Multiple case study examining perceptions of four adult siblings’ participation in the individual education plan, transition meeting of a brother or sister who is congenitally deafblind

Date

2006-12

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Publisher

Texas Tech University

Abstract

The purpose of this multicase study was to examine the phenomena of perceptions held by adult siblings concerning their own participation in the public school Individual Education Plan, Transition Meeting (ITP) of a brother or sister who is congenitally deafblind. Transition to adulthood for individuals who are congenitally deafblind is complex (Everson, 1995). Due to the simultaneous vision and hearing loss, deafblindness has unique impacts on the developmental process for these students. The incomplete or distorted information from vision and hearing received by the child directly affects all areas of development including communication, learning, emotional development, and movement (Prickett & Welch, 1995; McInnes and Treffry, 1993). The transition from adolescence to adulthood entails much more than chronology in that young adults are young from one set of environmental and personal expectations to another (Cooney, 2002). This study’s findings lead to the overall conclusions that the four participant siblings had (a) some fundamental knowledge of the ITP meetings, (b) great variation in their knowledge of the future goals of their sibling, and (c) differing views on being involved in the ITP process (not all siblings wanted to be involved). The study reflected a continuum in the quality of the ITP processes ranging from effective to ineffective as a result of such factors as, how the meetings were conducted, family dynamics, and IEP team dynamics.

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