What is Age Appropriate Transition Assessment?
The Division on Career Development and Transition (DCDT) of the Council for Exceptional Children defines transition assessment as an "..ongoing process of collecting data on the individual's needs, preferences, and interests as they relate to the demands of current and future working, educational, living, and personal and social environments. Assessment data serve as the common thread in the transition process and form the basis for defining goals and services to be included in the Individualized Education Program (IEP). Federal law requires "appropriate measurable postsecondary goals based upon age appropriate transition assessments related to training, education, employment, and, where appropriate, independent living skills" (§300.320[b][1]). Types of transition assessments include: behavioral assessment information, aptitude tests, interest and work values inventories, intelligence tests and achievement tests, personality or preference tests, career maturity or readiness tests, self-determination assessments, work-related temperament scales, and transition planning inventories.
The following resources provide examples of how a team chooses appropriate assessment methods and tools, based on the information needed to develop a multi-year, comprehensive transition plan for a child. The resources also link to many examples of free assessment tools.
- Employability/Life Skills Assessment
- Employability/Life Skills Assessment - Parent Form
- Age Appropriate Transition Assessment - SST 10
- QuickBook Of Transition Assessments
- Age Appropriate Transition Assessment (OEC SST Transition Specialist Training)
- Age Appropriate Transition Assessment (DCDT and NSTTAC)