Development and Validation of the Transition Coordinators Survey

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to create a valid and reliable instrument for the field of secondary special education and transition by developing and validating the Transition Coordinators Survey (TCS). Transition coordinators are professionals who are typically responsible for working with students with disabilities, their families, and the community in order to ensure a smooth and effective transition into adult life. There has not been a tool in the field of transition that is intended to measure transition coordinator competencies, and the TCS was designed to specifically target this group of professionals. More than 30 articles were identified and reviewed for use in the study, with publication dates ranging from 1995 to 2011. Transition coordinators from 48 states and 5 U.S. territories participated in the study, yielding a usable sample of 1,346 respondents. The research described here combines descriptive, scaling, and statistical procedures to report that the TCS is a valid and reliable instrument.