“They’ll Show You Their Strengths”: Teachers’ Transition Praxis for Students

Transition planning should focus on comprehensive supports that meet secondary students' individual goals, maximizing both in-school and community-based opportunities. Research has revealed, however, that students with disabilities do not consistently receive appropriate transition preparation or meaningful employment experiences, heightened among students with autism and intellectual disability. In this qualitative study, we interviewed seven teachers of high school students with disabilities. We engaged in abductive analysis that generated four themes. These themes reflect how structures and systems (policy, schools, curricula) and their actors (teachers, district personnel, family members, community members) enable students' access to transition opportunities based on perceptions regarding them, along a deficit-to-asset continuum. Implications include ways for teachers and all members of the school community to reimagine possibilities and opportunities for students' futures.