A Qualitative Examination of the Impact of COVID-19 on Transition Services for Autistic Youth.
Jordan Albright, Megan Fok, Elizabeth A DeLucia and 1 others
PMID 37222966WHAT IT FOUND
Virtual meetings increased caregiver and provider attendance but reduced student participation.
Community-based vocational training stopped, hindering independent living skills. Outside agency connections improved virtually, yet transition programming was deprioritized during the pandemic.
Key findings
01Virtual meeting formats allowed greater scheduling flexibility, enabling school providers and caregivers to attend transition planning meetings more readily.
02Student participation in IEP meetings declined because students were not always present at home or available to leave class during hybrid instruction.
03Community-based work experiences were unavailable even after returning to in-person instruction, which school providers and caregivers identified as the aspect of transition programming most negatively impacted.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was limited to Virginia, so findings may not generalize to other states with different pandemic responses. The sample was small (12 interviews) and demographically homogeneous (mostly White, highly educated caregivers). Only one autistic student participated, so student perspectives are underrepresented. Researchers did not collect data on students' cognitive, adaptive, or communication levels, limiting analysis across functioning levels.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the increased meeting attendance as evidence that transition outcomes improved. The study reports that student participation declined and community-based vocational training stopped, with participants stating transition programming was deprioritized.