Engaging, focusing, and persisting in the completion of tasks are among the skills needed for school success. Tracking whether a child is learning cognitive problem-solving skills is essential in knowing if they are acquiring skills important for development and school readiness; and if not, how they are responding to early intervention. Use of…

The National Center for Systemic Improvement (NCSI) conducted a series of focused conversations on child assessment with 31 Part C (Infant-Toddler) and Part B-619 (Preschool) program state representatives and NCSI Technical Assistance (TA) Facilitators. The purpose was to learn more about how state early intervention and early childhood programs…

Early intervention (EI) teams can use Implementation Science to choose, implement, and sustain the use of evidence-based strategies and programs. Smith et al. (2014) described Implementation Science as "the study of the processes needed to bring new practices into widespread use" (p. 4). Programs work through four stages: exploration,…

The topic of special education can be confusing and frightening for parents who suspect their child has a disability or has difficulty learning. Parents in this situation want to know how to get help for their child. This guide is intended as a reference for people who have questions about special education for a child. It summarizes the basic…

Think of all the skills that children have to learn when they come into the world: smiling, turning over, responding to people, communicating, eating solid food, crawling, standing, and on and on. These skills are expected to emerge naturally over time and it is known more or less when they should. This timetable for skills to emerge is commonly…

The number of students identified under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) with an emotional disturbance (ED) has remained remarkably stable over the last 30 years. During this time, approximately 1% of the school-aged population has been identified as disabled under the criteria set forth in IDEA (Kim, Forness, & Walker,…

The term "multiple disabilities" is general and broad. From the term, you cannot tell how many disabilities a child has; which disabilities are involved; or how severe each disability is. Many combinations of disabilities are possible. The different disabilities will also have a combined impact. That is why it is also important to ask:…

This document provides an overview of the critical role of fiscal data in state Part C systems. This information is intended to help state Part C lead agency staff better understand strategic fiscal policy questions, the fiscal data elements needed to address those questions, and the benefits of using these data. Fiscal data provide powerful…

Behavioral insomnias of childhood (BIC) and sleep disordered breathing (SDB) disorders cause disrupted and/or inefficient sleep. Left untreated in early childhood, both conditions increase the risk of compromised development, particularly in the areas of behavior, cognition, and growth. This systematic review determined whether and how current…

This concept paper was developed to address policies and practices for using developmental delay as a category of eligibility for young children. These policies and practices have evolved in response to changes in federal legislation and recommended practices in the field of early intervention and early childhood special education. The purpose of…

The Study of Monitoring and Improvement Practices under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) examined how states monitored the implementation of IDEA by local special education and early intervention services programs. State monitoring and improvement practices in 2004-05 and 2006-07 were the focus of the study. Prior to the…

In response to the current federal initiative to evaluate the impact of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Personnel Preparation program, the authors summarize prior efforts to evaluate the program and identify common themes and gaps in that work. Also, the authors pose issues and questions for those who seek to understand the impact…

IDEA stands for The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which is the law that requires special services for children with disabilities from birth through the age of twenty-one years. This law has established the regulations on which the procedural safeguards in this booklet are based. The ten safeguards discussed include the right to:…

Procedures for using a decision algorithm for determining whether an infant or toddler is eligible for Part C early intervention is the focus of this eligibility determination practice guideline. An algorithm is a step-by-step problem-solving procedure or decision-making process that results in a solution or accurate decision in a finite number of…

This monograph attempts to provide an overview of current educational issues that affect brain-injured students with special emphasis on the assessment process. An introduction notes recognition of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its definition under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1990 as well as the increasing numbers of such…