Transition for Pupils with Special Educational Needs

Moving from primary to post-primary school and moving from post-primary to further/higher education pose significant challenges to many young people. Both transitions force young people toward greater personal autonomy, self-awareness and ideally self-efficacy. For students with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND), these challenges are potentially greater, and continuity in, or access to new, support may be necessary to facilitate these transitions in a manner that gives all students equal opportunities for taking charge of their own lives, including their education. The existing empirical literature on the transitions of students with SEND at these levels is limited. This book reviews the conceptual, policy and research evidence on young people’s experiences of these transitions. The book also reports on new research conducted with young people with SEND and relevant stakeholders (including parents, educational professionals and voluntary agencies) involved in these transitions in Ireland. In so doing, the book provides a framework of evidence-based practice that can enable schools and professionals to develop effective and inclusive transition policies and programmes.