Early Intervention (EI)
As you read in the ECSE assignment, EI and ESCE are different programs (see pages 470-471 in your textbook that summarizes EI and who it is for). Here is a link to a brief providing some great overview information about EI (Links to an external site.).
Some of the critical differences include:
- It is discretionary (available for use at the discretion of the user)
- Serves children from birth until their third birthday
- VERY different program from what happens when children turn 3 years of age
- Covered under Part C of IDEA rather than PART B and is implemented in a different way as a result (see chart if you need a reminder: se-fs-keyfeaturesofpartbandpartc.pdf )
- States can charge money for services (Missouri does)
- All families have a service coordinator
- Outcomes are determined before services
- Once child is eligible, services can be provided in areas the child didn’t qualify as long as they are deemed necessary to meet goals
The rationale for EI is that the earlier we can intervene the better. The main goals of EI include the following:
- Enhance the development of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers
- Reduce the long-term costs by intervening earlier
- Maximize the potential of the learner
- Enhance family capacity
- Enhance state and local capacity
What EI Involves
For this assignment, we are going to examine a few key ideas related to EI and how it differs from ECSE.
- Family centered: EI is family centered rather than child-centered. Read page 491 in your textbook about families to learn more.
- Natural Environment: EI takes part in the natural environment (NE) rather than the least restrictive environment (LRE). The NE is a setting typical for same-age peers without disabilities such as the child’s home, playgroup and child care facilities. Watch one of the two videos below (or both!) about the natural environment and using a routines-based approach:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL_WOCu3Ptg (Links to an external site.)
- Individualized Family Service Plan: Within EI, an individualized family service plan (IFSP) is developed NOT an IEP. Families participate in the planning, implementation and review of their IFSP. The IFSP process should result in a document that reflects a family’s concerns, priorities, and resources with regard to the development of their infant or toddler. It is a fluid document that must be periodically reviewed every 6 months or at the request of a team member to reflect a child’s developmental needs of changes in family priorities and resources. Read pages 471-472 in your textbook for additional information about the IFSP. Take a look at this sample IFSP form to see what is included in an IFSP: sample IFSP form.pdf
- Eligibility: Those eligible to receive early intervention include:
- Infants or toddlers with demonstrated delays
- Infants or toddlers who have conditions that USUALLY result in a delay, even if the delay isn’t currently present
- Children at risk because of environment (most states don’t service this population)
Assignment:Using the information from both the ECSE and EI assignment pages, fill in this table that demonstrates the similarities and differences between ECSE and EI: ECSE compared to EI.docx
Download ECSE compared to EI.docxThe middle column should represent similarities between ECSE and EI; the other columns represent differences for each (like a venn diagram). In the table, you may address topics such as instructional techniques/adaptations and modifications, and purposes of, eligibility, etc.Requirements of the assignment for full credit:
- Use complete sentences (may use bullet points but must use complete sentences)
- Include a minimum of 3 bullet points in each column
