What are Transition Assessments?
Transition assessments help students plan for life after high school. They gather information about a student’s strengths, skills, interests, and support needs to inform goals around education, work, and independent living. These assessments include both formal and informal measures, including standardized tools, observations, and interviews, and cover academic, social, and emotional development.
Because students’ interests and goals change over time, transition assessments should be part of an ongoing planning process throughout high school.Using multiple measures and accessible tools leads to a more complete picture of each student and supports stronger, adaptable transition goals.
What should be assessed?
Transition assessments vary widely in what they measure and how. The right starting point is identifying what matters most based on the student’s goals and preferences — different assessments serve different purposes across the planning process.
| Skill Category | Skill Examples | Assessment Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Academic Skills |
English Language Arts, Mathematics |
ACT, SAT, Woodcock Johnson, state assessments |
|
Self Advocacy and Self Determination |
Cleaning, cooking, transportation navigation, money management |
Self Determination Inventory |
|
Independent Living
|
Goal setting, communication |
|
|
Career Readiness |
Attendance, teamwork, communication, time management |
Some assessments also help students explore career interests and identify potential paths to pursue. These tools, along with interpretation of assessment results, are most effective when paired with coaching and advising situations where students receive personalized feedback and guidance alongside their results.
Who should be assessed?
Transition assessments benefit any student planning for life after high school. Most are designed for high school students, though some start as early as late elementary school. Timing depends on the student’s IEP schedule and when they’re ready to act on the data.
READY Tool for Deaf-Blind Youth, which includes timelines, readiness checklists, transition related education programming and team collaboration guidelines, is an example of a transition assessment tool that begins prior to age 14.
How should an assessment be chosen?
There are no definitive rules on which assessments to use or when. After identifying what to assess and who, consider:
- Cost: Some assessments are free and publicly available; others require purchasing through a vendor.
- Interview protocols: Look for structured question guides and prompts.
- Observation rubrics: Look for checklists or scoring systems tied to specific skills or behaviors.
Some assessments focus on a specific area like self-determination (e.g., I’m Determined), while others offer broader guidance for students and families navigating the transition process (e.g., NTACT’s Transition Assessment Guide).
How can I make sure the assessment is accessible?
Accessibility is essential to any assessment’s effectiveness. Most transition assessments were not designed with deaf students in mind. Very few are available in ASL.
The Self Determination Inventory, available for free online and in ASL, is one notable exception.
Thoughtful, student-centered accommodations are critical to minimize language and communication barriers, so results accurately reflect students’ strengths and needs.
-
Start with understanding students' needs and preferences through the interactive process.
This process centers the deaf student as the expert on their own access needs. While reports such as audiograms can inform this, the most critical information comes from direct conversation with the student about their access experiences. The interactive process is not a one-time meeting — it's ongoing, with regular check-ins and adjustments over time. -
Match accommodations to the assessment format and content.
Common accommodations include extended time, individual administration, scribes, ASL interpretation, glossaries or dictionaries, and breaks.
For assessments measuring academic content it's important to understand exactly what's being tested and why test accommodations are important for deaf students. If a student prefers ASL interpretation of test content and the test is measuring reading skills, particularly decoding, interpretation may interfere with what's being measured. For any assessment using ASL interpretation, the interpreter should share language with the student and have time to review the content before administration. -
Follow up after the assessment.
Accommodations aren’t static. Check in with the student about what worked, what could be improved, and what adjustments to make going forward.
What should I do with the results?
Share results, both qualitative and quantitative, with the full transition team, including the student and family. Many assessments offer additional resources to strengthen the skills they measure. Use the data to revisit the student’s goals and continue building their transition plan in an ongoing, collaborative way.