A family-centered early intervention (EI) approach mandated by the U.S. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C, means involving parents fully in EI and ensuring they know their legal rights and responsibilities for participating. However, many parents report difficulty accessing information and decision-making in EI. IDEA…

Coaching caregivers of young children on the autism spectrum is a critical component of parent-mediated interventions. Little information is available about how providers implement parent coaching for children on the autism spectrum in publicly funded early intervention systems. This study evaluated providers' use of parent coaching in an early…

Background: This implementation feasibility study was conducted to determine whether an evidence-based parent-implemented distance-learning intervention model for young children at high likelihood of having ASD could be implemented at fidelity by Part C community providers and by parents in low-resource communities. Methods: The study used a…

Early intervention (EI) services are mandated by Part C of The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004). The EI team, a multidisciplinary team overseen by individual states, is charged with providing family-centered services to support child development in the natural environment. This article examines the use of occupational…

Coaching caregivers of young children on the autism spectrum is a critical component of parent-mediated interventions. Little information is available about how providers implement parent coaching for children on the autism spectrum in publicly funded early intervention systems. This study evaluated providers' use of parent coaching in an early…

The Division for Early Childhood (DEC) clearly outlined recommended practices for the provision of Part C services. However, there may be challenges in rural areas associated with services aligning with these recommended practices. Therefore, this study focuses on how families experience Part C services and the extent to which services align with…

Despite the importance of family-centered practice in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part C, a federally funded program for birth to two-year-old children with disabilities, there is a lack of research on Asian families who participate in early intervention in the U.S. This study examined the experiences of two Korean families and…

Many autism-focused early intervention (EI) models have not yet been adopted by community-based providers in rural settings due to fit and feasibility when working within the Part C model. Family Implemented TEACCH for Toddlers (FITT, based on the University of North Carolina TEACCH Autism Program) is a research-based, Part-C compatible, EI model…

Advancing equity in early childhood education is crucial as our broader society faces issues of inequities across systems, including education. Professionals must honor children's home language and cultural contexts, coming from a perspective of value and respect rather than from a traditionally dominant Eurocentric perspective. Through this…

Few studies examine the effectiveness of community-based early interventions in unselected samples of autistic children, especially those from minoritized backgrounds. These types of studies require attention to strategies for recruitment, retention, data collection, and support for community providers beyond those used in university-based trials.…

In this study, the relationships between child social functioning, parenting stress, and Part C Early Intervention (EI) enrollment were examined in 227 ethnically and racially diverse, low-income families of 15- to 27-month-old children. All toddlers in the sample were identified with or at high risk for developmental delay via universal screening…

Family-early educator partnerships are foundational to early childhood and early childhood special education, and collaborative decision-making regarding child and family need is recognized as a critical component of these partnerships. This study investigated how two Part C early intervention home visitors and four parents communicated during…

The purpose of this systematic review was to examine the empirical literature on caregiver coaching in early intervention with subsequent positive effects on language development of children with hearing loss receiving services through Part C of IDEA (2004). The systematic review of the literature yielded 20 studies utilizing 32 different…

There is growing research aimed at translating parent-mediated interventions into Part C Early Intervention systems to examine the effectiveness and reach of these models. Although research to date suggests that Early Intervention providers deliver parent-mediated intervention near fidelity, current fidelity reporting practices make delivery…

Early intervention (EI) providers--who deliver Part C services under the purview of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for children birth-3 years old with/at risk of disabilities--play an important role in promoting the development of young children and their caregivers. Enhancing caregiver capacity to meet the developmental…