Definition and Purpose
Federal legislation, the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), encourages states to develop and implement a system of early intervention services that is community-based, coordinated, and family-centered. Early intervention is a system of services designed for young children birth to three years of age who have disabilities and/or developmental delays, or who are at risk for developmental delay, and their families. Early intervention services are educational, health, and social services that support and strengthen the development of very young children who have been identified as developmentally delayed or disabled and their families (Healy, Keese, & Smith, 1989). Each state may choose whether to include children at risk for delay in their program of early intervention. Federal policies encourage states to expand opportunities for children under 3 years of age who would be at risk of having substantial developmental delay if they did not receive early intervention services.
Refer to your state Part C agency for information specific to the eligibility of children who are at risk.
The purpose of early intervention is to provide families whose infants and toddlers have disabilities, delays in development, or who are at risk for delay with information, support, and services related to their children’s development.
James A. Blackman, MD, MPH, developmental pediatrician at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and colleagues indicated that statewide systems of early intervention can “enhance child development from the earliest years, [to] avert the need for special education when the child reaches school age, [to] minimize the likelihood of institutionalization, and [to] provide support to families” (Blackman, Healy, & Ruppert, 1992, p. 98).
Taken from "Early Intervention", Click here for the full document in .pdf format.
