Outcomes of persons with disabilities who receive vocational training at Tennessee Rehabilitation Center

James M Perdue, Tennessee State University

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of Tennessee Rehabilitation Center (TRC) students' education. TRC is a vocational rehabilitation training school in Middle Tennessee for individuals with disabilities throughout the state of Tennessee that are seeking employment after graduating from their training. In Tennessee, approximately 22% of people reported living with a disability. There are numerous organizations that assist people with disabilities, increasing the opportunity for employment training. While there are numerous disabled people who complete employment training programs, there are not enough people that are disabled in the workplace. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was created to assure there would be less discrimination against people with disabilities and promote them to be able to participate in all aspects of life, including employment. Even though ADA has made life as a person with a disability easier, it has not ensured that people with disabilities that are qualified for a position will attain employment. This study compared people with disabilities experiences who receive vocational rehabilitation training at Tennessee Rehabilitation Center in middle Tennessee. The study compared age, disability (from birth or acquired after birth), gender, and ethnicity. The students filled out a survey about their perception of their educational experience from TRC. The Statistical Program for the Social Sciences was used to analyze the data. An independent t-test was preformed for the quantitative null hypotheses except null hypothesis number five; it could not be test due to the low numbers reported. The independent t-test was used to examine the difference of disabilities status, ethnicity, and gender on related variables in the study. For the open-ended questions, data interpretation in order to identify themes and patterns were used. All statistical tests were evaluated at a two-tailed significance level of 0.05.

Subject Area

Occupational Therapy|Special education|Curriculum development|Vocational education

Recommended Citation

James M Perdue, "Outcomes of persons with disabilities who receive vocational training at Tennessee Rehabilitation Center" (2011). ETD Collection for Tennessee State University. Paper AAI3454407.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI3454407

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