The passage of P.L. 99-457 catapults the issue of parent involvement to the forefront of early childhood special education. Because Part H mandates the establishment of comprehensive services for infants and toddlers with special needs and their families, including the development of an Individual Family Service Plan for each family, but does not specify how family strengths and needs should be addressed, there is a critical need for research exploring the process of parent and professional collaboration at mandated meetings for preschool age children. / Because the study of collaboration is the study of a social process, research methods capable of embracing the phenomenological complexity of the issues must be considered. Information gained through qualitative techniques should assist practitioners in fulfilling the spirit, as well as the letter of the law. / A qualitative study of parent and professional collaboration at mandated meetings for preschool children with special needs was conducted. Twelve initial placement staffings and two special reviews were observed, and indepth, open-ended interviews with sixteen parents and eighteen professionals were conducted. A metaphor of a theatrical play is used to analyze and present the findings. Costumes, set designs, training, characters, interpersonal dynamics, and communication patterns evidenced in the performances are explored. Reviews by participants and a thorough critique by the ethnographer are also presented. A model of the interactive process operating at meetings and the impact of external and internal forces is provided. Results reveal issues not addressed in previous literature. / Special attention is given to presenting those practices found to facilitate and those impeding the collaboration process. Suggestions for improving the collaboration process and implications for practitioners are addressed. Service providers and parents will gain new insights into the process involved at meetings as well as the roles and functions of individual team members. By receiving information gathered through qualitative research methods, practitioners will be better equipped to function in their respective roles at IFSP and IEP meetings. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-10, Section: A, page: 3493. / Major Professor: Pearl E. Tait. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76744 |
| Contributors | Fox, Mary Hawkshaw., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 486 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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