Methods for assessing child and family outcomes in early childhood special education programs: Some views from the field. Topics in Early Childhood

Although many concerns have been raised about methods of assessing outcomes in early childhood special education programs, professionals in the field are nevertheless faced with the need to select appropriate instruments for evaluating child and family outcomes as the result of intervention. A conference to address the current assessment needs of professionals was convened. This paper summarizes this conference, in which five prominent individuals in the field of early childhood special education gave specific recommendations for one child and one family outcome measure which would be applicable to a range of handicapped children between birth and age 5 being served in typical early intervention programs. There has been much discussion in recent years about the methods and instruments appropriate for assessing outcomes of early childhood special education programs. Past evaluations of the effects of early intervention have focused heavily on the measurement of IQ and hav