Early Childhood Education Commons^™

Eds 702: The Young Child With Special Needs, Lingyu Li

Open Educational Resources

This introductory course addresses the concept of disability and the field of special education. It will also consider the social, cultural, and economic context surrounding the education of young children (birth to 8 years) with a wide range of developmental delays and disability conditions. Pertinent legislation, intervention with families, developing Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs), Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), and issues of advocacy will be studied within the context of the continuum of service delivery (home-based, center-based, and school-based interventions). (15 fieldwork hours required.)

Early Intervention Speech-Language Pathologists’ Knowledge, Beliefs, And Practices Surrounding Culturally And Linguistically Responsive Assessment Practices For Dual Language Learners, Rebecca Lynne Jarzynski

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Early intervention (EI) speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to provide culturally and linguistically responsive assessments for dual language learners (DLLs) within an increasingly diverse population. Previous research has documented gaps between SLPs’ beliefs related to assessments for DLLs and their implementation of best practices within school-based and pediatric outpatient settings. The purpose of this present research study was to better understand the current knowledge, beliefs, and practices of EI SLPs in relation to the use of culturally and linguistically responsive assessment practices within the context of EI programs. A total of 134 EI SLPs completed a nationwide survey in which …

How Hearing Parents With Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing Children Construct Deafness Through Their Early Intervention Experience, Bettie T. Petersen

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

This dissertation explores how hearing parents with deaf/hard of hearing children come to understand deafness. This mixed methods study used an online survey and multiple case studies (volunteers from survey). Participants were asked about early intervention experiences and beliefs about deafness. The survey had 74 respondents and five families participated in the interviews. Survey participants’ beliefs about deafness were primarily medical, focusing on the perceived barriers caused by deafness and the remediation of those barriers through spoken language options. A small number of respondents adopted a cultural perspective of deafness and focused on remediation of barriers through involvement in the …

Transition: Early Intervention To Preschool, Kim Thiesse

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The Individuals with Disability Education Act (IDEA) requires all Individualized Family Service (IFSP) plans to address transition. Early Intervention programs must initiate and discuss the transition process from early intervention to school-based services with each family at least 90 days before the child’s third birthday. Transition should be a process of information sharing and planning for each individual family. The transition process can be very stressful for many families because services, service providers, location, and delivery of services change. Preschool is often a family’s first experience with a school environment, successful collaboration and communication through the transition phase enhances the …

Coaching As A Framework For Early Intervention Service Delivery, Rebecca Walzak

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Abstract

The Division for Early Childhood (DEC) has set forth a list of high leverage practices that have significant impact on children with special needs from birth through early childhood. One of these impactful strategies is building family capacity, which can be effectively addressed using a coaching framework for service delivery. Research in the field has not yet clearly defined coaching terms, definitions or characteristics, which impacts the fidelity of the practice and requires research and consensus moving forward. This body of work seeks to look at current research around the topic of coaching and it’s effectiveness in meeting student …

Occupational Therapists’ Perspectives On Family-Centered Practices In Early Intervention, Irma J. Pereira, Francine M. Seruya

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Background: Early intervention (EI) requires service provision in natural settings while incorporating interventions based on family-centered practice (FCP). This study sought to understand (a) how occupational therapists define and implement FCP in their daily interventions and (b) therapists’ perspectives on using this model of practice in EI.

Method: This study used a qualitative, phenomenological approach. Nine licensed occupational therapists from six states with a minimum of 3 years of working experience in the area of EI participated. Semi-structured interviews were recorded, transcribed, and subsequently coded and analyzed for emergent themes.

Results: The therapists had an average of …

Beliefs And Self-Efficacy Of Parents Of Young Children With Hearing Loss, Sophie E. Ambrose, Margo Appenzeller, Alexandra Mai, Jean L. Desjardin

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

The purpose of this study was to learn more about the beliefs and self-efficacy of parents of young children with hearing loss. Seventy-two parents completed the Scale of Parental Involvement and Self-Efficacy - Revised (SPISE-R), which queries parents about their child’s hearing device use and their perceptions of their own beliefs, knowledge, confidence, and actions pertaining to supporting their child’s auditory access and spoken language development. Two beliefs were identified that related to parents’ action scores and one belief was identified that related to children’s hearing device use. Knowledge and confidence scores were significantly correlated with action scores and children’s …

A Study On Early Intervention Referrals And Eligibility Of Prenatal Drug-Exposed Children, Holly Nelson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to see what the developmental trend was among children who were prenatally exposed to drugs and early intervention services. There is not much research-based data that has been collected on this topic, even though in 2004 federal legislation was passed to improve early intervention service access for drug-exposed infants. This study was motivated by scientific evidence that maternal substance abuse and prenatal drug exposure has detrimental effects on the fetus and prolonged effects on children. This study collected data on how many prenatally drug-exposed children were referred for early intervention services and how many …

Inclusion/Services And Family Engagement: Leadership Opportunities, Nicole Drown

Poster Presentations

Project was created to provide: data driven materials to Maine's Child Development Services; resources and supports to families; and exploration into Applied Behavioral Analysis for Behavioral Intervention Support learning.

Including Autism: Confronting Inequitable Practices In A Toddler Classroom, Emmanuelle N. Fincham, Amanda R. Fellner

Occasional Paper Series

As co-teachers in a toddler room, we share a personal narrative about our experiences working with a child diagnosed with autism while in our care. Framed within the competing discourses of the medicalized perspective on disability and the individual, child-centered philosophies of early childhood education, we investigate the inequities we felt in the classroom and make connections to the field of early childhood inclusive education at large.

Effects Of Frequency Of Early Intervention On Spoken Language And Literacy Levels Of Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing In Preschool And Elementary School, Ann E. Geers, Jean S. Moog, Amanda M. Rudge

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Language delays associated with hearing loss during infancy may have a negative impact on academic development throughout childhood. Early intervention provided by the Moog Center for Deaf Education prior to 36 months of age was quantified, and associations with later outcomes were examined for 50 students who are DHH representing Moog Center alumni. The objective was to determine whether the amount of early intervention (referred to hereafter as dose of early intervention received at the Moog Center during the time children were 0-36 months of age) contributed uniquely to outcomes in preschool (4–6 years) and in elementary school (8–14 years). …

Fathers' Experiences In Early Intervention: Marooned In The Kitchen Or Member Of The Team, Megan Schumaker-Murphy

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Little research about fathers with young children with developmental disabilities or delays and their participation in early intervention/Part C programs is available. This study adds to existing scholarship through a narrative inquiry into the experiences of six fathers with children who have participated in early intervention services. Emergent themes within and across fathers' narratives include high levels of father engagement prior to entering early intervention, overall positive feelings about early intervention due to children's developmental progress, feelings of stress and frustration throughout participation in early intervention, varied relationship quality between fathers and early intervention service providers, an overall lack of …

Cds State Data Review Project: Data Tells The Story, Katharine Appleyard

Poster Presentations

This poster presents data that identifies state and regional site-level trends, outliers, etc., with regard to federal reporting indicators and other factors, in the Child Development Services system.

Parent-Implemented Language Intervention With Young Children From Low-Ses Environments Who Have Language Impairment, Courtney Allison Hatcher

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

In this study, the author examined the effects of training four parents from low-socioeconomic environments to use Enhanced Milieu Teaching (EMT) with their young children with language impairment. The investigator used a modified Teach-Model-Coach-Review method to teach parents to use the following EMT strategies during 8-10 individualized, home-based sessions: matched turns, expansions, time delays and milieu teaching prompts. A single-case multiple-baseline design across-behaviors replicated across four parent/child dyads was used to evaluate the parents' use of the EMT strategies. Child language outcomes were also assessed using pre- and post-intervention language samples. All parents learned and demonstrated use of each language …