Secondary level special education teachers' perspectives and self-reported practices related to the self-determination skills of high school students with disabilities

In recent years, the importance of self-determination has been emphasized in educational literature and in legislation related to students with disabilities. Selfdetermination skills enhance the ability of students with disabilities to make successful transitions from high school to positive postschool outcomes. However, the extent to which students are systematically taught self-determination skills remains uncertain. This study was designed to determine secondary special education teachers' perspectives and self-reported practices related to the self-determination skills of high school students with disabilities.;The findings of this study on secondary level special education teachers' perspectives and self-reported practices related to the self-determination skills of high school students show that teachers identified problem-solving and decision making as the most important instructional domains in the area of self-determination. Survey results indicated that over half of Illinois secondary level special education teachers believe that teaching self-determination is an effective method to prepare their secondary special education students for postschool community life. On the other hand, fewer than half of the survey participants indicated that their students have at least one self-determination-related goal on their IEPs. The strategy used most frequently by the participants to promote selfdetermination is self-evaluation. These participants identified a variety of curriculum guides as their most frequent approach to promoting or teaching self-determination.;Recommendations for educational program policy and implementation based on the study's results include the establishment of a universal definition of selfdetermination and teachers' provision of adequate opportunities for all secondary level students receiving special education to make progress in the instructional domains related to self-determination. This study's results also lead to the recommendation that teacher education programs emphasize the importance of self-determination skills instruction and collaborate with public school districts to set self-determination instruction as a curricular priority. Recommendations for future research include investigating how the acquisition of self-determination affects students' academic performance and postschool outcomes. More applied research is recommended to explore the effectiveness of various secondary level self-determination curricula, instructional materials, and strategies for students with disabilities. Follow-up studies of students' self-determined behavior after high school are also recommended. More qualitative and survey research on a broader sample of education professionals' perspectives is recommended to shed light on professional development needs in the area of self-determination skills instruction.;The participants were 385 secondary level special education teachers in the state of Illinois. These teachers completed a survey on the perspectives and self-reported practices related to self-determination instruction. Descriptive statistics were used to determine teachers' perspectives and self-reported practices.