What's next?

This is the question, the concern, and the need that underlies transition planning. Much of the time we go through life responding primarily to our immediate needs, especially during childhood and adolescence. Students who engage in self-directed transition planning can find meaning and structure within their secondary school experiences as well as lay a good foundation for their emerging adulthood after finishing high school.

Take the Next Step Program

This program was created in response to several issues including:

• The U.S. Department of Education's growing emphasis on career education, work study and transition practices to improve post-school outcomes for youth with disabilities.
• The U.S. Department of Education's policy to improve access, participation and progress of students with and without disabilities in the general curriculum.
• Efforts related to increasing student involvement and responsibility for their own educational and future career, life planning, and other transition issues.
• The awareness and burgeoning interest in best teaching practices of teaching collaboratively in inclusive classrooms.
• Involvement of parents or other adult partners in students' education and future planning.

What the Take the Next Step Program will help you do:

• Teach self-directed transition planning to all students using a curriculum called NEXT S.T.E.P.
• Integrate the curriculum in existing general education classes that include both students with and without disabilities.
• Work collaboratively with other teachers and team members to plan and deliver instruction.
• Involve parents in their student's education.
• Connect curricula outcomes to state standards and reforms.

What is NEXT S.T.E.P.?

NEXT S.T.E.P. is a curriculum that teaches high school students how to begin planning for their lives after they leave school. "S.T.E.P." is an acronym for "Student Transition and Educational Planning."

The NEXT S.T.E.P. curriculum contains 16 fully developed lessons and is organized into four major sections:

• Introductory material explaining the concepts underlying transition planning along with beginning efforts in self-exploration.
• Student self-evaluation.
• Student involvement in setting and achieving goals.
• Students sharing their goals and accomplishments at a culminating event.

As students work through the lessons, the goal is for students to become increasingly responsible for developing and implementing their own transition plans.

[Curriculum Features]

How can you achieve this in your school? Never fear, help is on the way!

This website was designed to provide information and concrete examples on implementing the Take the Next Step Program, including:

• Details of the features of the NEXT S.T.E.P. curriculum.
• How to effectively implement the curriculum in inclusive settings.
• How to effectively work as a collaborative team to plan, teach, and evaluate student progress.
• How to effectively measure success and share success with others.
• How to connect to statewide standards and other reform efforts within the classrooms in which the Take the Next Step Program exists.
• The benefits of incorporating the various aspects of Take the Next Step Program into the general curriculum.

Taking the Next Step

We hope this short introduction to the Take the Next Step Program was helpful in giving you some basics about the program. We encourage you to explore the rest of this site for more detailed information about all the aspects of the program and how to make it work in your school. The information comes from years of lessons learned from teachers and others in a wide variety of schools and community settings.

[Research Model] [Student Benefits]

[Introduction] [Get Going] [Select Your Class] [Working As A Team] [Connections to State Standards]

[Sharing Your Success] [Features of the Curriculum] [Feedback/Contact]

Last updated: 07/23/2003