Partizipation im Übergang Schule-Beruf bei Schüler*innen des Förderschwerpunktes Geistige Entwicklung
The paths of former special needs students after school into training, work or vocational education can only be very vaguely traced with the help of the existing statistics. The subjective point of view of the special needs students is only rarely recorded. Structural disadvantages are particularly evident at students with special needs related to intellectual development. Students with special needs related to intellectual development are almost exclusively taught at special schools.
The research design of the dissertation is an exploratory longitudinal study. The research question was how the career aspirations were developed, of eight special needs students related to intellectual development, and how they can implement them. In the dissertation, the concept of participation was chosen as the theoretical and conceptual basis. The concept of participation, which is used excessively and is still vaguely defined, is the subject of lively debate both politically in various discourses and in the work with people with disabilities. However, a distinction from the concept of participation is rare. In the dissertation, an urgently needed differentiation of the definition of the concept of participation took place.
The study was able to show that the participation opportunities for students in the transition from school to work are only possible to a small extent and within a limited, usually predeter-mined, framework for action. In the case of the special needs students, it can be seen that the teaching staff, the rehabilitation consultants from the employment agency and the parents have a major influence on the career choice of the special needs students. Existing support options, such as supported employment,
etc. were not discussed by the students. Furthermore, the sometimes close cooperation between the schools and the sheltered workshop for people with disabilities could be shown, as well as a lack of long-term support from independent careers advisers.