“Press On,Continue On”: Rural Parents’ Experiences of Transitions Within Early Intervention

Abstract

Although all families experience a variety of transitions over time, families of children with exceptionalities tend to encounter more transitions during their children’s earliest years. Transitions can be stressful and often include changes as part of early intervention or special education services. It is important to understand these transitions because the support families receive can influence child and family well-being. Therefore, we interviewed parents (N = 28) across a rural U.S. state about their experiences of transition over time. Using thematic analysis, three common themes emerged: (a) change is constant, (b) positive relationships support changing needs and priorities, and (c) parents need more support, information, or access to services or providers. Parents reported relationships and collaboration with providers to be important, yet insufficient, in supporting transitions. Rurality added some challenges to parents’ experiences with transition. Recommendations include empowering families, providing more access and/or removing barriers to services, and building family efficacy through family-focused services.

Keywords

early intervention transition family involvement parents rural values/concerns

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Braun

Clarke

(2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

Britto

P. R.

Pérez-Escamilla

(2013). No second chances? Early critical periods in human development. Social Science & Medicine, 97, 238–240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2013.09.001

Bush

K. R.

Price

C. A.

(2020). Families and change: Coping with stressful events and transitions (6th ed.). SAGE.

Capizzano

Fiorillo

(2004). Young children and the rural information gap: The weakness of major data sources for examining the well-being of rural children. National Center for Rural Early Childhood Learning Initiatives. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED.pdf486291

Cummings

K. P.

Hardin

B. J.

Meadan

(2017). Understanding parental engagement in early learning opportunities for families in rural communities. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 36(3), 116–127. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756870517717951

Decker

K. B.

Meldrum

Vaterlaus

J. M.

Foster

T. D.

(2020). Parents’ Part C experiences in rural areas: Alignment with recommended practices. Journal of Early Intervention, 43(2), 155–175. https://doi.org/10.1177/1053815120953484

Decker

K. B.

Williams

E. R.

Cook

G. A.

Fry

M. M.

(2021). The early intervention referral process for rural infants and toddlers with delays or disabilities: A family perspective. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 25, 715–723. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-020-03067-2

Division for Early Childhood. (2014). Recommended practices in early intervention and early childhood special education. http://www.dec-sped.org/recommendedpractices

Doudna

K. D.

Aaron

L. L.

Flittner

A. E.

Peterson

C. A.

(2015). Infants through preschool: Preparing for change: Individualizing transition plans for young children and their families. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 70(4), 70–75. https://www.jstor.org/stable/ycyoungchildren.70.4.70

10.

Douglas

S. N.

Meadan

Schultheiss

(2022). A meta-synthesis of caregivers’ experiences transitioning from early intervention to early childhood special education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 50, 371–383. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01165-6

11.

Elpers

Lester

Shinn

J. B.

Bush

M. L.

(2016). Rural family perspectives and experiences with early infant hearing detection and intervention: A qualitative study. Journal of Community Health, 41(2), 226–233. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-015-0086-1

12.

Foster

T. D.

Decker

K. B.

Vaterlaus

J. M.

Belleville

(2020). How early intervention providers describe family-centered practice: A collective broadening of the definition. Child: Care, Health & Development, 46, 268–274. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12749

13.

Gothberg

Stegenga

Cate

(2017). Rethinking the paradigm: Comprehensive transition from birth to adulthood. In Ellis

A. L.

(Ed.), Transitioning children with disabilities (pp. 129–144). Sense Publishers.

14.

Grace

Zaslow

Brown

Aufseeser

Bell

(2011). Rural disparities in baseline data of the early childhood longitudinal study. In Williams

D. T.

Mann

T. L.

(Eds.), Early childhood education in rural communities: Access and quality issues (pp. 20–45). Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute.

15.

Hallam

R. A.

Rous

Grove

LoBianco

(2009). Level and intensity of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities. Journal of Early Intervention, 31(2), 179–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/1053815109331914

16.

Health Resources & Services Administration. (2018). List of rural counties and designated eligible census tracts in metropolitan counties: Updated census 2010. https://www.hrsa.gov/

17.

Hebbeler

Spiker

(2016). Supporting young children with disabilities. The Future of Children, 26(2), 185–205. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43940587

18.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act. (2004). Statute and regulations. https://sites.ed.gov/idea/statuteregulations/

19.

Landis

J. R.

Koch

G. G.

(1977). The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics, 33(1), 159–174. https://doi.org/10.2307/2529310

20.

Malone

D. G.

Gallagher

(2009). Transition to preschool special education: A review of the literature. Early Education and Development, 20(4), 584–602. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409280802356646

21.

Mann

T. L.

Williams

D. T.

(2011). From early childhood to higher education: Fostering connections across the education continuum in rural communities to improve child and youth outcomes. In Williams

D. T.

Mann

T. L.

(Eds.), Early childhood education in rural communities: Access and quality issues (pp. 1–19). Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute.

22.

McGoldrick

Carter

Preto

N. G.

(2011). Overview: The life cycle in its changing context. In McGoldrick

Carter

Preto

N. G.

(Eds.), The expanding family life cycle: Individual, family, and social perspectives (pp. 1–19). Pearson.

23.

Murphy

M. A.

McCormick

K. M.

Rous

B. S.

(2013). Rural influence on the use of transition practices by preschool teachers. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 32(1), 29–37. https://doi.org/10.1177/875687051303200105

24.

Pang

(2010). Facilitating family involvement in early intervention to preschool transition. The School Community Journal, 20(2), 183–198.

25.

Podvey

M. C.

Hinojosa

Koenig

K. P.

(2010). The transition experience to pre-school for six families with children with disabilities. Occupational Therapy International, 17(4), 177–187. https://doi.org/10.1002/oti.298

26.

Podvey

M. C.

Hinojosa

Keonig

K. P.

(2013). Reconsidering insider status for families during the transition from early intervention to preschool special education. The Journal of Special Education, 466(4), 211–222. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022466911407074

27.

Ratcliffe

Burd

Holder

Fields

(2016, December). Defining rural at the U.S. Census Bureau: American Community Survey and geography brief. U.S. Census Bureau. https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/reference/ua/Defining_Rural.pdf

28.

Roberts

Needelman

Jackson

McMorris

Munyon

(2014). Effect of community size on eligibility for early intervention for infants with a neonatal intensive care experience. The Journal of Rural Health, 30(3), 259–264. https://doi.org/10.1111/jrh.12055

29.

Rooks-Ellis

D. L.

Howorth

S. K.

Boulette

Kunze

Sulinski

(2020). Effects of a parent training using telehealth: Equity and access to early intervention for rural families. Journal of Childhood, Education & Society, 1(2), 141–166. https://doi.org/10.37291/2717638X.20201242

30.

Rous

B. S.

Hallam

R. A.

(2012). Transition services for young children with disabilities: Research and future direction. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 31(4), 232–240. https://doi.org/10.1177/0271121411428087

31.

Rous

B. S.

Hallam

R. A.

Harbin

McCormick

Jung

L. A.

(2007). The transition process for young children with disabilities: A conceptual framework. University of Kentucky, Human Development Institute, Infants and Young Children, 20(2), 135–148.

32.

Rous

B. S.

Hallam

R. A.

McCormick

Cox

(2009). Practices that support the transition to public preschool programs: Results from a national survey. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25(1), 17–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2009.09.001

33.

Rural Health Information Hub. (2018). Health and healthcare in frontier areas. https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/topics/frontier

34.

Singh

R. L.

Moody

E. J.

Rigles

Smith

E. B.

(2019). What it takes to raise children with autism in a rural State. Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders, 3, 17–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41252-018-0082-4

35.

Thier

Longhurst

J. M.

Grant

P. D.

Hocking

J. E.

(2021). Research deserts: A systematic mapping review of U.S. rural education definitions and geographies. Journal of Research in Rural Education, 37(2), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.26209/jrre3702

36.

Walsh

Taylor

(2010). Understanding IDEA: What it means for preschoolers with disabilities and their families. Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children.

37.

Waters

C. L.

Friesen

(2019). Parent experiences of raising a young child with multiple disabilities: The transition to preschool. Research and Practice for Persons With Severe Disabilities, 44(1), 20–36. https://doi.org/10.1177/1540796919826229