Selecting goals: Maternal involvement in the assessment of the child

The advent of Public Law 99-457 is an important recognition of the unique role of the family in early intervention. Parents have valuable knowledge of their child's development to contribute to the interdisciplinary team, though its use has been limited. Sixteen mothers and their handicapped infantsltoddlers participated in this study to determine the relationship between parent and teacher evaluations of children's level of functioning, and the degree to which the evaluations may have resulted in similar goal selection. During initial assessment, mothers and interventionists completed complementary instruments, which included the Evaluation and Programming System4 (EPS-I) and the Parent Form Level I, a questionnaire containing selected EPS-I items. Overall, the results indicate moderate to high correlations between mothers and professionals on child behavior, though mothers tended to rate children higher, and high agreement on skills that children manifest. The passage of P.L. 99-457, the Education of the Handicapped Amendments, represents a major recognition of the role of the family as an essential member of the child's interdisciplinary team. Parents have valuable information to contribute on their child's behavior, as they observe the child across a wide sample of settings and over a long perio