaching Strategies for the Development of Transition Skills.
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