1. Webinar Series 1 Supporting the Inclusion of Young Children with Disabilities Session 1: Opportunities, Initiatives and Key Resources October 28 th 2014 Debbie Cate Shelley deFosset Barbara J. Smith Kathy Whaley

2. Share information about:  National initiatives supporting inclusion,  National educational environments data,  National survey results on preschool inclusion, and  Resources and materials supporting inclusion, including future webinars. Objectives

3.  Federal Public Awareness Campaign with a Position Paper on Inclusion  DEC Special Initiative on Inclusion  RTT-ELC and Pre-School Development Grants  ECTA/ ELC TA Partnership National Initiatives and Opportunities in Support of Inclusion

4. State practices integrating IDEA programs into TQRIS/QRIS Strengthening agency partnerships for a coordinated approach to serving children with disabilities The Inclusion Forum provided an opportunity for discussion and problem solving:

5. Defining and measuring quality indicators for Part B/619 and Part C Incorporating incentives for school-based early childhood programs in TQRIS/QRIS Incorporating incentives for other early childhood programs in TQRIS/QRIS Priorities Selected by Participants

6. Providing professional development and technical assistance to support inclusive practice Developing cross-sector professional development to ensure staff are adequately prepared Using data to inform decisions (at all levels) about professional development, resources, administration, policies, and program practices. Priorities, continued

7. A.Percent of children aged 3 - 5 with IEPs attending a regular early childhood program and receiving the majority of special education and related services in the regular early childhood program. B.Percent of children aged 3 - 5 with IEPs attending a separate special education class, separate school or residential facility. SPP APR Indicator 6 Measurement:

8. Data reported for IDEA 2012 Educational Environments Indicator Results 2012-2013

9. Special education class, separate school, or residential facility 26% Special Education And receiving the majority of special education in the program 42% Regular EC Program 2012-13: Percent of Children Attending:

10. Each diamond represents a state or territory, SPP/APR SY 2012-2013 6A: Percent of children with IEPs attending a regular early childhood program (RECP) and receiving the majority of services in the program

11. Each diamond represents a state or territory, SPP/APR SY 2012-2013 Indicator 6B: Percent of children with IEPs attending a special education program

12. Source: EDFacts, File CO89 Tools from the IDEA Data Center: Excerpts from the Technical Guide – Children with Disabilities (IDEA) Early Childhood File Specifications https://www.ideadata.org/tools-products B6 Data Reporting Tools

13. debbie.cate@unc.edu Decision Tree and Measurement Table B6 Data Reporting Tools

14. The last national look at challenges and solutions was conducted almost 25 years ago (Smith, Salisbury & Rose, 1992) Preschool Inclusion Survey (Barton & Smith, 2014)

15.  Inclusion benefits all children  Children can be effectively educated in inclusive programs using specialized instruction  Families of all children generally have positive views of inclusion  Inclusion is not more expensive  Children do not need to be “ready” The Facts

16.  Research is clear: it’s effective  IDEA is clear: it’s preferred  The profession is clear: DEC/NAEYC position statement Facts The Facts

17. Source: OSEP annual reports: 1987 (1984-85 data); 2014 (2012 data) In 27 years inclusion has increased only 5.7% And many children continue to be educated in separate settings. And Yet

18. Preschool inclusion definition: when children (age 3 – 5) with Individual Education Programs (IEP) receive their special education and related services in settings with at least 50% of peers without IEPs January 2014 Electronic survey to 619 Coordinators; asked that they send to others Asked what are the challenges and solutions The Survey

19. 238 people responded - from 32 states and 1 territory The Survey Respondents

20. RolesN% School District Special Education Preschool Coordinator or Child Find Coordinator 5021.0% School District Special Education Director4920.6% School District Early Childhood Administrator 3813.81% State Section 619/IDEA Preschool Coordinator 3514.7% Head Start Administrator2410.1% ECSE/Sped Teacher/Consultant177.1% State Special Education Director104.2% School Principal72.9% School Psychologist31.3% The Survey: Roles

21. Attitudes & Beliefs Fiscal & contracting Approval of non-public school setting Curricula/methods Transportation Personnel qualifications Conflicting policies Program quality Overall Challenges

22. Attitudes & Beliefs 30% Fiscal & contracting 19% Approval of non-public school setting 16% Curricula/methods 15% Transportation 15% Personnel qualifications 11% Conflicting policies 10% Program quality 10% Survey Results: Challenges

23.  Attitudes & Beliefs  Policies/Procedures  Resources 3 Categories of Challenges

24. Lack of Communication/collaboration Lack of awareness/understanding “ Someone will lose” Beliefs Staff preparedness Turf issues Lack of respect Other Attitude & Belief Challenges

25. Lack of Communication/collaboration (20%) “Someone will lose” Beliefs (20%) Staff preparedness (17%) Lack of awareness/understanding (16%) Turf issues (14%) Lack of respect (12%) Other (1%) Attitude & Belief Challenges

26. 19 of 70 maybe policy Most local, then state, then federal Categories of policy/procedure challenges: Ensuring quality (standards, curricula, practices) in inclusive settings Ensuring personnel meet standards and are effective Fiscal policies/procedures (contracting; $ streams) Transportation policies/procedures Policy/Procedures Challenges

27.  Community programs full; no available slots  L ack of resources for transportation for typically developing children  Lack of resources for itinerate services Resource Challenges

28. Solutions

29. Two categories Collaboration across regular EC and ECSE personnel; between district and community programs Building awareness/support Attitude & Belief Solutions/Strategies

30. Educate local administrators Provide user-friendly materials on benefits & laws Provide models of high quality inclusion where teachers, parents and administrators can visit Provide opportunities for practitioners, administrators and families to explore concerns, benefits and possible solutions A/B: Build Awareness/Support

31. Establish trans-disciplinary teams Establish interagency inclusion team Provide awareness materials and opportunities for administrators Provide joint PD for district and community personnel Ensure support to community programs for ECSE and behavior support Build culture of collaborative problem solving A/B: Collaborate

32. Ensure state funded pre-k, at-risk & Title I programs are inclusive Require co-teaching (EC & ECSE) practica for certification Provide training and coaching to community programs & itinerate ECSE services Provide state training and T/A to district and community EC programs Create MOU’s and contracts with community programs that address quality Policy/Procedure Solutions/Strategies

33. Provide paras to community sites Create tuition based access to district EC programs for nondisabled children Reimburse parents for transportation Create a state-level inclusion team for “barrier busting” that responds to local concerns State dissemination to districts of creative ways to provide inclusion; examples; incentives Braid funding streams Policy/Procedure Solutions/Strategies

34. Inclusive services do not cost more than segregated Braid resources Collaborate Redistribute (itinerate/consultative vs. segregated) Public awareness of the benefits=$$ Resource Solutions/Strategies

35. Resources

36. New LRE Resources

37. http://ectacenter.org/topics/inclusion/default.asp

38. Hope to see you there! http://inclusioninstitute.fpg.unc.edu/

39. Thank you for your attention! Resources related to this webinar and other presentations are available at the following URL: http://ectacenter.org/webinars.asp