An early intervention training model

Abstract

The authors describe a professional training program in the field of Early Intervention for Master’s level students, at Wheelock College, Boston, MA. Specific roles and competencies are discussed in the context of the rationale for their selection as a focus for training in Early Intervention. An overview of core-curriculum is provided along with a discussion of some critical training and direct service delivery issues. E Early intervention services for children ages birth to 3 have been promoted exten-sively only in recent years. Although the needs of parents and infants for this special care are well documented (Horton, 1974; Fraiberg, 1977; Bricker & Sheehan, 1981) and early intervention programs have begun in many states, the provision of sufficient numbers of well-trained early intervention specialists is still a major problem. The problem has two parts: first, the knowledge and skills needed for this role have to be defined and, second, effective programs of training need to be designed. This article describes a Master’s level train-ing program in early intervention developed at Wheelock College to meet state and re-gional personnel preparation needs.. In Massachusetts, over 50 early interven-tion programs sponsored by the Department of Mental Health and Public Health are available statewide. When these programs began in 1977 as downward extensions of the Community Clinical Nursery Schools, most staff members were trained as center-based preschool teachers, not as infant specialists. As the programs developed and expanded, the-need for specialized training in early in-tervention became a priority. Wheelock College Graduate School’s ex-perience in training in the areas of infant and toddler behavior and development and in preschool special needs made it an appropri-ate institution to meet this need. In addition, the College had begun a collaborative proj