Reflection 4

It takes more than just a high school counselor and a parent to make transition programs successful. The student absolutely must be involved in the planning and execution of the plan. Student involvement seems to be key in a successful transition. The student needs to understand what they must do to continue on the path to success. The student needs to have required courses spread out over the four years of high school and particularly need to be successful in their freshman year as not to get discouraged. I really liked the article about Arlington's college fair for students with LD. I think this is something that should be done at all high schools or at least one in every big city and one in every rural county and advertised to students in other schools within the city or county so that all students needing to may participate. I can imagine the impact it would have on planning if it were done say at the end of the year and students moving from eighth grade to ninth grade were invited to attend so that they would also have some idea of where they were headed in life. Students on this path must be taught how to be good self advocates. Social skills need to be taught as well, so that students can advocate for themselves, communicate with their professors once they get into college as well as communicating with other students. Parents rolls need to begin to shrink in that the student will need to see that they are capable of making their own choices. Parents should still help their children by providing opportunities to develop both understanding of work- pay situations as well as the development of informal support systems. The high school should have the student in mainstream classes for those required for graduation and in a special education classes for survival skills courses and study hall. Also the student should meet with a counselor on a regular basis for further transition planning.

If college is not the chosen path the student still needs to be involved in the planning. The student needs to have a light load the freshman year and all content courses are taught by a special education teacher. At least four work experiences should be provided while in high school, lasting about eight weeks each. This gives the student an opportunity to see if the chosen job is something they truly want to pursue. Job placement should occur prior to graduation as well as setting up any continuing services needed.

Successful LD students have chosen a job that is a good match for them, are self-advocates, have gained control over their life and use personal contacts to secure jobs. My brother was not successful. He did use personal contacts (his dad) to secure a job, but he did not have control over his life and was not a self-advocate. He ended up in prison because he would not or could not take control over his life. He had a "friend" that did a very bad thing and my brother was implicated in the crime and since he did not know how to advocate for himself he just took whatever the was handed to him as a sentence without saying a word. The sad part is his "friend" got off light for turning over the "mastermind" only serving a few months while my little brother is serving a full ten years he was perhaps involved in the crime, but certainly not the mastermind.

Vet techs only need two years of education to perform the job of what amounts to a nurse for a veterinarian. This is not a high paying job, but could be very satisfying which is more important than earning big bucks. The salary runs between 8.51 and 17.12 per hour. This occupation has a much faster than average job growth prediction. There are two year programs out there for vet technicians and five schools offer distance learning in the field. The job is demanding and can be in a regular vet's office or a zoo or even a shelter. This is very much a hands on job and can be both physically and emotionally exhausting. The future is bright in the field since so many are willing to pay the big bucks for the care of their animals. I know a lady who went this route and ended up with her own business that paid her well enough to send both of her sons to Harvard. This is a job that may sound limited initially, however as it leads to more and more contacts one would have a client base built for their own grooming business or pet daycare business which is quiet lucrative.