Postsecondary Outcomes Research Articles

The Crucial Need for Occupational Therapy to Prioritize Postsecondary Transition.

Recent federal initiatives demonstrate that improving adult outcomes for youth with disabilities is a high priority for the United States. The U.S. Office of Special Education Programs launched a new initiative in May 2023 to improve postsecondary outcomes for students with disabilities titled "Expect, Engage, Empower: Successful Transitions for All!" In addition, recent funding initiatives have allocated millions of federal dollars to improving postschool outcomes for youth with disabilities. Occupational therapy practitioners must be aware of these initiatives and the implications they have for their roles in school-based practice, vocational rehabilitation, and other practice settings where they serve children and youth. "Expect, Engage, Empower," along with existing legislation, creates opportunities for occupational therapy practitioners to secure their role as leaders in supporting the transition to adulthood. The time is now for the occupational therapy profession to recognize this as a priority and work to ensure they are well represented in the area of postsecondary transition. In this article, we review existing legislation, new federal initiatives, and recent research evidence and demonstrate the need for occupational therapy practitioners to assert their role in postsecondary transition.

Autonomy Supportive Teaching Behaviors: Perceptions of Teachers in Special, General, Gifted, and Bilingual Education Settings

ABSTRACT Autonomy is a major predictor of post-secondary education, social-emotional well-being, and positive life outcomes. Autonomy-supportive learning environments are crucial for increasing students’ behavioral, emotional, and cognitive engagement as well as preparing students for successful post-secondary outcomes. The direct teaching of autonomous learner skills is not part of the general or special education curricula. Teacher beliefs and perceptions are associated with the level of autonomy-supportive practices put forth in the classroom. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the direct and indirect effects of teachers’ perceptions concerning the importance of autonomy-supportive teaching, their capacity to execute autonomy-supportive teaching behaviors, and their perceptions of their student’s ability to engage in autonomous behaviors on teachers’ self-reported implementation of autonomy-supportive teaching behaviors. This study examined teachers’ perceptions in general, special, gifted, and bilingual education settings. Results indicate that teacher beliefs and perceptions are significant antecedents of employing autonomy-supportive teaching behaviors.

Using scripts to strengthen communication skills for vocational tasks

Communication skills play a critical role in fostering positive post-secondary outcomes for youth with disabilities (Carter et al., 2012). Yet practitioners may have limited knowledge of strategies to strengthen learner communication skills. Scripting is an evidence-based practice for increasing communicative responses including those required for completion of vocational tasks. This article describes a step-by-step process for developing scripts to strengthen learner communication skills for completion of vocational tasks. Considerations and resources to support implementation are provided.

Perceptions of culturally and linguistically diverse exceptional students regarding their individual transition plans

Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional (CLDE) students represent a vulnerable demographic often underserved in high school transition services. These students, who have diverse backgrounds and learning exceptionalities, face significant disparities in post-secondary outcomes. Specifically, CLDE students with Learning Disabilities (LD) exhibit lower rates of employment, post-secondary education attendance, and independent living outcomes. In alternative schools, students of color and those from low-income backgrounds are disproportionately represented and often encounter structural inequities that hinder their educational success. These settings may perpetuate marginalization, particularly in special education services and transition planning. This study explored the perceptions of secondary CLDE students with LD regarding their transition planning process, comparing their views with the actual ITP documents to assess alignment and effectiveness. Survey responses and student interviews revealed that most secondary CLDE students with LD at an alternative high school had positive perceptions of their Individualized Transition Plan (ITP) process, feeling involved and supported. The ITP, a critical component of the Individualized Education Plan (IEP), is intended to guide students’ post-secondary goals. However, research indicates that ITPs for CLDE students are frequently generic and culturally exclusive, resulting in insufficient preparation for future success.

Cyber versus Brick and Mortar: Achievement, Attainment, and Postsecondary Outcomes in Pennsylvania Charter High Schools

Abstract The charter school sector has expanded beyond brick-and-mortar schools to cyber schools, where enrollment grew almost tenfold between 2015 and 2020. While a large literature documents the effects of charter schools on test scores, fewer studies explore impacts on attainment or postsecondary outcomes and there is almost no work exploring the consequences of cyber charter enrollment for these outcomes. In this paper, I examine the impacts of Pennsylvania's charter high schools on student attendance, achievement, graduation, and postsecondary enrollment, distinguishing the impacts of brick-and-mortar from cyber schools. I find that brick-and-mortar charters have no or positive effects across outcomes, and that effects are concentrated in urban districts and among Black and economically disadvantaged students. By contrast, attending a cyber charter is associated with almost universally worse outcomes, with little evidence of heterogeneity. Students who enroll in a cyber charter at the beginning of ninth grade are 9.5 percentage points (pp) less likely to graduate, 16.8 pp less likely to enroll in college, and 15.2 pp less likely to persist in a postsecondary institution beyond one semester. These results suggest that additional regulation and oversight of cyber charter schools is warranted and also bring into question the efficacy of online education.

Developmental Education for College Students with Learning and Attention Disabilities

As postsecondary developmental education policy reforms are implemented, increased attention must be given to students with learning and attention disabilities. The purpose of this study was to bring these students into the conversation, by examining their representation in developmental education broadly, as well the effect of this intervention on their college persistence and credit accumulation. Results show students with learning or attention disabilities are overrepresented in developmental education and could experience heterogenous effects on their postsecondary outcomes. Policymakers should be purposeful about consideration of this growing group of students in continued developmental education reforms.

STEM Pathway and College Progression: The Link Between Engineering CTE and Postsecondary Outcomes for Students With Learning Disabilities

Despite growing calls to increase diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, students with learning disabilities (SWLDs) remain underrepresented in STEM at the postsecondary level. Considering this call for increased diversity as a means to expand and strengthen STEM success, we used the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 to explore how participation in engineering career and technical education (E-CTE) links to postsecondary educational outcomes for SWLDs. Particularly, we examined how E-CTE participation relates to postsecondary remedial course taking, enrollment in a 4-year postsecondary institution, and declaration of a STEM major. Results from school fixed-effects estimations suggest that each credit of E-CTE earned is associated with fewer remedial college courses, a higher likelihood of enrolling in a 4-year as opposed to sub-baccalaureate institution, and increased odds of declaring a STEM major. To conclude, we discuss the implications of our findings for both policymakers and practitioners.

Testing the Way Forward: The Impact of Statewide ACT or SAT Testing on Postsecondary Outcomes

Twenty-nine states require or allow all 11th graders to take the ACT or SAT in school, for free, eliminating access to testing as a barrier to college entry. I examine whether this affects postsecondary outcomes using state-aggregated panel data and time-varying difference-in-differences methods. I find policy adoption led to 2% increases in selective 4-year enrollments by students from treated states. However, adoption had no effect on enrollments within adopting states’ selective institutions, in part because institutions enrolled fewer students from out-of-state after adoption. I also find null but directionally negative effects on the number of graduates from state institutions. Therefore, impacts are small but positive for students from adopting states, but null or negative for adopting states’ institutions.

The Advanced Placement Program and Educational Inequality

Abstract The Advanced Placement (AP) program is widely offered in American high schools and has been touted as a way to close racial and socioeconomic gaps in educational outcomes. Using administrative data from Michigan, I exploit variation within high schools across time in AP course offerings to identify the relationship between AP course availability, AP participation, and postsecondary outcomes. I find that students from non economically disadvantaged families, White and Asian students, and higher-achieving students are more likely to take advantage of additional AP courses when they are offered, thus widening existing gaps in course-taking. I find little evidence that additional AP availability is related to improved college outcomes for any students, with the exception of the most academically prepared students. Expanding access to AP courses without additional incentives or support for disadvantaged students to succeed is unlikely to address educational inequality.

Integrating Community Cultural Wealth Into Postsecondary Transition for Students With Disabilities Receiving English Learner Services

Understanding how capital influences postsecondary transition for students receiving special education and English learner (EL) services can inform culturally sustaining planning practices and improve postsecondary outcomes. Recognizing how students and families utilize community cultural wealth capital in the transition process can support efforts to thwart deficit-based practices and replace them with asset-based approaches that expand upon students’ strengths. At the same time, examining the ways the dominant group maintains power through actions that perpetuate the status quo is important. In this article, we apply Bourdieu’s capital theory alongside Yosso’s community cultural wealth framework to better understand how capital informed the postsecondary transition experiences of 13 students receiving special education and EL services and their parents. Implications and recommendations for understanding and utilizing cultural capital and community cultural wealth in transition are explored.

Can information and advising affect postsecondary participation and attainment for military personnel? Evidence from a large‐scale experiment with the U.S. Army

AbstractDespite generous financial aid, military veterans have high rates of undermatch and generally poor postsecondary outcomes. We conducted a large‐scale, multi‐arm field experiment with the U.S. Army to investigate whether personalized information about postsecondary options and access to advising affects service members’ postsecondary choices and outcomes. We find no impact of the intervention on whether or where veterans enroll in college or on their college persistence. These results suggest that light touch strategies that have been effective at addressing similar challenges among traditional students, and which we modified for the military context, are not sufficient to improve veterans’ postsecondary outcomes.

A Bridge to Graduation: Post-Secondary Effects of an Alternative Pathway for Students Who Fail High School Exit Exams

Abstract High school exit exams are meant to standardize the quality of public high schools and to ensure that students graduate with a set of basic skills and knowledge. Evidence suggests that a common perverse effect of exit exams is an increase in dropout for students who have difficulty passing tests, with a larger effect on minority students. To mitigate this, some states offer alternative, non-tested pathways to graduation for students who have failed their exit exams. This study investigates the post-secondary effects of an alternative high school graduation program. Compared with similar students who fail to complete high school, those students who take the alternative pathway have better post-secondary outcomes in both education and employment. Compared with similar students who retake exit exams to graduate, those who eventually graduate through an alternative project-based pathway have lower college enrollment, but similar employment outcomes.

Similarities in Reentry Planning of Students Involved in the Juvenile Justice System and Postsecondary Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities

The field of special education has developed evidence-based practices (EBPs) to promote positive postsecondary outcomes for youth with disabilities. Postsecondary transition planning is comparable to the planning processes needed for reentry of previously incarcerated youth to educational and community settings. Common practices for transitioning students with disabilities and for those returning to the community setting include career/technical/vocational education, interagency collaboration, career assessment and exploration, student-centered planning, high expectations, real-life problem solving, and assessment-driven goals. Transition planning has the potential to reduce recidivism, the key measurement of successful programs and interventions in the carceral setting. There is little empirical evidence of best practices in correctional education; however, there are some programs and resources within special education transition literature that may be useful in the development of prerelease planning for adjudicated youth. Programs focused on improving self-determination skills such as being aware of abilities, needs and preferences, problem-solving, self-control, cognitive reasoning to address problems, self-efficacy, and self-advocacy can increase the level of preparation youth have for returning to the community. Other efforts geared at systemic change can be beneficial, as well, including improvement of interagency collaboration, enrollment/re-enrollment requirements, training for educators and administrators to prevent stigma, and hiring one person in charge of the prerelease planning and records. Resources and suggested applications are included in summary.

Troubling the complexity of student involvement in minoritized identity of sexuality and gender-based campus organizations

Research has highlighted the connection between involvement and important postsecondary outcomes such as persistence, interpersonal/intrapersonal development, civic engagement, and multicultural competence, among many others. However, for students with minoritized identities of sexuality and gender (MIoSG), engaging in identity-based organizations comes with both risks and benefits, especially in a time of increasingly prevalent anti-queer and anti-trans U.S.-based legislation. Our findings reveal the complexity of student experiences, with a specific focus on STEM students who hold MIoSG, from overall positive involvement experiences to barriers such as danger, inactive clubs, and lack of campus spaces. This focus on MIoSG students within STEM disciplines is important, as students often report STEM spaces as particularly oppressive, therefore having a high need for counter spaces where their identities are supported. These findings could help practitioners rethink how to design campus spaces where students do not have to fear for their physical, emotional, and professional safety.

Gleaning into the Aspirational-Pursuit Gap of GEAR UP Students

The purpose of this study was to conduct a quantitative, exploratory analysis of key variables at transition grade levels (i.e., 7th, 9th, 12th) toward retention and completion in postsecondary education among Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) students. The exploration included variables that were retrieved from existing data on 65 students from one of the state's GEAR UP subawards in order to conduct correlations, t-tests, sign tests, and binomial regression to explore the variables across the transition years in relation to GEAR UP participation and postsecondary outcomes. Students represented by the data were GEAR UP participants since their 7th-grade year, having engaged in twice monthly peer-mentoring and summer programming activities within a university partnership. Importantly, most students were of Latinx heritage backgrounds, and the majority enrolled in postsecondary education; notably, the 4-year postsecondary completion rate was 84%. A discussion and conclusion of this exploratory analysis are provided.

Is Working in College Worth It? How Hours on the Job Affect Postsecondary Outcomes

Many students work during college to offset rising costs, but significant time on the job affects postsecondary outcomes. Analyzing the High School Longitudinal Study (N = 4,418), this article estimates the effects of hours worked on grades, credits earned, persistence, stopping out (i.e., unenrolling for 5 months before reenrolling), and dropping out. The polynomial regression analysis shows that after adjusting for background characteristics, prior academic achievement, institution types, and family obligations, “traditional” undergraduate students begin seeing deleterious effects at 20 hours, which becomes even more severe for those working 28+ hours (and the worst for Pell Grant recipients working long hours). While some work was good for students, on average, financial and family circumstances help explain the curvilinear relationships.

Coming out autistic at work: A review of the literature.

Research consistently documents the poor postsecondary outcomes of autistic individuals. It is important to identify supports that help autistic individuals get and keep jobs to improve postsecondary outcomes. Autism diagnosis disclosure at work may serve as a support (e.g., receiving accommodations) or as a barrier (e.g., discrimination) to getting and keeping employment, but little is known about the lived experiences of autistic individuals on diagnosis disclosure at work. To better understand why individuals on the spectrum choose to pursue disclosure or choose not to disclose at work, how they disclose, and the consequences of that disclosure, a state-of-the-art literature review was conducted. Ten studies met the final inclusion criteria and were synthesized to provide guidance to autistic individuals, families, and professionals who support their transition to employment. Findings from the review indicate that diagnosis disclosure is a highly complex decision. Across reviewed studies, participants chose to pursue disclosure for specific reasons, including access to accommodations or support, increase understanding, and advocate for self or others. Autistic individuals participating across reviewed studies shared they chose not to disclose primarily due to fears of discrimination and experience of stigma. Both the hopes (access to accommodations and supports) and fears (bullying and discrimination) were validated in the experienced consequences of disclosure. More research is needed on the contextual experiences of how individuals on the spectrum disclose their diagnosis at work.

Improving Student Access to and Teacher Training for Advanced Placement

The Advanced Placement Teacher Investment Program in Indiana (AP-TIP IN) program trains teachers to prepare students for college with rigorous math, science, and English coursework using the College Board Advanced Placement Program®. The program's goals are to increase enrollment in math, science, and English Advanced Placement® courses, and increase the number of qualifying scores on AP® exams; subsequently, improved performance in these exams should lead to better postsecondary outcomes. We use comparative interrupted time series models to compare program schools and matched comparison schools and find that AP-TIP IN schools increased the proportion of students taking and passing AP exams, while post-secondary outcomes were similar to matched comparison schools.

Self-reported memory of autistic young adults and associated real-world outcomes

PurposeAlthough autistic adults have demonstrated weaker memory performance on lab-based measures in comparison to neurotypical peers, research on self-reported memory abilities in this group is scarce. Shedding light on memory abilities of autistic adults is important, as memory difficulties may impact daily living outcomes, an area of difficulty for autistic individuals. Thus, the current study aimed to characterize the self-reported memory complaints of a large sample of autistic adults in comparison to neurotypical adults. MethodsThis study included data from 396 autistic young adults and 396 neurotypical young adults between the ages of 18 and 39 years and with similar background characteristics. Autistic adults were recruited from the Simons Powering Autism Research (SPARK) participant registry, and data from neurotypical adults were obtained from a large-scale internet study. The responses to the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire were compared by diagnostic group, and within the autistic group, relations between memory complaints and real-world outcomes (activities of daily living [ADLs] and postsecondary employment and educational activities) were examined. ResultsThe results indicated that young autistic adults reported greater memory problems than their neurotypical peers, regardless of memory type, and autistic adults reported a comparable pattern of complaints to their neurotypical peers (i.e., greater prospective memory complaints in comparison to retrospective memory complaints). Additionally, we found a negative association between memory complaints and outcomes (i.e., greater memory complaints were associated with less independence in ADLs and less favorable postsecondary outcomes). ConclusionThe significant association between subjective memory complaints and real-world outcomes suggests that memory abilities are an important contributor to daily living skills and post-secondary outcomes among autistic adults and could represent a target for future intervention development.

Leveraging Experimental and Observational Evidence to Assess the Generalizability of the Effects of Early Colleges in North Carolina

Abstract Early college high schools (ECHSs) in North Carolina are small public schools of choice on college campuses that seek to promote attaining postsecondary credits in high school, college readiness, and postsecondary enrollment for underrepresented groups. Evidence from randomized control trials (RCTs) has shown positive effects of the ECHS model on important high school and postsecondary outcomes but appear to be underpowered to detect moderation effects. Furthermore, RCTs rarely address the key question of primary policy interest: Is the program effective on average across the population? This leaves us uncertain about (1) whether the early college intervention is a good strategy for helping to close enrollment and attainment gaps between under- and overrepresented groups, and (2) whether the expansion of the ECHS model will lead to the positive results that the RCT studies suggest. This study uses administrative data on all ECHSs in North Carolina including those that were part of a lottery study. This allows us to generate RCT estimates for the ECHSs in the lottery sample and quasi-experimental estimates for both the lottery and non-lottery ECHSs. We leverage this unique circumstance to generate estimates of the effect of ECHS on postsecondary outcomes that simultaneously maximize both internal and external validity. Specifically, because generalization depends on both moderation and sample selection, we (1) investigate sample selection, (2) conduct a moderation analysis to determine whether the effects of the intervention vary by key factors that also predict sample selection, and (3) produce a pooled estimate by extending a method called cross-design synthesis to incorporate both RCT evidence and quasi-experimental evidence. We find strong evidence that the positive results of the RCTs generalize to the full sample of ECHSs, which provides stronger evidence of effectiveness.