OARacle Newsletter

The transition from high school to adulthood marks a critical turning point in the lives of all students. It often represents an increase in autonomy and responsibility, changes in relationships and support structures, and new social roles. For autistic students, however, this period is often further complicated by unique transition-related barriers that can lead to a period of disengagement when the autistic person is not engaged in community activities, employed, enrolled in post-secondary education, or pursuing hobbies. 

Barriers that Impede Autistic Students’ Transition to Adulthood

In the United States, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that states provide school-based transition planning when a student turns 16 years of age at the latest. Although school systems generally follow the core components of this legislation, there are barriers that prohibit high-quality transition services from being enacted. 

In a recent study, our research team asked high school professionals what barriers make it difficult for them to provide high-quality transition services to the autistic students with whom they work. The barriers that they described ranged from characteristics of the autistic person and their family, the classroom and school, the community, and interactions between each of these systems. Below, we highlight some of the factors they described as barriers.

Transition Planning Meeting Logistics: Many autistic students are not involved in transition planning meetings as active participants. Moreover, time constraints make it challenging to adequately plan this major transition. Such barriers can result in a transition plan that lacks specificity and does not align with the autistic students’ strengths, needs, and post-school goals. When such components are not considered, autistic students may leave high school without a plan for or understanding of next steps in their life journey.

Limited Availability for Collaborative Approaches to Transition Planning: One of IDEA’s core requirements for transition planning is that it is a team-based approach that includes school professionals, the student, family members, and adult agencies (if possible) working together to prepare students for the transition to adulthood. In practice, however, barriers exist that make cohesive planning difficult. For example, during school hours, special and general education teachers report limited availability to coordinate with each other, families, and outside agencies regarding transition services. This barrier can lead to disjointed supports or place sole responsibility on the special educator to support autistic students in navigating the transition to adulthood.

Limited Knowledge and Training: School professionals also described their limited knowledge of autism and transition-related resources, and the lack of training they received on how to support transition-age autistic students. For some school professionals, this resulted in uncertainty about how to prepare autistic students for competitive employment opportunities. Underprepared educators do not have a toolbox of best practices to support transition planning for autistic students, which can have profound impacts on autistic students’ post-secondary outcomes.

Deficit-Based Perspectives: School professionals perceived some barriers as inherent to the autistic person or their family members. For example, they noted the autistic person’s cognitive and behavioral repertoire, disinterest in transition planning, and their family’s lack of involvement in transition planning meetings as additional reasons for the provision of low-quality transition support. However, framing transition-related barriers in this way is in direct opposition to a strengths-based approach to transition planning. 

Addressing Barriers and Bridging the Gap in Services

Educators and other school professionals can play a critical role in understanding and mitigating these barriers to bridge the gap between high school and adulthood for autistic people. Here are several ways educators and school professionals can address common transition-related barriers and provide students with quality support services:

Cultivate a Strengths-Based Approach to Transition Planning: To cultivate a strengths-based approach to transition planning, educators and school professionals can collaborate with the autistic student to gauge the student’s abilities, strengths, and interests, and promote learning that is meaningful to that student. While engaging with all students, it is important to focus on what they can do, have high expectations regarding their future, and celebrate both big and small achievements that help them to reach their goals.

Facilitate a Gradual Approach to Transition Planning: Supporting autistic students in the transition to adulthood is a responsibility that extends beyond high school staff. Every school-based professional, regardless of the grade level or subject that they teach, can provide autistic students with foundational skills to support their long-term goals. For example, in early elementary school, promoting self-advocacy can involve helping students understand their strengths and challenges, while in later grades, school-based professionals may empower students to communicate their post-secondary school goals during transition planning meetings.

Integrate Life and Vocational Skills into the Curriculum: Exposing autistic students to life and vocational skills that align with their strengths and goals is essential for the transition to adulthood. For general or special education teachers, this may include an introduction to financial literacy—how to budget, pay bills, and manage bank accounts. Transition specialists may facilitate career-related opportunities for autistic students, like job-shadowing and tours of local businesses. However, it is important for administrators to work with the team on the allocation of responsibilities and how to create a comprehensive, integrated plan that supports the transition to adulthood. 

Offer Professional Development Training: Within school districts, administrators can offer interactive professional development training for school-based professionals who work with autistic students. Trainings may provide information on neurodiversity and autism, local transition-related services, and how to cultivate a strengths-based approach to transition planning while challenging deficit-based perspectives. 

Conclusion

As educators, administrators, and school professionals, we can remove barriers to successful transition for autistic students and build a bridge that helps students navigate the changes from high school to adulthood.

Dr. Shannon LaPoint is an assistant professor of special education in Anne’s College at Florida State University. She is a 2024 OAR applied research grantee whose research focuses on promoting an overall high quality of life in autistic people. Specifically, she conducts research on the supports that school professionals provide transition-age autistic youth, the experiences of autistic people in post-secondary contexts, and professional development toolkits for educators to provide high-quality support to autistic people.

Note from OAR staff: OAR’s webinar, Self-Determination: Tips for Including Students in their Education and Transition Planning, is a great accompaniment to Dr. LaPoint’s Perspective. The webinar covers the fundamental concepts of self-determination for autistic students and others. Deborah Hammer, an autism specialist in Arlington Public Schools, and her students discuss how to include students in the IEP process and other strategies for supporting students as they develop their self-determination skills.