KU Center for Research on Learning
Soaring to New Heights
Division of Adult Studies
December, 2009
Soaring to New Heights helps high school students with disabilities stretch beyond preconceived notions about their futures and construct new, realistic visions and goals for themselves.
This semester-long course is built around the concept of students learning to see themselves as capable and competent while developing the skills they need to make a successful transition from high school to work or more education.
The course addresses a significant national problem: Poor performance of schools in preparing students with disabilities to make the transition from high school to postsecondary education, vocational education, or work.
Participating students are high school juniors who have high-incidence disabilities, such as learning disabilities, behavior disorders, or mild cognitive disabilities other than LD. The study sites—seven public high schools in Wichita, Kan.—represent an urban environment in which two-thirds of students across the district receive free and reduced lunches.
How it works
The Soaring to New Heights course, using a “taking flight” metaphor, is divided into four units as shown in the study map on the next page: “Discovering My Wings,” or understanding what self-determination means; “Charting My Course,” or understanding the steps needed to reach personal goals; “Taking Flight,” or learning how to present oneself and build a support team; and “Reaching My Destination,” or learning how to keep on track to meet goals.
Small class sizes ensure that each student receives individual attention when needed. A 10-to-1 student-to-teacher ratio is ideal.
The curriculum incorporates aspects of two models of self-determination, the ARC Self-Determination Scale and the AIR Self-Determination Assessments*. Course units teach components of self-determination, such as goal setting, good interpersonal communication, and self-advocacy.
“What we really want to try and create are self-determined transitions to either education or employment. We want kids to be successful in both of those things, if they choose, but at least in one of them,” says principal investigator Richard Johnson.
Work—moving students into paid, competitive employment—is a key component of the program: A vocational rehabilitation counselor collaborates with teachers, determining whether students are eligible for VR services, getting to know students’ aspirations, and helping them search for work.
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