Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Fall 2024
Abstract
Brain research conducted on infants and toddlers through the past 20 years has resulted in the widely held knowledge that most brain growth occurs in the first three years of a child’s life. That knowledge reinforces the importance of providing early interventions to children as early as possible in order to maximize the brain’s potential for learning. This study analyzes a set of data collected from an area of a midwestern state that encompasses both urban and rural populations as well as a diverse socio-economic population and aims to confirm whether it makes a difference in the learning trajectory if a student begins early intervention services before age two. Participants are learners who turned age three in 2023 from the designated area. Data collected for analysis was determined to be too small of a sample size to support the question asked. One factor identified during the literature review was that a significant percentage (nearly half) of families choose not to participate in early intervention services and the data collected in this study aligned with literature review. Recommendations for future research are to determine reasons families choose not to participate in EI services along with a follow-up study to implement strategies aimed at improving family participation. A survey could also ask what conditions could be in place that would encourage a family’s participation.