More than a decade has passed since the National Research Council described the common elements of effective educational programs for young children with autism. Since that time, few studies have attempted to understand the mechanisms of change and factors affecting the effectiveness of research supported interventions implemented in community…

This discussion reviews the literature regarding consultation as a form of indirect service delivery in early intervention for children with disabilities, identifies barriers to effective consultation practice, and concludes that consultation can allow children with disabilities to receive intervention services in integrated settings if…

Content analysis of focus groups attended by 86 early intervention specialists revealed six factors affecting professional comfort with consultation: (1) child characteristics, (2) consultee characteristics, (3) program characteristics, (4) consultant characteristics, (5) available resources, and (6) consultant's history with the program. No…

This study examined preferences for consultation models and styles among 67 professionals who worked in early intervention programs in Colorado. Participants preferred a collaborative approach involving shared responsibility across all stages of the consultation process and a directive style of sharing specific strategies to address the concerns…

This article describes the Infant-Toddler Care Project in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, which was developed to provide child care programs with on-site consultation that emphasizes aspects of quality care for all children and supports the inclusion of infants and toddlers with disabilities. An appended case study illustrates the project's approach…

This study assessed the integrity with which social skills interventions were implemented in 16 early childhood special education classrooms. Positive correlations between intervention integrity and both overall amount of intervention provided and child outcomes were found. Teacher ratings of intervention acceptability were weak predictors of…

This commentary on a previous article (Odom 1999) that investigated 16 inclusive programs in 4 regional U.S. locations notes the omission of environments other than classrooms in the study, such as home settings and family day care settings. The absence of specific characteristics of the programs described is also criticized. (Contains seven…

This commentary on a previous article (Odom 1999) that investigated 16 inclusive programs in 4 regional U.S. locations notes the omission of information about the quality of services, providers' perspectives, the extent to which what practitioners say corresponds with classroom practice, and range of special services delivered. (CR)

Project STIP (Supported Transition to Integrated Preschools) implemented a teacher consulting model to increase integration opportunities for preschool children with disabilities being served in self-contained public school classrooms. Parents and preschool regular educators evaluated the model positively and indicated that collaboration with the…

A range of qualitative and quantitative methods were used to create case studies and summaries of 16 inclusive programs in 4 regional U.S. locations. The individualized service model that programs followed were itinerant-direct service, itinerant-collaborative consultative, team teaching, early childhood, early childhood special education, and…