A survey of service delivery approaches of early childhood special education programs in the state of Kansas.

Abstract

The passage of Public Law 102-119 in 1990 reinforces the fact that early intervention is important. Research has shown that early intervention programs are generally effective. Many of these early intervention programs differ in their service delivery approach. The types of service delivery models in the field of early intervention differ in terms of location of services, service providers, size of program and types of disabilities being served. Kansas is one of many states that is fully implementing this new law this school year. As a result, a number of new information sources about services in early intervention will be available. This study investigated the types of service delivery approaches currently being implemented in the state of Kansas. It was hypothesized that there were no relationships between the delivery service model implemented and the types of disabilities served, type of service providers available, size of school district or cooperative, length of time the service has been available and location of school or cooperative. Questionnaires were sent out to all 304 school districts in the state of Kansas. Data collected were analyzed using chi square analysis. Results suggested that there were no relationships (at .05 level of significance) between the service delivery models and (a) types of disabilities being served, (b) types of service providers available, (c) size of school district or cooperative, (d) length of time early intervention services has been available and (e) location of school or cooperative. It was concluded that data collected in this study could be used as a source for further research in early intervention. Of particular interest is the finding that there were no differences in the service delivery models as a result the population density of the community it serves. Further research is recommended regarding the efficacy of the service delivery models in each location.