Family-Centered Early Intervention Visual Impairment Services through Matrix Session Planning

Abstract

Early intervention visual impairment services are built on a model that values family involvement. Legislative provision for these services is found under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997, the Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Act. An early intervention professional is a teacher of visually impaired students or an orientation and mobility (OM Dote-Kwan & Chen, 2014; Petersen & Nielsen, 2005). We organized these ideas into several steps that could be taught to scholars with subsequent evaluation for fidelity of implementation. In this paper, we will describe the method we call matrix session planning, followed by a discussion of the advantages and challenges scholars experienced as they used the matrix session planning method with families. Description of the matrix session planning method Matrix session planning pulls together parent priorities, family routines, and identified strategies in a way that helps families and early intervention professionals outline a plan that can both highlight long-term goals and focus on what can be done today. First, the early intervention professional interviews the parents to learn about their concerns, hopes, and dreams for their child. We have found the Routines-Based Interview (McWilliam, Casey, & Sims, 2009) or the Parent Assessment of Needs from Parents and Their Infants with Visual Impairments (Chen, Calvello, & Taylor Friedman, 2015) to be helpful interview protocols. This professional also completes a functional vision assessment. From the interview and assessment, outcomes are identified. These priorities are entered in the left-hand column of a matrix with one outcome per row (see Table 1). Next, family routines are identified in one of two ways. The family may identify specific daily routines as being difficult for the child, or a desired outcome may naturally fit into a specific routine. Identified routines are listed across the top row of the matrix. Then, the parent and provider brainstorm solutions using the child's strengths, preferences, and adaptive needs. These solutions are based on information from the interview and assessment. The ideas are entered into the matrix in the corresponding row and column. …