Developmental Outcomes of Preschool Special Education The purpose of this secondary analysis of state-collected data was to investigate developmental outcomes of preschool special education (PSE) services in a statewide cohort of participating children (n = 17,828). In line with federal performance indicators for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act early childhood programs, the outcome of interest in this study was the percentage of children who demonstrated age-expected functioning in all 5 major domains of development—communication, cognitive, motor, personal–social, and adaptive—at the time they exited the PSE program. The study also investigated the extent to which this outcome varied, depending on the severity and complexity of children's delays when they began PSE services. Overall, 38.2% of children exited the program within age norms in all 5 domains; percentages for subgroups of children ranged from 77% for children with no measured delay on entry to 23% for children demonstrating severe delay in 1 or more developmental areas. Holding delay severity constant, each additional domain of delay on entry was associated with a decrease in the percentage of children exiting within age norms. Findings of the study problematize the application of a single definition of “expected progress” for all participating children and underscore the utility of examining and reporting program outcomes for subgroups of children.

Implementation of Developmental Screening by Childcare Providers Early identification of young children at developmental risk is important for linkage to needed services. Yet, despite guidelines for developmental screening, many pediatricians do not systematically use screening tools. Because many young children spend time in childcare settings, conducting screening in these settings may improve rates of early identification. Surveys were sent to 356 childcare providers who attended brief developmental screening training to determine practices and perceptions related to implementation of screening in the childcare setting. A 51.7% useable response rate was obtained. A majority of respondents strongly agreed that developmental screening should be conducted in childcare centers, that it is important for staff to discuss developmental concerns with parents and to link children with concerns to resources, and that their center director supported use of the screening tool. Several attitudes both about developmental screening and about organizational support had a positive and significant relationship with current use and intended future use of developmental screening tools. Findings suggest that even brief staff training may positively impact screening attitudes and practices, although follow-up technical assistance may result in fuller, more effective implementation.

A Review of Problem Solving and Reflection as Caregiver Coaching Strategies in Early Intervention An increasing number of researchers are examining the benefits and outcomes of caregiver-implemented interventions for young children with delays or disabilities. Most report the incorporation of multiple coaching strategies within their approach; however, definitions and descriptions of coaching strategies and processes continue to be limited. This scoping review examined the use of various coaching strategies across models of caregiver coaching in early intervention, with a specific focus on problem solving and reflection coaching strategies occurring in the literature between 2011 and 2018. Problem solving and reflection are 2 coaching strategies incorporated into coaching approaches to build caregiver competency, confidence, and independence within intervention implementation. The results of this review may guide the field in further defining caregiver coaching as well as specific coaching strategies, such as problem solving and reflection.

Impact of Child Characteristics and Mother's Educational Level on Child Engagement Levels This study looked at the effect of mother's educational level, child emotional difficulties, peer interactions, age, and gender on children's sophistication level of engagement. Eighty-six randomly selected children, aged between 36 and 72 months, and 20 teachers from 5 early childhood education centers in Valencia, Spain, participated in the study. Teachers reported on children's sophistication levels of engagement, interaction with peers, and emotional difficulties. Mothers reported on their highest educational level. The results indicated a direct effect of age, emotional difficulties, peer interactions, and mother's educational level on sophistication level of engagement. Emotional difficulties mediated the relation between mother's educational level and children's sophistication level of engagement, and peer interactions mediated the relation between sophistication level of engagement and age. Our results and those of other studies suggest promoting children's interactions with peers and emotionally secure environments as best practices for supporting children's higher sophistication levels of engagement in early childhood education routines.

Overimitation of Children With Cochlear Implants or Hearing Aids in Comparison With Children With Normal Hearing Our proclivity toward high-fidelity transmission of knowledge is one of the key mechanisms that underpins our success as a species. This study evaluated overimitation within children with hearing impairments (who had either a cochlear implant or a hearing aid) in relation to those with normal hearing. A total of seventy-two 4-year-old children were shown how to operate novel objects using a series of causally irrelevant actions, followed by causally relevant action. We measured the degree to which children reproduced the irrelevant actions as an indicator of imitative fidelity. Children with either hearing impairments or normal hearing replicated the irrelevant actions at rates above the baseline. However, imitative fidelity of the former group was significantly lower. In addition, children with hearing impairments were also less likely to identify and achieve the outcome by performing the relevant act. This study advances our understanding of social learning in children with hearing impairments and proposes potential weakness of social-cognitive skills within this population.