Early Childhood Special Education and Early Intervention Personnel Preparation Standards of the Division for Early Childhood

Abstract

Results of the field validation survey of the revised initial and new advanced Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) Division for Early Childhood (DEC) early childhood special education (ECSE)/early intervention (EI) personnel standards are presented. Personnel standards are used as part of educational accountability systems and in teacher personnel preparation program accreditation to train highly qualified teachers. DEC and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) members were partners in the validation survey. The method and survey procedures are described along with the knowledge and skill standards selected as essential and retained in the final DEC ECSE/EI approved sets of standards. Purposeful sampling was used to select DEC respondents for their knowledge and expertise in personnel preparation and operation of ECSE/EI and early childhood education (ECE) programs. Results from the DEC and NAEYC respondents are compared and contrasted. Challenges and limitations are discussed.