The need for early intervention tools adapted to the First Nation culture is well documented. However, standards derived from First Nation communities are absent from the literature. This study examines the psychometric properties of an adaptation of a caregiver-completed screening tool, the Ages & Stages Questionnaires (ASQ), for the Mohawk population.

Background: Inclusion in early childhood contributes to building equitable and diverse educational settings, fostering societal acceptance to differences. Nevertheless, obstacles remain to implementing inclusive practices from an early age. Professional development, particularly through coaching, is seen as a factor facilitating quality early childhood education practices. As part of an action-research project, therefore, this study aims to document the perceptions of educators and managers after 1 year of professional development based on the use of a curriculum-based assessment and embedded intervention/instruction in inclusive childcare settings.Method: This article describes a qualitative study aimed at documenting the perceptions of educators and managers as regards changes perceived following the professional development received. The perceptions of 14 educators and 6 managers are analyzed using semi-structured interviews.Results: Results suggest that professional development helps support quality inclusive educational practices. Participants address certain aspects of their educational practices, such as observation and intervention planning, to fine-tune the learning opportunities offered consistent with children’s development. They report that coaching is an opportunity to examine their practice, which fosters their sense of competence. Results also underline the importance of the leadership role of childcare managers in supporting educational staff.Discussion: The perceptions of educators and managers highlight the value of coaching in supporting educational practices in inclusive childcare settings. Improved individualization of educational practices based on the developmental needs of each and every child enhances environments’ capacity for quality intervention for all children.

Cette étude vise à connaître l’utilisation,par les éducatrices au préscolaire, de stratégiesd’intervention pour faciliter l’émergence despremières habiletés de communication des enfants qui ontun retard global de développement. Elle estréalisée à partir de périodesd’observation interactives dans les services de gardequébécois (étude multicas). Les résultatsmontrent l’utilisation de 11 stratégiesd’intervention prélinguistiques par leséducatrices. Les modalités d’utilisation desstratégies sont discutées en lien avec lescaractéristiques des enfants. Des adaptations sontproposées pour faciliter l’apprentissage de lacommunication chez tous les enfants et enrichir le programmeéducatif des services de garde qui les accueillent.

The pandemic has exposed the many glaring difficulties inherent in implementing effective assessment and intervention for young children with neurodevelopmental delays and disabilities in our respective countries, but, especially in the US. The urgency for innovative models of assessment linked to interdisciplinary services and supports in both remote and in-vivo settings became prominent. Yet, the commitment to developmentally-appropriate practice (DAP), assessment linked to intervention, is the hallmark of ECI, whether virtual or in-vivo. However, interdisciplinary professionals have rallied during these challenging times by displaying creativity, compassion, and superb clinical judgment in providing responsive services via both virtual and in-vivo platforms to families and young children with special needs in rural and urban regions. Virtual service delivery has required judicious changes in our professional practices using more responsive and less scripted postures. Our family-centered approaches enabled us to engage with parents as partners in assessment and intervention and to plan and deliver supports that were more tailored. We believe that our “lessons learned” from the pandemic about implementing authentic assessment for early childhood intervention (AA for ECI) among parents and interdisciplinary professionals will make our ongoing partnerships with families and other professionals stronger and more enduring. We hope that this article and the step-by-step model that we have offered will help you in your own professional lives to maintain the outlook that emphasizes the importance of both authentic assessment methods & processes, whether in-vivo or virtual, for undercovering each child’s hidden and true capabilities and needs and by adhering to our enduring commitment to protect children’s inherent human rights. Keywords: authentic, assessment, best practices, virtual, remote, early childhood intervention

Background: Inclusion in childcare centers involves a support system that includes funding policies, inclusive practices and access to ongoing training. The province of Quebec (Canada) benefits from a network of subsidized childcare services for children from birth to 5 years old. Although two financial measures support educational childcare centers welcoming children with disabilities, there is a lack of knowledge about how these measures are used.Research questions: The research questions are: (1) How do childcare centers use financial measures to support inclusion? (2) What adaptations are made in childcare centers? and (3) What is the ongoing training of educators to support inclusion?Method: This research presents the results of an online survey completed by 94 childcare management staff and 154 childcare educators. The survey was developed using a two-way process involving the researchers along with representatives from government ministries and agencies and childcare management staff.Results: Results reveal that just over half of management staff request financial measures for all children with special needs and does so mainly to hire additional and specialized human resources and replace staff in meetings with specialized services. The financial measures are perceived to meet material adaptation needs better than those for human resources. Adaptations made by educators relate to instructions, individual interventions, equipment, group activities, physical environment, and schedule and routines. Over half the educators report that adaptations involving group activities and schedules and routines are the most difficult to implement. Less than half the managers and educators had received ongoing training on inclusive practices. Issues addressed during such training include commonly recognized interventions based on diagnoses, collaboration with parents, collaboration with partner agencies or institutions, instructions, individual interventions, group activities, equipment, physical environment, and schedules and routines.Discussion: Results are discussed in terms of (1) needs met and funding model, and (2) dimensions of quality inclusive practices such as leadership of childcare management staff, training and professional development, collaboration with health and specialized social services, learning environments and partnership with families.