Transition Vocabulary Crosswalk

Have you ever met with experts or specialists and walked away wondering what was said? All people have likely experienced confusion when speaking with a person in a field not familiar to them, such as a medical professional, an auto mechanic, or an accountant. All jobs have their vocabulary and jargon, which is of high importance for accurate communication with others in the same career or office. For example, imagine the confusion (and mistakes) that could result if dentists and dental hygienists in the same office used different names for tools and equipment.

When students are preparing to leave high school and venture into adult life, the transition years bring together families, youth, educators, agency personnel, and others, often for the first time. When professionals from different fields initially come together sometimes it’s hard to remember that not everyone uses the same terminology or vocabulary.