Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND

PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING

Fostering Optimal Outcomes for Families and Professionals in the Home Setting
Stacey Jenkins
Kent State University
Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING
Abstract
Early intervention is critical for young children with special needs. For the best outcome, it is
necessary for childrens needs to be identified early and interventions should be planned that
focus on each childs unique abilities and needs. As time has progressed, children have started
receiving services earlier and earlier. There has been a push for starting services as early as
possible and the developmental span from birth to 3 years old has become more of a focus.
There have been legislative efforts to focus more on this period of development, which has
shown to be a critical period for intervention. Services for this age group has undergone many
changes, with services ranging from a clinical setting to natural environments such as the home,
or other places that the child spends a large part of his/her day. In my opinion, I feel that the
natural environment intervention provides the child with the best outcomes, as parents and other
caregivers are able to learn intervention strategies to work with the child. In this best practice,
children receive services beyond the time they work with the early intervention specialist. When
implemented with the highest fidelity and by using evidence-based practices in intervention, the
children receive services for most of their waking hours, and can flourish best in receiving
intervention based on their unique needs.








Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING
Body
History
Early intervention services provided to children in the United States has changed drastically over
time. When legislation came to light regarding children with disabilities and education, the field
of early intervention was not part of these legislations. In fact, early intervention services for
children aged birth to 3 years old did not come to the table in legislation until 1986, when the
Education for All Handicapped Children Act was revised. (National Dissemination Center for
Children with Disabilities, 2012) Since then, many efforts have been made to improve early
intervention practices. In 2004, when the Education for All Handicapped Children Act was
revised again and changed to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, early development
was recognized as a critical period of development, and states were recommended to provide
services to children in this age bracket through Part C services. (National Dissemination Center
for Children with Disabilities, 2012) How the services would be provided was the challenge and
continues to be challenging in some programs. Early intervention services are provided in a
variety of settings. Several key principles are put into place in order to ensure that children are
provided the most effective and services that are best practice for the children and the families,
and in the settings where they are most effective. The key principles were a consensus opinion
of how early intervention should be provided for children receiving services though Part C.
(Workgroup on Principles and Practices in Natural Environments, 2007) The key principles
gave guidance on how early intervention services should be provided. These principles have a
strong focus on providing intervention to young children in their natural environment.
Natural Environments
Natural environments are those environments where children spend an amount of their time on a
regular basis. A natural environment can mean many things. It can be the home, a child care
Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING
setting, church, the park, the library, or many other places. Services provided in these settings
allow the parent to learn strategies that are relevant to that particular family in their daily
routines. It allows the parent to use these strategies on a daily basis and continue intervention
beyond an hour session once a week. It teaches the family to use practices that are taught and
modeled with them in their daily routines. (Campbell, Sawyer, & Muhlenhaupt, 2009) For the
best outcome in early intervention in natural environments, the early interevention specialist
should be well trained and using evidence-based practices with the family. Through the use of
these practices and coaching, the family is able to use what they learn with their children, and
therefore striving for the best outcomes of early intervention.
Evidence-Based Practices
Practices used with young children in infancy and toddlerhood should be evidence-based from
the time of referral to the time of transistion into Part B services. When practices in early
intervention have a strong evidence-base of effectiveness, they are more likely to be effective
with families. One of the first practices in working with young children with special needs is
evaluating and assessing the child to determine if the child is delayed in his/her development.
The practice of evaluating a child needs to take place using and evidence-based tool and other
assessment strategies. Evaluations should take place and include information gathered from
families, appropriate screeening and assessment tools, and the clinical opinion of professionals in
the field of early intervention. (Crais, 2011) From this evaluation, the team shall recommend
services that are focused on the individualized needs of the child who was assessed. The
recommended practices and services for the child based on assessments and evaluation should
include intervention strategies that are also evidence-based. The use of evidence-based practices
allows the early intervention specialist to be assured that the strategies he/she is using with the
child has worked in the past. There are many evidence-based practices that can be used to
Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING
accomplish intervention goals with very young children with disabilites. Responsive Teaching,
Parents as Teachers, and the Positive Parenting Program are just a few that have be proven
through research to provide positive interaction and intervention with families and children.
Although these strategies are out in the field and assessible, not all early intervention programs
are using such strategies to work with families. (Odom, 2009) It is important for early
intervention specialists to be trained in implementing the strategies, and for the training to be
such that implementation in the field is a possiblitiy. Many trainings provided in such
curriculum and practice is less hands-on and proper implementation is not carried out in work
with children and families. (Odom, 2009) Without the proper implementation, families and
children are missing out on the proper use of intervention in a critical period of development.
Recommendation
Because intervention in early development, namely the window from birth to three years old, is
so critical for addressing developmental delays, I would suggest that all agencies in all states
providing Part C services be trained and monitored very closely in the services being provided to
children and families. Personell working in the field of early intervention need to be aware of
ways to properly implement strategies that will work in natural environments. Early intervention
specialists need to be coached on how to work with families in a way that will allow the family
to learn and implement strategies in their own environment, so that the interventions do go
beyond just the sessions provided by the early intervention specialist. It is necessary, for
services provided to children and families to be effective, to use evidence-based practices in
early intervention, and have these interventions take place in the childs natural environment.
Advoacy
The first step to learning to provide best practices to children and families in early intervention is
to learn all there is to know about the field. It is necessary to come to know the recommended
Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING
practices to working successful with families. The Division of Early Childhood (DEC) has
recommended practices to working with children and families, and it is essential for the early
intervention specialist to be familiar with these recommended practices. The recommended
practices by the DEC do reflect evidence base, and can be a stepping-stone to the implementation
of best practices by all agencies providing early intervention. The family is in the center of all
services when providing them based on these practices. (Sandall, Hemmeter, Smith, & McLean,
2005)
Closure
For early intervention services to be beneficial to the family, the child, and the community, it is
necessary to provide comprehensive, evidence-based services to children and families within the
context of their natural environments. The early intervention specialist should be dedicated to
continuous learning, not only about the family, but with most up-to date information about early
intervention and the most current evidence-based practices. For early intervention to be
successful, this period of development needs to be carefully monitored, and together with the
family, the early intervention specialist must coach practices that enchance the development of
each and every child. The early intervention specialist must stay current on best practice and be
dedicated to continious learning and implementation of new strategies. If the professional is
dedicated to families, learning, and implementation of best practice, serivces will be of greater
value to families and ultimately, children.





Running Head: FOSTERING OPTIMAL OUTCOMES FOR FAMILIES AND
PROFESSIONALS IN THE HOME SETTING

References
Crais, E. R. (2011). Testing and beyond: Strategies and tools for evaluating and assessing infants
and toddlers. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 341-364.
Workgroup on Principles and Practices in Natural Environments. (2007, November). Agreed
upon mission and key principles for providing early intervention services in natural
environments. Retrieved from OSEP TA Community of Practice-Part C Settings:
http://www.nectac.org/topics/natenv/natenv.asp
National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities. (2012, December). Early
Intervention, Then and Now. Retrieved from http://nichcy.org/babies/history
Odom, S. L. (2009). The Tie that binds: Evidence-based practice, implementation science, and
outcomes for children. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 53-61.
Philippa H. Campbell, P., L. Brook Sawyer, P., & Mary Muhlenhaupt, B. (2009). The meaning
of natural environments for parent and professionals. Infants & Young Children, 264-278.
Sandall, S., Hemmeter, M. L., Smith, B. J., & McLean, m. E. (2005). DEC recommended
practices: A comprehensive guide for Practical Application. Longmont: Sopris West.