The revision and process of validation of standards for early childhood special education (ECSE) and early intervention (EI) personnel at the initial and advanced levels of preparation, which occurred during 2005-2008, are described to provide a record of the process and to inform future cycles of standards revision. Central components focus on the importance of the relationships forged in the process, especially with Council for Exceptional Children, and their contributions to its success. The results are discussed in terms of changes in terminology for the ECSE/EI standards, limitations of the process, and suggestions for next revisions.
ChandlerL.ChristensenK.CochranD.DinnebeilL.GallagherP.LifterK.StaytonV. (2010, October). Alignment of DEC personnel preparation standards with NAEYC personnel preparation standards. Paper Presented at the 26th Annual International Conference on Young Children with Special Needs and Their Families, Kansas City, MO.
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Council for Exceptional Children. (2005). CEC & NCATE: Initial and advanced preparation programs. Columbus, OH: Merrill.
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Council for Exceptional Children. (2009). What every special educator must know: Ethics, standards, and guidelines (6th ed.). Arlington, VA: Author.
LifterK.ChandlerL.ChristensenK.CochranD.DinnebeilL.GallagherP.. . . ShererM. (2007, October). ECSE/EI personnel standards: Validation process. Paper Presented at the 23rd Annual DEC Conference on Young Children with Special Needs and Their Families, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.
8.
LifterK.ChandlerL.ChristensenK.CochranD.GallagherP. (2009, October). Alignment of EI/ECSE personnel preparation standards with NAEYC standards. Roundtable presentation to the 25th Annual DEC Conference on Young Children with Special Needs and Their Families, Albuquerque, NM.
9.
LifterK.ChristensenK.GallagherP. (2008, April). Validation of the early childhood personnel standards: Initial and advanced sets. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Council for Exceptional Children, Boston, MA.
10.
LifterK.DinnebeilL.ChandlerL.GallagherP.ChristensenK.HornE.. . . ShererM. (2006, October). Integration and validation of CEC EC and DEC standards: Current progress. Paper Presented at the 22nd Annual DEC Conference on Young Children with Special Needs and Their Families, Little Rock, AR.
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McCollumJ. A. (2000). Taking the past along: Reflecting on our identity as a discipline. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 20, 79-86.
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McCollumJ. A.McLeanM.McCartanK.KaiserC. (1989). Recommendations for certification of early childhood special education. Journal of Early Intervention, 18, 216-226.
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PattonM. (2002). Two decades of developments in qualitative inquiry: A personal, experiential perspective. Qualitative Social Work, 1, 261-283.
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SandallS.HemmeterM. L.McLeanM. E.SmithB. J. (Eds.). (2005). DEC recommended practices: A comprehensive guide for practical application in early intervention/early childhood special education. Longmont, CO: Sopris West.
15.
StaytonV. D.MillerP. S.DinnebeilL. D. (Eds.). (2003). DEC personnel preparation in early childhood special education: Implementing the DEC recommended practices. Longmont, CO: Sopris West.
