Early Intervention Programs

The term early intervention (EI) programs refers to a mosaic of services and programs created for young children and their families to meet educational, social, and health needs and promote enhanced learning, social, and communication outcomes. EI programs are provided before a child starts school, sometimes beginning before birth and continuing to school age. A goal of EI programs is to reduce gaps in child development that are due to one or more of the following: poverty or welfare status, family violence, child abuse, lack of family housing or ability to parent, poor health, single parenthood, teen parenthood, low maternal education, lack of proficiency in the English language, disabilities, developmental delays, poor language or emergent literacy, and the presence of a variety of at-risk conditions. EI programs incorporate a range of approaches, including child-focused interventions, dyadic interventions between an infant and parent, and family interventions that include siblings, parents, and even grandparents. The Division of Early Childhood for the Council of Exceptional Children identified a list of 1,606 recommended EI practices based upon a review of empirical research in 48 journals of effective early intervention programs or approaches.

Over the past 35 years, three major areas of interest have evolved in the field of EI programs:

• 1.
  Longitudinal experimental research of the efficacy of programs for children from birth to 3 years and preschool age
• 2.
  The national establishment of programs to achieve ‘equity’ in education for children in poverty (e.g., Early Head Start and Head Start) and children with special health care needs or disabilities (e.g., Early Intervention Programs for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA] and Preschool programs under Section 619 of Part B, IDEA)
• 3.
  Concerns for quality and accountability prompted by legislative mandates

This entry will briefly highlight recent research in each of these interest areas and provide additional background information on modes of service delivery in health settings, homes, and centers and the economic advantages provided by intervention services.