Early Childhood Special Education Programs Research Articles

Facilitating coordination between medical and educational systems to improve access to pediatric therapies for preschool children with developmental delays and disabilities.

A large portion of preschool-age children with developmental delays and disabilities (PCw/DD) do not receive recommended therapeutic services, including legally mandated school-based therapies. This study examines the feasibility of a community-clinical linkage using virtual patient navigation and a medical-educational care plan called Preschool and Me (PreM) to connect clinical settings serving historically marginalized communities with early childhood special education (ECSE) services. Parents of PCw/DD attending an urban pediatric clinic from January to March 2022 were enrolled to receive PreM which included navigation support for ECSE, overcoming barriers accessing ECSE, and health care provider communication. Families completed measures of demographics and indicators of feasibility at baseline and 4-month follow-up. Of the 34 families referred, 30 were eligible and enrolled. Most parents identified as mothers (97%). Most participant children (70% male, 60% Black, 30% Hispanic) were enrolled in public health insurance (93%) and were not receiving any clinic-based therapies (93%). Parents overwhelmingly found PreM acceptable with the majority stating it would be a strong reason to continue care at the clinic. Among families who received PreM, 26 (96%) completed an individualized education plan (IEP) evaluation (96%). Of these, 24 (92%) children were eligible for an IEP. Nineteen children enrolled in an ECSE program; two families awaited school assignments and three families did not consent to the assigned school placement due to neighborhood safety concerns. Our findings suggest PreM was feasible, acceptable, and demonstrated promise in supporting families to navigate the ECSE process. Future studies examining effectiveness are warranted. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

A dynamic process model for continued integration between ECE and EI/ECSE teacher preparation programs

ABSTRACT Early childhood and early childhood special education programs have predominantly been separate teacher preparation programs that prepare novice teachers for general or special education settings. However, with a growing shift toward inclusion, as well as a shortage of educators with training to teach all children, there is a need for teacher preparation programs to prepare all early childhood educators to support all children and engage all families. This article describes one institute of higher education’s integrated program and the program’s process to align coursework with both the Professional Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood Educators and Initial Practice-Based Professional Preparation Standards for Early Interventionists/Early Childhood Special Educators. We do this by discussing (a) the landscape of teacher education and integrated programs, (b) one IHE’s integrated program history, (c) our process for embedding standards, and (d) next steps.

Transitions Out of Early Intervention

This study was designed to describe the experience of families exiting the early intervention (EI) system and transitioning into early childhood special education (ECSE) programs. Eight mothers of children preparing to exit EI services completed semistructured interviews, which were transcribed and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Four mothers answered additional post-transition interview questions. Interview participants experienced anxiety about the transition process but reported that they found EI personnel to be knowledgeable and supportive allies. Participants also described favorable outcomes related to a structured transition class. These findings indicate that the transition out of EI is associated with parental anxiety and uncertainty, which can be allayed through strong relationships with EI service providers.

Learning About Communication Disorders: Comparison of Two Instructional Methods With Multimedia for Preservice Teachers

Content acquisition podcasts (CAPs) are a popular tool in special educator preparation but little is known about their application to communication disorders. This quasi-experimental study investigated the effectiveness of two instructional methods: lecture plus video and a content acquisition podcast (CAP). Participants were undergraduates in early childhood education and special education programs ( N = 62). Participants were assessed on their knowledge and application of communication development and disorders at four time points. Results indicated that the lecture plus video condition was more effective at producing knowledge gains compared to the CAP condition, but both conditions were equally effective at producing gains in application ability at post-test. Neither group maintained their knowledge gains 8 weeks after instruction. Learning condition did not affect participants in the two education programs differently. Implications for teacher preparation are discussed.

Establishing innovative partnerships to support transitions from early intervention to preschool in the United States of America: lessons from parent and provider experiences

ABSTRACT In the United States, families of young children with developmental disabilities may encounter many challenges and obstacles when advocating for their child’s developmental services and supports. Research has highlighted that the transition from early intervention services to school-based services is especially confusing and difficult for many families. To limit confusion, the context and procedures of the transition must be clearly understood by all parties involved, including the family, early intervention providers, and school personnel. This exploratory qualitative pilot study highlights different practices used in a transition classroom for young children with developmental disabilities and the experiences of those involved in the transition process. The transition classroom was created through a collaboration between a non-profit early intervention organisation and a public Early Childhood Special Education Program. A teacher, the director of the non-profit organisation, and a parent of a child in the transition classroom were interviewed. Implications emphasising effective partnerships between families, schools, and community organisations, and how to potentially build those partnerships are discussed.

Legal Issues in Early Childhood Special Education

Family and professional collaboration is beneficial to students, families, and educators. The importance of such collaboration was recognized for families of students with disabilities, resulting in provisions in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that mandate parental participation in educational planning. Despite the benefits of family and professional collaboration and the IDEA mandate, many parents disagree with the educational planning decisions provided to their children and request due process hearings. Parents perceive a lack of opportunity to provide input and/or to disagree with schools’ perspectives. Parents of early childhood students report significant concerns about their child’s readiness for the transition to kindergarten and their limited role in transition planning as their children prepared to enter preschool programs. The purpose of this article was to examine the issues identified in parental complaints in early childhood special education (ECSE) through a qualitative content analysis of recent court cases. The results revealed six themes related to current issues in ECSE programs. We conclude with several recommendations for state policy makers to improve services in ECSE based on the DEC Recommended Practices.

An Examination of Current Leadership Practices in Early Childhood and Early Childhood Special Education: A Mixed Methods Study

ABSTRACT Research Findings: Effective leadership is one necessary element of achieving high quality in early childhood (EC) and early childhood special education (ECSE) programs. To date, little leadership literature and research are available for EC/ECSE professionals. Using a mixed-methods research approach, this study investigated local leadership practices in one western state in the United States. A hundred forty-three leaders from state or federally funded EC/ECSE programs participated in an online survey (phase I). Four state-level EC/ECSE leaders participated in individual interviews (phase II). The findings of phase I provided valuable insight into local leadership implementation status, implementation challenges, and professional development needs and were well-aligned with the phase II state-level leaders’ perceptions. Practice or Policy: The findings suggest that the local leaders need more targeted support opportunities to improve as a leader than a manager. The need for EC/ECSE leadership licensure, endorsement/certification, specific leadership performance standards, and credentials are discussed.

Intervention Approaches Used for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder—Autism Toolkit

Intervention Approaches Used for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder—Autism Toolkit

A comprehensive service delivery model for preschoolers with special educational needs: Its characteristics and effectiveness

BackgroundThe compartmentalization between early intervention services and early childhood special education programs is a worldwide phenomenon, which results in the fragmentation of services for preschoolers with special educational needs (SEN). AimsTo address this fragmentation of services, an intervention program in Hong Kong adopted a comprehensive service delivery model with six characteristics: 1) multidisciplinary approach, 2) integration of services across different contexts, 3) multimodal intervention with direct and indirect services, 4) capacity building for systems, 5) inclusive environment, and 6) high program intensity. MethodsThe program evaluation was a quasi-experiment with a control group (n = 60) matched to the experimental group (n = 60). ResultsAt the end of the school year, the experimental group made significant improvement in most measures including cognitive skills, receptive language skills, expressive language skills, gross-motor skills, fine-motor skills, and self-direction skills. School heads in the experimental group also agreed that the program had empowered their teachers and reinforced their school systems. ConclusionDespite its exploratory nature, the study has shed light on the future directions of services for preschoolers with SEN. The comprehensive service delivery model offers a response to the fragmentation of services and reveals the importance of integration of services across different contexts with multidisciplinary approach.

Inattentiveness and Language Abilities in Preschoolers: A Latent Profile Analysis.

Growing evidence suggests that early symptoms of inattentiveness may affect the language development and academic success of young children. In the present study, we examined the extent to which profiles of inattentiveness and language could be discerned within a heterogeneous group of preschoolers attending early childhood special education programs (n = 461). Based on parent-reported observations of children's symptoms of inattentiveness and direct assessments of children's language skills (grammar, vocabulary, and narrative ability), three distinct profiles were identified. The three groups, representing levels of severity (at risk, almost average, above average), differed not only by their end of year performance, but also with respect to which their abilities changed over the course of the academic year. Children in the poorest performing profile had poorer mean scores in the spring of their preschool year on all measures, but exhibited patterns of gain that exceeded or equaled their peers in higher-performing groups, in the domains of vocabulary and grammar. Examination of subsequent kindergarten reading skills suggested that profile differences remained consistent. Findings underscore the associations between early symptoms of inattentiveness and language difficulties, and further indicate that these relations extend to the acquisition of early reading skills. Future research is needed to corroborate these findings with more robust measures of attention, and to understand the long-term associations between inattentiveness, language and literacy, and potential effects on these associations from early intervention.

The Effects of Coaching With Video and Email Feedback on Preservice Teachers’ Use of Recommended Practices

In this study, we examined the effects of training and coaching via video and email feedback on preservice teachers’ use of recommended practices. Two preservice teachers in an early childhood special education program developed action plans for implementing recommended practices and videotaped their interactions with children in a blended preschool program. Coaches reviewed videos and provided email feedback with video examples of participants’ use of the practices. The training and coaching with email and video feedback was effective in increasing participants’ use of recommended practices. The results of this study strengthen the evidence base for distance coaching as a viable support for preservice teachers.

Republication of “Preschool Programs: Preliminary Findings”

Editor’s Note In recent years, more than 700,000 children aged 3 through 5 years identified with speech or language impairments (44%), developmental delay (37%), autism (9%), and other disabilities (10%) received federally supported special education services. For our republished article in the inaugural issue of the 50th anniversary volume, we have selected a historical piece by David P. Weikart. Working in Ypsilanti, Michigan, in the early 1960s, Weikart and his colleagues saw the need for—and projected the benefits of providing—structured educational experiences to preschool children from disadvantaged backgrounds. His work on the Perry Preschool Project is widely recognized as a foundation for evidence-based practices driving continuing interest in and success of early childhood education and special education programs today.

Psychometrics of the preschool behavioral and emotional rating scale with children from early childhood special education settings.

In a previous study with a nationally representative sample, researchers found that the items of the Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale can best be described by a four-factor structure model (Emotional Regulation, School Readiness, Social Confidence, and Family Involvement). The findings of this investigation replicate and extend these previous results with a national sample of children (N = 1,075) with disabilities enrolled in early childhood special education programs. Data were analyzed using classical tests theory, Rasch modeling, and confirmatory factor analysis. Results confirmed that for the most part, individual items were internally consistent within a four-factor model and showed consistent item difficulty, discrimination, and fit relative to their respective subscale scores.

Conventional Tests and Testing for Early Intervention Eligibility

Conventional tests and testing procedures are used predominately to determine eligibility for early intervention and early childhood special education programs and services. Such traditional tests must have critical attributes to ensure accurate and representative measurements of the capabilities of infants, toddlers, and preschool children who have developmental delays and disabilities. Researchers and critics have questioned the presumption that conventional tests have the requisite practice-based evidence to justify their use for early intervention eligibility. In this updated research synthesis, we reviewed the available research literature on the most frequently used conventional tests and found 44 studies exploring their technical adequacy related to eligibility determination; then, we identified and applied well-known early childhood professional standards for developmentally appropriate assessment to the research literature on these conventional tests/editions to determine their fit with early childhood intervention philosophy, purpose, and practices. The results of our qualitative study and research synthesis raise serious questions about the lack of critical qualities, field validation, and evidence base of conventional tests and testing to fulfill the purpose of early intervention eligibility determination. Implications for professional practices in early childhood intervention, particularly eligibility determination, are discussed with relevant perspectives on policy and research issues.

Print-Focused Read-Alouds in Early Childhood Special Education Programs

The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of print-focused read-alouds, implemented by early childhood special education (ECSE) teachers alone or in conjunction with caregivers, on the print knowledge of children with language impairment (LI). Using random assignment to conditions, children with LI were exposed, over an academic year of preschool, to one of three conditions specifying the way in which teachers and caregivers were to read storybooks with them. Based on a print-knowledge composite, children whose teachers used print-focused read-alouds had significantly better print knowledge ( d = .21) in spring of the year compared to children whose teachers used their typical reading practices. When teachers and caregivers implemented print-focused read-alouds simultaneously, children’s Spring print knowledge was modestly higher ( d = .11) than that of children whose teachers and parents used their typical reading practices, but the effect was not statistically significant. Examination of intervention moderators showed that children with lower levels of nonverbal cognition benefited substantially from exposure to the intervention. Educational implications are discussed.

Early Intervention with a Parent-Delivered Massage Protocol Directed at Tactile Abnormalities Decreases Severity of Autism and Improves Child-to-Parent Interactions: A Replication Study.

Tactile abnormalities are severe and universal in preschool children with autism. They respond well to treatment with a daily massage protocol directed at tactile abnormalities (QST massage for autism). Treatment is based on a model for autism proposing that tactile impairment poses a barrier to development. Two previous randomized controlled trials evaluating five months of massage treatment reported improvement of behavior, social/communication skills, and tactile and other sensory symptoms. This is the first report from a two-year replication study evaluating the protocol in 103 preschool children with autism. Parents gave daily treatment; trained staff gave weekly treatment and parent support. Five-month outcomes replicated earlier studies and showed normalization of receptive language (18%, P = .03), autistic behavior (32%, P = .006), total sensory abnormalities (38%, P = .0000005), tactile abnormalities (49%, P = .0002), and decreased autism severity (medium to large effect size, P = .008). In addition, parents reported improved child-to-parent interactions, bonding, and decreased parenting stress (44%, P = .00008). Early childhood special education programs are tasked with addressing sensory abnormalities and engaging parents in effective home programs. Until now, they have lacked research-based methods to do so. This program fulfills the need. It is recommended to parents and ECSE programs (ages 3–5) at autism diagnosis.

Practices for Parent Participation in Early Intervention/ Early Childhood Special Education

The authors examined the extent to which practices for parent participation in early intervention/ early childhood special education (EI/ECSE) programs. The role of parents in the EI/ECSE is important and supported through the literature. The changing traditional family picture in the classrooms, the importance of evolving laws and regulations and recommended practices regarding parent participation are highlighted. The conceptual framework is based on the children, parents, and practitioners’ outcomes. Strategies to promote family involveme nt provided a direct way to understand how early childhood education programs influence family participation. Practices to promote family participation are discussed. Key Words: parent participation, early intervention, early childhood special education, strategies.

Developing a Progress Monitoring Portfolio for Children in Early Childhood Special Education Programs

Developing a Progress Monitoring Portfolio for Children in Early Childhood Special Education Programs

Early Childhood Special Education: Insights from Educators and Families

Programs and services designed to meet the needs of young children with disabilities have increased substantially in recent years, often times without evaluating how effective the programs and services are at meeting the needs of children and families. This study sought to investigate how principals, teachers, and parents perceived how Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) programs across 31 schools in a large, urban city in the United States (US) meet the needs of young children and their families. Thirty principals, 45 teachers, and 301 families participated in the investigation. Overall, all stakeholders identified the programs’ structure, personnel, and home to school connections as strengths. They also believed that ECSE programs were an appropriate place for young children with disabilities. Families and teachers indicated satisfaction with the frequency of communication; however, both families and principals still wanted to see an increase in communication between home and school. Areas needing improvement included critical elements needed in ECSE programs related to human resources, increased funding, and appropriate adult-child ratios. Implications for practice are discussed.

Pilot study of a school-based parent training program for preschoolers with ASD

This study investigated the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of a parenting training program designed for early intervention and early childhood special education (EI/ESCE) programs serving students with autistic spectrum disorders. Thirteen teachers representing three intermediate school districts implemented the intervention with 27 students and their parents. Eighty-nine percent of families completed the program. From pre- to post-intervention parents improved their use of the treatment strategies and children increased their rate of language during a parent-child interaction in their home. Parents and teachers reported significant gains in child mastery of social-communication skills and teachers, but not parents, reported a significant decrease in social impairment. Parents reported a significant decrease in parenting stress. Both groups rated the intervention highly in regard to treatment acceptability, perceived effectiveness, and usability. Findings suggest that this intervention can be feasibly implemented in public EI/ECSE settings, filling an important gap in services for intervention programs serving children with autistic spectrum disorders.