Strategies to Promote Effective Secondary Special Education and Transition Content into Teacher Preparation Coursework

Abstract

Despite over 40 years of research discussing the importance of embedding secondary special education and transition education into teacher education content, institutions of higher education in the USA continue to fail at providing this content in programs. This chapter describes the process one university undertook to develop a program to ensure graduating students obtained the knowledge and skills necessary to deliver quality transition services to secondary students with disabilities. Details are provided regarding the process utilized to develop a fully aligned, graduate-level degree program with the Council for Exceptional Children Advanced Standards for Transition Specialists (CEC transition standards. Retrieved from http://community. cec.sped.org/dcdt/cec-transition-standards, 2013). Strategies are provided to promote transition education based upon both program evaluation and input from graduates on the most beneficial components.