Wednesday Research Seminar Series - From the pond, you are picked up and put in the sea’: Exploring the transition to employment experiences of young people with learning difficulties and their families

We are delighted to have Diksha Laungani for our Wednesday research seminar. She will present her research on “‘From the pond, you are picked up and put in the sea’: Exploring the transition to employment experiences of young people with learning difficulties and their families”.

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Wednesday Research Seminar Series         

We are pleased to invite you to our Wednesday Research Seminar. It will be held online on 3 February from 4pm via Microsoft team platform. Wednesday Research Seminar Series was launched in 2008, and has featured more than 285 presentations to date. The seminars provide a forum for researchers to share their work. Presenters include faculty from Middlesex University Dubai and other universities in the United Arab Emirates, as well as researchers from other global institutions. Diksha will deliver seminar on:    

“‘From the pond, you are picked up and put in the sea’: Exploring the transition to employment experiences of young people with learning difficulties and their families”

Diksha Laungani

Abstract    

Employment constitutes an essential marker of any young person’s transition to adulthood, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). However, there is a lack of research that actually hears the voices of young people and their families of their employment transition experiences. This UK-based, doctoral research explored the views of five young people with learning difficulties and their parents of an employment intervention, i.e. supported internships through a multiple case study approach. In doing so, this qualitative study aimed to understand the participants’ hopes/aspirations, transition from education to employment and perceived role of parents in their employment process. Data was collected longitudinally through 30 semi-structured interviews and analysed through thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). Key findings relate to the importance of self-determination and support networks for young people with SEND, in addition to some interesting differences in young people and familial views related to independence. The notion of an ongoing transition to employment (which involved challenges and growth for the young people) emerged, as well as parental difficulties during the transition process. This research seminar will address methodological, pragmatic issues such as accessible interview resources for people of determination/SEND and photo-elicitation (a participatory data collection technique), along with research implications and reflections.   

Biography 

Dr Diksha Laungani is an Adjunct Lecturer in Education at Middlesex University, Dubai. She is also a practising Educational Psychologist, registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council (HCPC) in the United Kingdom and licensed by Dubai Healthcare City. Diksha holds a Professional Doctorate in Educational, Child & Adolescent Psychology (D.Ed.Psy) from the Institute of Education at University College London and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology with Counselling from Middlesex University, Dubai. Diksha is passionate about community outreach and has collaborated with the UAE’s Ministry of Education and several private organisations to support educators’ and families’ development and wellbeing through consultation and training. Her research interests include post-16 education, transition planning and inclusion, self-advocacy for people of determination/SEND, participatory/person-centred approaches, and promoting educator and familial wellbeing.

Look forward to seeing you at the seminar!