Career and Technical Education, Inclusion, and Postsecondary Outcomes for Students With Learning Disabilities

• Published in: Journal of learning disabilities Vol. 52; no. 2; pp. 109 - 119
• Main Authors: Theobald, Roddy J., Goldhaber, Dan D., Gratz, Trevor M., Holden, Kristian L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.03.2019; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC; SAGE Publications and Hammill Institute on Disabilities
• Subjects: Academic Persistence; Classrooms; College Attendance; College Bound Students; College students; Correlation; Education; Employment; Employment Potential; Enrollment; General education; Grade 10; Grade 11; Grade 12; High School Graduates; Inclusion; Learning; Learning Disabilities; Longitudinal Studies; Outcomes of Education; Regular and Special Education Relationship; Research methodology; Special Education; Students; Students with disabilities; Technical education; Time; Tuition; Vocational Education; Washington; quantitative research methods; inclusion; transition
• ISSN: 0022-2194; 1538-4780
• DOI: 10.1177/0022219418775121

We used longitudinal data from Washington State to investigate the relationships among career and technical education (CTE) enrollment, inclusion in general education, and high school and postsecondary outcomes for students with learning disabilities. We replicated earlier findings that students with learning disabilities who were enrolled in a “concentration” of CTE courses had higher rates of employment after graduation than observably similar students with learning disabilities who were enrolled in fewer CTE courses. We also found that students with learning disabilities who spent more time in general education classrooms in high school had higher rates of on-time graduation, college attendance, and employment than observably similar students with learning disabilities who spent less time in general education classrooms in these grades.