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"The only three true job interview questions are: 1. Can you do the job? 2. Will you love the job? 3. Can we tolerate working with you? That's it. Those three. Think back, every question you've ever posed to others or had asked of you in a job interview is a subset of a deeper in-depth follow-up to one of these three key questions. Each question potentially may be asked using different words, but every question, however it is phrased, is just a variation on one of these topics: Strengths, Motivation, and Fit."

By knowing these three job interview questions we can be better prepare our students to recognize and answer them. As part of our transition preparation we should prepare students to successfully answer these three questions.

As countless headlines have blared recently, there is a growing demand for what are often called "middle-skill" jobs. Jobs that require more than high school typically but less than a baccalaureate degree; jobs that pay well. Just this week, the USAToday reported on, "Where the jobs are: The new blue collar." Career and technical education (CTE) is the starting point for these and other occupations. But not all CTE we find in today's public schools provides the proper beginning of a career pathway -- a pathway that builds on credentials business and industry recognize and value. What is needed is a revisioning of CTE to meet the more challenging demands of providing students with the skills they need to move through a viable career pathway and continue their education and training to make that pathway a reality. What is needed is high-quality CTE.

"The world of work has changed. A high school diploma alone no longer guarantees a decent living wage. A typical career path today does not necessarily follow the traditional course of high school, college, and long-term employment. Rather, according to the most recent available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average worker today stays at each of his or her jobs for 4.4 years, with the workforce's youngest employees staying less than 3 years. That means that they will have 15 to 20 jobs over their working lives. One reality of today's workforce, however, that has remained the same is that youth need to develop skills to be employed. To be able to acquire these skills and effectively change jobs, and plan and manage multiple careers over one's life time, career development skills are important. The process by which youth get to know their strengths and interests, learn how different jobs connect with those interests, and build these career planning and management skills is called career development."

"We believe every young person deserves a pathway to economic success. That's why we're announcing a new $75 million investment to expand high-quality career-focused education programs that lead to well-paying jobs and long-term careers. Failing to prepare young people with the right skills and education for these jobs is not just a missed opportunity for them-it's a missed opportunity for businesses to hire the talent they need to grow and compete."

This resource is a website called Star Center which consists of a Learning Lab Service made up of different sections such as; phonics, fluency, comprehension, math skills and social skills building. There are other headings too for example; Literary Services and PlayAttention which is where students learn the skills to survive and thrive in the classroom or workplace. There are also links which are easy to navigate to that offer job opportunities, success stories as well as an online store. This website could be useful a special educator because if offers skills which can be helpful for student who are interested in entering the workplace in the future. It is important for students to be aware of the skills and knowledge required for a particular job. This resource can be helpful in ensuring the students are successful in the future.

Posted on February 02, 2011 Print this entry "I started that summer day at the neighborhood Motel to begin my life as a working person. I was not ready to be accountable to the manager, or to my schedule that called for an arrival by 7:00 a.m. every morning". Don't know why that quote is pasted above but I do agree that this is a great resource. It is a very personal story and is something that anyone could relate to in the working world. This is a great resource to use with students entering the work force and can help me an an educator assist those students in the transition

I really enjoy the very personal nature of this article. It identifies ways we all felt about our first jobs and describes how students with severe disabilities should experience that as well. The article really made me think about my own experiences in the working world and how best to assist students in transitioning to work.

This article begins with a personal account of the author's first job and how that experience left him/her with such a feeling of accomplishment and responsibility. The article continues to describe how these experiences are just as important for students with significant disabilities. They gain more knowledge about life, and with a smooth, well-planned transition plan, they can achieve their goals. As a future special educator, this article gives insights to the transition process on a more personal level.  This article would be helpful to keep in mind how important this process is to the students, and what I can do to help them attain their goals. 

This guide has been out a while, but is still useful for understanding NH Dept of Labor requirements for getting approval for work-based learning for students. This includes job shadows, internships, and some ELOs.

This website provides information about transitioning out of school. It talks about who can provide helpful services, where to find a job, and how to live independently. The home page of the website is divided into three sections; students, families, and transition professionals. Each of these three sections is then divided again on their own. The student section provides information on living within communities, managing health, and managing money. This information is given in a very friendly manner that is simple to understand. It is provided in both written form and verbal form with pictorials included. The family section is divided into 9 categories. These categories range from self-determination to employment to organizations that can help with the transition process. Each of these nine categories provides a brief description and alternate resources for further information. The section for transition professionals provides online courses and links to informational websites. As a special education teacher working on transition and career development, I would share this website with both students and families because the information is presented in a very clear way. I would work with students to help them read about and learn the information being provided and then create an activity as a follow up. For example, I would help the student navigate their way through the managing money portion of the website and then have the student complete a series of activities having to do with money and budgeting.

"Welcome to the Think Tank related to demonstrating proficiency within the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics (Math) through transition-focused activities. We would like your input! Below are two tables of examples of activities that are focused on transition-related skills (e.g., self-advocacy, self-management, knowledge of career options, job-specific skills) connected to specific ELA and Math standards from the Common Core State Standards."

Here is a new online tool to calculate the cost savings and benefits of hiring a person with a disability. It includes customized results by type of business and listing of resources by State. The tool, known as "Hire Gauge," asks for basic information including the company's size, location and industry in order to provide an assessment of the expenses and incentives involved in selecting a job applicant with a disability. It is believed to be the first online tool to provide businesses with a real-time look at the tax incentives and other benefits they can tap into when hiring individuals with disabilities, according to officials with Think Beyond the Label, a public-private partnership which created Hire Gauge and supports disability employment.

"Participants will understand that students with severe developmental disabilities will also need some intensive, systematic instruction to learn priority content, which can be embedded in the milieu of a general education classroom. Participants will learn what to teach as well as how to teach through systematic instruction and best practices for supporting students with severe disabilities in order to improve their outcomes. Through this CEM, participants will learn how to plan instruction to provide students with severe disabilities opportunities to learn academic content linked to state standards as well as the social, daily living, and job skills needed for life after high school."

Interviewing, finding a job, and going to work every day may seem like distant goals for your child right now, but you can still do things today to prepare youth for future employment.

"Career Technical Education (CTE), previously called vocational education, is the present-day label used to denote specialized material and programs that focus instruction in skilled trades and occupational readiness (Drage, 2009). The aim of career technical education for high school students is to prepare them for college and career endeavors (ACTE, 2009). This goal matches special education career transition goals for students with an IEP. "

This article describes the need for parents to be equal partners in the transition programming of their disabled child. Even after a student has transitioned from high school, their parents often remain a very strong and important part of their life. The article explores reasons that some parents may be less inclined to participate in the transition planning for their child. The authors then go on to suggest ways include parents more in the process. Professional Practice: It is very easy for us educators to get frustrated when parents aren't as involved in important processes for their children such as IEP planning and Transition planning. This article does a good job a explaining the different reasons that parents might not be as involved. This article will remind me of the unique perspective that parents have, and will help me in my effort to get parents more involved.

Excellent choice on this article Krystin! I find that the role of parents in the transition processes is very important and I think that it would be beneficial for parents to read.

Nice article. I like that there is a resource that discusses advocacy for the students. I feel that much of the time we talk about self-advocacy, which is extremely important, but I feel that it is equally important to have family support and involvement.

Web site is at http://www.tbrelearning.org/ Search the apps bank in the form on the right of this page http://www.tbrelearning.org/estudents-learning

This is a great resource for all educators. There is such an unending sea of apps available now that it is very helpful to have them presented in such a manageable way.

This article defines transition which he outlines that it is very different than change. Transition is the process of people letting go of the way things used to be. Letting go of their personal connections to the change. This article shines a new light on the word transition. It makes it very clear that transition is a process and to aide in the process we can plan for a transition. As a future teacher I plan to use transition planning not just in the older grades but the primary grades. Transition can be hard for so many kids and as an educator it will be my job to help them transition smoothly. This will be through teaching them coping strategies, and preparing them for what the change will be.

A great video on self determination by youth for youth

Thank you for posting this here. It will make it easier for me to find it in the future. This video does such a good job at capturing the idea of self determination and what it is all about. Any viewer of this video can instantly become more in tune to student needs and how to help students to be more self determined.

This video hits home with so many individuals. Everyone can find a connection and learn from this video.