Promoting Inclusive
Practices
Laurie A. Dinnebeil, Ph.D.
William F. McInerney, Ph.D.
University of Toledo
Focus of the Morning
Characteristics and benefits of inclusive
service delivery
 Rationale for Consultative Itinerant
Services

Focus of the Afternoon
Where do we go from here?
 Choosing a strategic direction and followup training
 Designing action plans to move us forward

Schedule for the Day
9:00-10:30:
 10:30-10:45:
 10:45-12:00:
 12:00-1:00:
 1:00-3:30:

Overview
Break
Presentation Continued
Lunch
Small Group/Strategic
Plan
Position Statement on Inclusion
“Early childhood inclusion embodies the
values, policies, and practices that support
the right of every infant and young child
and his or her family, regardless of ability
to participate in a broad range of activities
and contexts of full members of families,
communities, and society” (DEC, 2009).
http://decsped.org/uploads/docs/about_dec/position_concept_papers/PositionStatement_Inclusion_Joint_upd
ated_May2009.pdf
Why Inclusion?
Inclusive experiences give children with
disabilities and their families:
 a sense of belonging,
 support positive social relationships and
friendships, and
 promote development and learning so
children can reach their full potential.
Features of High Quality Inclusion
 Access
 Participation
 Supports
Access
Young children with
disabilities have
access to a full range
of activities and
learning opportunities
in diverse early care
and education
programs and other
natural environments
Participation
Adults find ways to help young children with
disabilities participate and engage fully in a
variety of activities. They promote children’s
meaningful ‘belonging’ in intentional ways.
Supports
Adults who promote
early childhood
inclusion have the
supports they need to
help young children
with disabilities. These
supports include
ongoing training and
professional
development.
What is the Least Restrictive
Environment?
To the maximum extent appropriate,
children with disabilities are educated with
typical peers.
 Separate schooling only when nature and
severity of disability prevents satisfactory
education in regular education (with use of
supplementary aids and services).

LRE for Preschool

Natural environment includes child's home, or
other ECE community-based programs in which
children without disabilities participate.
Educational Environments, 3-5
source: ideadata.org



In the regular early
childhood program at
least 80 percent of the
time.
In the regular early
childhood program 40
to 79 percent of the
time.
In the regular early
childhood program less
than 40 percent of the
time.
Unduplicated total
who attended an
early childhood
program and were in
the early childhood
program for _____
percent of the time
Educational Environ., ages 3-5, cont.



Separate Class. Unduplicated total who attended a
special education program in a class with less than
50 percent nondisabled children.
Separate School. Unduplicated total who received
education programs in public or private day schools
designed specifically for children with disabilities
Home. Unduplicated total who received special
education and related services in the principal
residence of the child’s family or caregivers and
who did not attend an early childhood program or a
special education program provided in a separate
class, separate school, or residential facility.
Number of Children ages 3-5
served under IDEA, Part B, in
Ohio (2007)
14,000
11,687
12,000
10,000
8,000
7,942
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
1,404
916
367
>80% 40-79% <40%
Sep
Class
Sep
School
502
Home
Percent of Children ages 3-5
served under IDEA, Part B, in Ohio (2007)
4% 2%
34%
>80%
40-79%
<40%
Sep
Class
51%
6%
2%
Educational Environments, ages 6-11
source: ideadata.org

In the regular class:




80 percent or more of the day. (previously
“regular class”)
40 to 79 percent of the day.
(previously
“resource room”)
less than 40 percent of the day. (previously
“separate class”)
Separate School. Unduplicated total who
received education programs in public or
private separate day school facilities.
Educational Environ., ages 6-11, cont.

Residential Facility. Unduplicated total who
received education programs and lived in public
residential facilities during the school week.

Homebound/Hospital.

Parentally Placed in Private Schools.
Unduplicated total who have been enrolled by
parents or guardians in parochial/private schools
and whose basic education is paid through
private resources, and who receive special
education and related services at public expense.
Number of Children ages 6-11
served under IDEA, Part B, in Ohio
(2007)
60,000
58,921
50,000
40,000
30,000
26,154
20,000
10,000
0
11,000
2,237
80
332
3,738
Percent of Children ages 6-11
served under IDEA, Part B, in Ohio
(2007)
11%
0.1% 0.3%
2%
4%
>80%
40-79%
<40%
Sep School
Res Facility
26%
58% Home/Hosp
Parent Pl Priv Sch
Supports
Adults who promote
early childhood
inclusion have the
supports they need to
help young children
with disabilities. These
supports include
ongoing training and
professional
development.
Itinerant ECSE Service
The Ohio Department of Education defines
Itinerant ECSE services as…
….services provided by preschool special
education teachers or related services
personnel which occur in the setting where the
child or the child and parent(s) is located as
opposed to providing services at a centralized
location.
What is Effective PD?
Effective professional development (PD)
occurs through individualized assistance
and training.
 Coaching and Consultation provides this
individualized assistance that is critical to
supporting early childhood inclusion.
 In Ohio, a consultative itinerant model is
recommended as “best practice”.

Rule 3301-51-09 Delivery of Services (Operating
Standards for Ohio’s Schools Serving Children
with Disabilities)
(3) The school district shall ensure early
childhood intervention specialists
(b) Support regular education teachers in
serving and/or consulting about children
with and without disabilities so that the
regular education personnel, in
partnership with the special education
service providers, can implement the
child’s IEP in the least restrictive
environment;
Itinerant Service Delivery: Direct or
Consultative (Indirect)?

Consultative
Assist educators and primary
caregivers to provide
specialized instruction and
plan ways to address IEP
goals within the course of
the child’s typical day and
routine activities.

Direct
Tutor the child focused on IEP
goals within the context of
ongoing activities or
outside of the child’s
typical day. IEP-based
instruction is limited to the
Itinerant Teacher’s visit.
Consultation: Preferred Method of
Itinerant Service Delivery
Project DIRECT focuses on consultation because we
believe it is the BEST way to support successful early
childhood inclusion. While there may be LIMITED
times when a direct approach is preferred, in the
overwhelming majority of cases, a consultative
approach is most effective at helping children achieve
positive outcomes. (ODE’s Policy Statement)
Definition of Consultation
Through a series of meetings and conversations,
the consultant [itinerant ECSE teacher] helps
the consultee [ECE teacher or primary
caregiver] through:
• Systematic problem solving
• Appropriate use of social influence
• Professional support.
In turn, the consultee helps the ‘client(s)’
[child/children] with full support and assistance
from the consultant.
Definition continued…
The purpose of consultation is to address
the immediate concern or goal as well as
to prevent similar problems from occurring
in the future (Buysse & Wesley, 2005).
Consultation & TRIADIC Intervention


“[A]n indirect, triadic service delivery
model”
Indirect and triadic—the focus of the
work is still on meeting the needs of the
child. However, the person who directly
addresses those needs is the partner
teacher or parent, not the itinerant.
Consultation & TRIADIC Intervention
In early childhood education, consultation
is defined as an INDIRECT intervention
model in which a consultant (Itinerant
ECSE teacher) and a consultee (ECE
teacher or parent) work together (in a
triadic service delivery model) to address
an area of concern or common goal for
change.
The TRIADIC Model
The triadic service delivery
model is an INDIRECT
intervention model in which
the Itinerant ECSE teacher
supports children’s
development by working
primarily with another
teacher or parent rather
than directly with the child.
Child
Itinerant
ECSE
Teacher
ECE
Teacher
or
Parent
What’s so special about a triadic
approach?
Other adults spend more time with children
then an itinerant teacher does.
Through a triadic approach, an itinerant
ECSE teacher can help a parent or another
teacher do what she does best—better help
the child learn and reach his or her IEP
goals.
What’s so special about a triadic
approach?
A triadic model helps improve the
FREQUENCY and QUALITY of IEP-based
instruction that occurs between the visits of
the itinerant ECSE teacher.
A recent federal study indicated that very
little specialized services are provided to
preschoolers with disabilities by general
early childhood teachers (PEELS, 2008)
What about challenges?
A consultative approach to itinerant
service delivery isn’t easy (but many
things that are worthwhile aren’t easy!)
 What are some of the challenges in
adopting CONSULTATION practices that
you can think of ?
 How might these challenges be
addressed?

Consultation vs. One-to-One and Small
Group Instruction in Itinerant ECSE
Services: Which is More Efficient ?
• The adoption of a consultation model
as the primary mode of intervention in
IECSE services must be based on the
the effectiveness of instruction vs.
traditional patterns of practice
Rationale for Consultation /
Coaching in IECSE Services
If periodic or episodic intervention (usually 6090 minutes per week in traditional IECSE
service delivery) is as efficient as distributed or
spaced instruction (or practice), then there is
no need to adopt a consultation model as the
primary mode of intervention
• However….. if distributed or spaced instruction
or practice is a more efficient model of
learning, then adoption of a consultation
approach to IECSE intervention is warranted

Rationale for Consultation /
Coaching in IECSE Services

If consultation is to be considered as a preferred
alternative to 60-90 minute, one-to-one or
teacher-directed small group instruction, then
the research base related to efficiency of child
learning must be examined
Research Base for Consultation in
Itinerant ECSE Services
Empirical evidence is related to the use of
behavioral consultation in the fields of
EI/ECSE. Effectiveness of consultation,
however, is well established in the fields of
special education and school psychology
(Gresham & Kendell, 1987; Noell, Witt,
Gilbertson, Ranier, & Freeland, 1997;
Sheridan, Welch, & Orme, 1996)
Consultation Supports Other
Evidence-Based Practices
Consultation, as a service delivery model,
is supported by several other principles of
special education instruction that are
relevant to early childhood special
education, including:




Phases of Learning
Distributed vs. Massed Practice
Embedded Learning Opportunities
Naturalistic Intervention
Phases of Learning

The intensity of instruction changes as a
function of the Phases of Learning. In the
initial or acquisition phase of learning,
errors are frequent. This is the phase of
learning in which direct instruction or
massed practice may be helpful
establishing reliable behavior or skill
levels……
Phases of Learning…continued


After learners have acquired a skills and
demonstrate minimally acceptable performance,
they transition through the phases of FLUENCY
and MAINTENANCE to GENERALIZATION (the
gold standard for learning).
This transition becomes easier if learners have
multiple opportunities to ‘practice’ and expand
their use of skill or behavior across materials,
persons and environments……
Phases of Learning…continued

Teachers can help learners use skills or
behaviors in different ways (e.g., with
different materials and different people)
and in different situations (e.g., in
different routines and activities) through
the use of incidental instruction,
embedded learning opportunities (ELO)
and DISTRIBUTED practice.
Distributed vs. Massed Practice
Instruction is most effective when
opportunities to acquire and practice skills
occur across the day as opposed to single
points during the day (Hemmeter, 2000;
Sandall & Schwartz, 2002; Wolery, 2000;
Wolery, Ault, & Doyle, 1992)
Difference Between Massed and
Distributed Practice

Massed Practice
•
Students are provided multiple opportunities to
practice WITHIN a single learning session.
These learning opportunities are provided
continuously, without a break.

For example, the itinerant teacher provides 20
minutes of instruction targeting children’s vocabulary
development in a single session, in one day.
Difference Between Massed and
Distributed Practice…continued

Distributed Practice:
•
Students are provided with many PLANNED learning
opportunities across the day and throughout the week
when the targeted skill is most likely to be required.

The child’s teacher or primary caregiver plans for and
provides opportunities for children to learn new vocabulary
or practice using vocabulary at different times across the
day or week when those words are meaningful and
opportunities to use these words are in CONTEXT
Importance of Distributed Practice

Since itinerant ECSE teachers have limited time
with children, it is difficult to implement a
distributed practice model. However,
• Early childhood teachers are present all day
and can provide opportunities for distributed
practice across the day and during the week
• But they cannot be effective, if they do not
have the knowledge and skills to do so…..
Research Support:
Adults
 Ebbinghaus,
1885/1964
 Donovan & Radosevich, 1999, meta-analysis
 Cepeda, Pashler, Vul, Wixted & Rohrer, 2006,
meta-analysis
Children - ages 3 months to 8 years old
 Childers
& Tomasello, 2002 (word learning)
 Rea & Modigliani, 1985 (spelling, math)
 Rovee-Collier, 1995 (visual recognition)
 Seabrook, Brown, & Solity, 2005 (phonics)
Massed vs. Distributed
Practice
Massed Practice
• Child instructed with
same materials, multiple
times in single session,
without a break
• EXAMPLE: Identifying
basic shapes for 20
minutes in one day
Distributed Practice
• Child practices with same or
different materials, multiple
times, with breaks between
instruction/ practice
• EXAMPLE: Practice
identifying basic shapes for
10 mins. during sessions
scheduled several times per
week
Research with Children
Rea and Modigliani,1985
 3rd graders (8.5 years) taught spelling words and
math facts


Students ranked as Level 1 (top half of class) or Level 2
(bottom half of class)
Results:


Better on spelling and math tests when had spaced
instruction rather than massed instructions
Spaced instruction was better for both Level 1 and 2
students (ability level didn’t matter)
Seabrook, Brown & Solity, 2005

Experiment


Task: 34 children (mean age 5 years.6 mos.) taught
phonics over two weeks
Schedule:
Clustered = one, 6-minute session per day within
a regular classroom setting.
 Distributed = three, 2-minute sessions per day
within a regular classroom setting


Results: Children in distributed condition had test
scores 6 times greater than children in clustered
condition
Childers and Tomasello, 2002

How many times (and how many days)
does a 2-yr old need to hear a word to
learn it?

In 2 experiments, 2 yr olds were taught
‘silly’ nouns and verbs (words they had
never seen) over the course of a month in
sessions lasting 5 - 10 min
Childers and Tomasello, 2002
Results:
• Best learning occurred when teaching was distributed
• The more days that children heard the words, the
better able they were to learn the words

Best = 4 days, 3 days

Worst = 1 day, 2 days
•
Children learned words better if they heard the
words 1x/day for 4 days rather than 8x/day for I
day
Major Findings

Spacing (distributing) instruction
benefited children and adults whether
the tasks were physical or cognitive.

Spacing instruction within the day (e.g.,
three 2-min sessions/day) or across days
(e.g., 1x/day for 4 days) helped children
learn.
Implications for
Education Practice

Current laws state that educational practice
needs to be research-based (NCLB; IDEIA, 2004)

How should we schedule instruction for young
children?


Massed vs Spaced ? Research supports Spaced
How should we schedule the Itinerant ECSE
teacher’s time?

Direct instruction vs. Consultation / Coaching ?
Research suggests Consultation/Coaching
Distributed
Practice
Research
Results
Better
Learning
with
Distributed
Practice
Consultation & Distributed Practice
Itinerant teachers should spend their
time helping their ECE ‘partner’,
discussing and planning for learning
opportunities that will be distributed
across the day and will occur during
the week between itinerant visits.
A Hierarchical Planning Model for
Consultation
Step 1- What does student need to learn

Review IEP objectives
Step 2 - What environmental modifications will
facilitate acquisition of skills/behaviors?


Conduct observation of learning environment
Complete Activity x IEP Objective Matrix
Step 3 - Which learning strategies will facilitate
acquisition of these skills/behaviors?

Identify appropriate indirect/incidental and direct
instruction options
A Hierarchical Planning Model for
Consultation cont’d…
Step 4 - Which consultation strategies will be effective in
transferring knowledge to partner?

Identify ‘partner-friendly’ consultation strategies /
interpersonal communication
Step 5 - Which consultation strategies will be effective in
transferring skills to partner?

Identify ‘partner-friendly’ consultation strategies /
interpersonal communication
Step 6 - How will efficacy of consultation be determined?


Strategies to monitor child progress
Strategies to monitor partner relationship
Next Steps related to:
Facilitating the PRACTICE of INCLUSION









Form Letters re: IECSE Model
Allocation of time and effort models re: ‘weighting’ of
students
MEPI Model for Analysis of IEP Objectives
MATRIX Planning (IEP Objectives/ODE
Standards/Classroom Activities/Teaching Strategy)
Embedded Instruction
Distributed Instruction
DIRECT and INDIRECT Instruction Strategies
Consultation Planning Log
PIECES