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Transition from special education into postschool services for young adults with intellectual disability: Irish parents' experience
- Authors:
- GILLAN Diane, COUGLAN Barry
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, 7(3), September 2010, pp.196-203.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This study aimed to examine parents' experiences of the transition of their child from special education to postschool mainstream services. Specifically, this study sought to explore the parents’ perceptions of the nature, factors, and psychological impact of their child's transition to post-school services, and also their perceptions of facilitative factors and barriers. To achieve these aims, a qualitative, grounded theory approach was employed in which semi-structured interviews were conducted with a small sample of parents (4 married couples and 4 single mothers) of children with mild intellectual disability living in the southern region of Ireland. The results indicated that the transition process was generally experienced as stressful, uncertain, and problematic, particularly in terms of the bureaucratic aspects. The experiential shift from school to vocational training and employment emerged as the most salient in parents' perceptions. Parents also identified a range of factors that served as barriers and supports of the transition process, in which the role of the parent emerged as a key facilitative factor. The findings suggest that considerable gaps remain between policy and service provision in Ireland regarding transition planning and postschool services for young adults with intellectual disabilities and their families, often posing barriers to successful transitions.