Special Education Services: A Manual of Policies, Procedures and Guidelines

Students experience significant transition points throughout their education, from home or day-care to kindergarten, from class to class, school to school, from school district to school district, and from school to post-secondary or work situations. These transitions almost always involve changes in:

• locations, expectations, rules, services;
• peer groups, staff; jurisdiction; and/or life-style.

The transition process for a student with special educational needs requires especially careful planning to ensure that the elements of the Individual Education Plan and the support services required to carry it out are not disrupted or lost in the process. In establishing procedures for transition points, school district personnel should keep in mind that transitions:

• are continuous;
• occur as part of a planned education program;
• involve preparation, implementation and evaluation;
• should be articulated in the Individual Education Plan; and that
• school teams should be aware of and use the services available for the transition process. 

Transition planning involves individual transition plan development, student follow-up studies, and long-range planning. It is essential that school district and individual schools establish procedures to support collaborative consultation in the transition into and from the school system. Collaboration in transition planning should involve school personnel, district staff, and representatives from community services such as pre-schools and post-secondary institutions, professionals from other ministries, parents and the students themselves. Students with special needs are at risk of being uninvolved in decision making, uninvolved in their community life, under-employed and unemployed, unable to access further education or training, and generally unable to lead fulfilling lives.

For most transitions the roles and responsibilities will need to be formalized. A carefully developed and co-ordinated transition plan will specify the supports and services necessary to enable the student to be successful at school and in the community. IEP transition planning should begin at least one year before school entry, one year before the transition to another school, and two to three years before school leaving. Planning should be specific to individual student needs and should address the specifics in meeting those needs. Plans should include the actions needed, the initiator for each action, and approximate date for the action and completion or follow-up dates.

In addition to the Ministry of Education’s document
Career/Life Transitions for Students with Diverse Needs: A Resource Guide for Schools (2001), two other recommended sources of information are the Ministry of Children and Family Development’s
Your Future Now: A Transition planning & Resource Guide for Youth with Special Needs and their Families (2005) and
Transition Planning for Youth with Special Needs: A Community Support Guide (2005)

H.14.1 The Graduation Portfolio Transition Plan

Transition planning begins in Grade 10 and is completed in Grade 12.
The Ministry’s web pages provide guidelines for completion of a comprehensive transition plan.

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