Before moving on to the sections within this toolkit, a word about needs for program success. In John McDonnell and Michael L. Hardman’s text on Successful Transition Programs (2010), the authors state four factors influence the success of an FPCTP. These factors revolve around the integration and support of faculty within the institution of higher education.
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Successful programming seeks input from the faculty and staff about the training that they perceive is essential for their own success. A short survey to gauge faculty current perceptions, needs, attitudes is the starting point.
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Multiple opportunities are provided for faculty and staff to learn about, or access resources related to the critical training content. Once the initial overview training is presented, McDonnel and Hardman suggest that there should be ongoing opportunities for faculty to regroup and talk about successes, challenges and ways to address them. This can be face to face meetings once or twice a semester, accompanied by a monthly news brief that provides new ideas, or suggests methods that have worked with their population.
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Technical assistance for faculty and staff exists and is accessible as needed by the users. The teaching faculty should know who to turn to when they have questions. In the best situations, faculty receive mentorship from a knowledgeable staff member with whom they have a relationship with prior to beginning teaching the students in the FPCTP.
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All training activities are regularly assessed for its application to the current program. No quality professional development should operate without an evaluation schedule.As you plan your support program, also plan in the way that faculty will evaluate the process to determine if the program meets their needs. This faculty toolkit offers ways to help build in aspects of each factor described by McDonnel and Hardman.
Each area within this toolkit contains links and examples of support materials. They are meant as a springboard for more investigation on the user’s part. There are articles, videos, templates, and examples that can be read, viewed, and downloaded as needed. In addition, this toolkit includes interviews with faculty from a variety of FPCTP programs sharing their experiences with the inclusion of students with ID in their specific discipline and courses.
Here is a sample of a short survey for higher education faculty to assess their needs when teaching a class for students with intellectual disabilities.
References
McDonnel, J., & Hardman, M.L. (2010). Successful transition programs: Pathways for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (Ed. 2). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc
