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THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
The Priorities and Perceptions of Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs
Throughout the Transition to Kindergarten Process.
A Doctoral Capstone Project
Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies and Research
Department of Education
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Education
Denise L. Lohr
Pennsylvania Western University
June 2023
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Copyright by
Denise L. Lohr
All Rights Reserved
June 2023
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Dedication
To my late grandmothers, Nellie Elizabeth Rolla Lohr and Verna Alice Smith
Poole, two very strong-willed, hard-working, and intelligent women, who raised large
families on farms in western Pennsylvania during a time when women did not have the
opportunities to achieve their own dreams and aspirations as they do today. Though I
miss them dearly, I know that they are with me in this accomplishment.
To my parents, Roger and Doris, thank you for providing me with examples of
love, hard work, faith, optimism, perseverance, and commitment. All three of your
children have dedicated their careers to helping others, which is a testament to the strong
values of service and sacrifice that you instilled in each of us. I would not be where I am
today without your support and encouragement. I love you both.
To my children, Haley Elizabeth and Matthew Spencer, I love you more than you
will ever know. I hope that you will find the same love for learning that I have and that
you will always remember that nothing is impossible with hard work and perseverance. I
know that you will both go far in life and that you will always remember to be the helpers
and the encouragers of those less fortunate than yourselves.
To my very special nephew, Cameron Jacob, who works hard each day to do the
things that most of us take for granted. It is my fervent hope that this work will, if even in
some small and perhaps unknowable way, make straighter the path of a child with special
needs through the embrace of understanding, inclusion, and acceptance by others. You so
beautifully exemplify how each of us is perfect in our own way, fearfully and
wonderfully made. I love you very much, and I dedicate this work to you.
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Acknowledgments
Aside from my parents and my children, I also want to thank my sister, Brenda,
and my brother, Jason, as well as their respective families. I would not have been able to
complete this journey without your love and support. To Kevin, thank you for your love,
patience, and encouragement. I am exceptionally fortunate to have you in my life.
A special thank you to Dr. Todd Keruskin, Faculty Capstone Committee Advisor
for this project. Your calm and deliberate words of encouragement have guided me
throughout this past year of research and writing. I also want to thank Ms. Emma
Bernardoni for completing the statistical analyses for this project, which brought my
results to life. Thank you, Emma, for the time you took to meet with me to explain the
mathematical processes you used and to ensure my understanding of them.
I also want to thank a few of my colleagues, who sometimes seem more like
family to me than co-workers. To Dr. Jason Conway, thank you for your feedback and
guidance on this project as well as for the leadership example you set for all of us at the
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU). To Dr. Amanda Winnor, thank you for your
friendship and boundless encouragement, and also for hiring me at the WIU nearly ten
years ago. You saw something in me that I thought I had lost, and I am forever grateful to
you for helping to set me on a path that led me to where I am today. To Dr. Matthew
Thomas, thank you for your friendship, calm reassurance, sense of humor, and words of
encouragement. On many days, those were the only things that got me through. To the
soon-to-be Dr. Rebecca Henderson and the soon-to-be Dr. Jason Stragand, I would not
have wanted to navigate this doctoral program with anyone else but the two of you. We
started it together, and now we will soon finish it together. Your support has meant so
much to me over these past three years.
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Table of Contents
Dedication
iv
Acknowledgments
v
List of Figures
x
Abstract
xi
Chapter I. Introduction
1
Background
1
Capstone Focus
1
Research Questions
3
Expected Outcomes
4
Fiscal Implications
4
Summary
6
Chapter II. Literature Review
7
Early Educational Transitions
7
The Importance of Kindergarten Transition
8
The History of Kindergarten
9
The History of Early Childhood Special Education
11
The Role of the Family in Early Intervention
13
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Act 212 in Pennsylvania
14
The Academicization of Kindergarten
15
The Child Effects Model of Transition
16
The “Ready Schools” Movement
18
The Direct Effects Model of Transition
19
The Indirect Effects Model of Transition
20
The Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition
21
Kindergarten Transition as a Process
22
The Move from Preschool to Kindergarten
23
Transition Challenges for Children with Special Needs
25
Federal and State Mandates
28
Early Intervention to School-Age Transition in Pennsylvania
29
Kindergarten Transition Practices
30
Parent Involvement in Kindergarten Transition
33
Parent Concerns
35
Parent Needs and Preferences
37
Summary
39
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Chapter III. Methodology
40
Purpose
41
Setting
44
Participants
47
Research Plan
50
Research Design, Methods, and Data Collection
53
Research Question One
56
Research Question Two
56
Research Question Three
57
Fiscal Information
57
Validity
61
Summary
63
Chapter IV. Data Analysis and Results
66
Triangulation
68
Data Analysis
69
Research Question One Results
70
FEIT-Modified Survey Data
70
Semi-structured Parent Interview Data
93
Research Question Two Results
100
SELTS-K Data
101
Semi-structured Special Education Leader Interview Data
122
Research Question Three Results
124
Discussion
127
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Summary
Chapter V. Conclusions and Recommendations
Conclusions
ix
133
135
136
Research Question One
136
Research Question Two
140
Research Question Three
144
Fiscal Implications
145
Recommendations
146
Limitations
149
Recommendations for Future Research
150
Summary
151
References
154
APPENDIX A. IRB Approval Letter
166
APPENDIX B. Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre Approval Letter
167
APPENDIX C. Parent Email/Consent to Participate – Survey
168
APPENDIX D. Parent Survey Instrument (FEIT-Modified)
169
APPENDIX E. Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – Interview
178
APPENDIX F. Semi-Structured Interview Questions-Parent
179
APPENDIX G. Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate – Survey
180
APPENDIX H. Special Education Leader Survey Instrument (SELTS-K)
181
APPENDIX I. Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate – Interview
189
APPENDIX J. Semi-Structured Interview Questions – Special Education Leader
190
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List of Figures
Figure 1. Act 30/K5 Students in the WIU EI Program
59
Figure 2. Act 30/K5 Student Fiscal Impact on the WIU EI Program
59
Figure 3. Levels of Parent Concern in Different Areas, Numeric Breakdown
72
Figure 4. Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 1-5
73
Figure 5. Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 6-11
74
Figure 6. Areas of Greatest Parent Concern
81
Figure 7. Parent Importance Ratings of Twelve Supports, Numeric Breakdown
82
Figure 8. Parent Supports Importance Ratings, Comparison of Supports 1-6
84
Figure 9. Parent Supports Importance Ratings, Comparison of Supports 7-12
85
Figure 10. Parent Perspectives on Kindergarten Readiness
93
Figure 11. Special Education Leader (SEL) Perceptions of Parent Concerns,
Numeric Breakdown
102
Figure 12. SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 1-5
103
Figure 13. SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 6-11
104
Figure 14. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Numeric Breakdown
114
Figure 15. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Supports 1-6
115
Figure 16. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Supports 7-12
116
Figure 17. SEL Perspectives on Kindergarten Readiness
121
Figure 18. Comparison of Responses About Kindergarten Readiness
122
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Abstract
Each year, early intervention programs across Pennsylvania support the transition of
thousands of children with special needs into school-age programming through
collaborative efforts with school districts. While special education leaders may
understand the legal requirements associated with the transition from early intervention
into kindergarten, very little is definitively known about the perceptions and priorities of
the parents of children with complex special needs during this time. This study utilized a
mixed methods approach to examine the priorities of parents of children, who were ageeligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who were receiving more than
one service from the early intervention program in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Data was collected through the administration of the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) – Modified survey and the Special Education Leader
Transition Survey – Kindergarten (SELTS-K) as well as semi-structured interviews. A
significant difference between how concerned parents are about their child’s behavior
during kindergarten transition and how school leaders perceived parental concern in this
area was discovered. Significant differences between participant groups were found in the
importance of the following supports: having the early intervention program host a
meeting to prepare parents for the child’s transition meeting with the school district,
receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a
home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher. Notable differences on the topic of
kindergarten readiness in children were also detected between participant groups.
Keywords: transition to kindergarten, transition planning, early childhood special
education, early intervention, parent concerns, parent involvement
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CHAPTER I
Introduction
Background
Act 212 of 1990, also known as the Early Intervention Systems Act, outlines the
provisions and requirements for early intervention programs to provide services to
preschool children with disabilities in Pennsylvania. One major responsibility of
preschool early intervention programs in the Commonwealth is to support the transition
of young children with disabilities from preschool services into school-age programming.
Without interruption in services and with procedural compliance, preschool early
intervention programs support the transition of thousands of children with special needs
into kindergarten across Pennsylvania each year.
Each preschool early intervention program devises its own processes and
procedures to complete the process. The Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU) Early
Intervention program coordinates with the 17 school districts in Westmoreland County to
hold hundreds of transition to kindergarten meetings each year with families and staff.
These transition meetings primarily take place during the month of February each school
year. Many of the children eligible to transition to kindergarten have complex special
needs that require the provision of multiple supports and services.
Capstone Focus
Though compliance with state and federal regulations is paramount in the
planning and execution of the transition to kindergarten process by the educational
leaders of preschool and school-age special education programs across the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, very little is understood about what is most important to
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parents as they approach and navigate the process for their children. In addition, rarely do
the leaders of preschool early intervention and school-age special education programs
pause and reflect with each other about what they believe are the priorities of parents as
their children transition into kindergarten.
Such a void of understanding about what is most important to parents of children
with complex special needs as enrollment in kindergarten approaches prevents early
intervention and school-age programs from tailoring practices and procedures that best
support students and their parents from a quality perspective. When parents feel uneasy
about the transition process, it could delay enrollment of the child in kindergarten, which
can have a negative effect on team planning, collaboration, and the overall success of the
child. Delayed kindergarten enrollment also has a detrimental fiscal impact on the
preschool early intervention program.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that parents be
included in special education processes and decision making for their children. Research
and practice inform us that cultivating and supporting close and collaborative
relationships between parents and special education leaders can lead to increased trustful
encounters and greater long-term educational benefits for the eligible child (Wellner,
2010). When parents and school entities trust one another, problems and challenges are
more likely to be solved earlier and more quickly, with a decreased likelihood of
litigation.
A major component of relationship building is for each member of a dyad to
understand the priorities of the other. Parents of children with complex special education
needs have a variety of priorities and worries (Spann et al., 2003). It is important and
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relevant that school leaders are aware of such priorities and concerns as early as possible
in the transition to kindergarten process. School leaders should also pause to consider
what they believe is important to parents throughout the transition to kindergarten process
and compare those answers with the feedback received by parents. This exercise in
exploration, comparison, and reflection will examine long-held and commonplace beliefs
of special education leaders about what parents need and want for their children with
complex special education needs as they move from preschool early intervention to
school-age programming.
Research Questions
The following questions will examine the priorities of parents of children with
complex needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process:
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
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Expected Outcomes
Special education leaders in early intervention and school-age programs are
tasked with creating the transition to kindergarten processes that are compliant with
federal and state regulations, though little is known about what matters most to parents
throughout the process. Results obtained from this study can be used to create transition
practices specifically designed to address the reported priorities of parents and to
maximally support the complex special education needs of the eligible young child as
entry to kindergarten approaches. When parents feel more at ease with the process, it is
expected that a child’s transition from preschool early intervention and into school-age
programming will have a greater likelihood of success, which will set the child up for
success in the next educational environment and beyond.
Fiscal Implications
In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of electing for their child to remain in
early intervention for an additional year even when the child is age-eligible to attend
kindergarten in their school district of residence. When children remain in early
intervention for an additional year beyond the fall of the year that they are first eligible to
attend kindergarten, a financial burden is borne by the early intervention program. Before
children reach the age of eligibility to attend kindergarten in their home school district,
the WIU Early Intervention program receives a subsidy of $5133 per child from
Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), regardless of
the child’s level of need or educational placement in the early intervention program.
When students remain in early intervention for the additional year, they are formally
known as “Act 30” students and colloquially known as “K5” students. The WIU Early
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Intervention program does not receive any funding from OCDEL for the provision of
services to Act 30/K5 students, which creates financial hardship for the program.
In an attempt to recoup some of the monies not received by the state for the
provision of services to Act 30/K5 students, the WIU invoices the school districts for the
services to these children; however, it is not to the extent of what the early intervention
program would receive for the child from OCDEL in most cases. When billing districts
for services provided to Act 30/K5 students, two groups of students are considered: those
who attend an early childhood special education (ECSE) classroom and those who
receive only itinerant services. Students who attend ECSE classrooms exclusively are in
greater need of support and services than those who receive only itinerant services.
School districts are billed the entire $5133 for a student attending an ECSE classroom
across all four quarters of the school year. If a student attending an ECSE classroom
attends for fewer than all four school quarters, the district is billed on a per-quarter basis
($1283) for the Act 30/K5 student’s membership in the early intervention program. When
students receive itinerant services only, school districts are billed an hourly rate of $70,
which is the blended average of the early intervention program’s speech-language
pathologists’ salaries and benefits. If an Act 30/K5 student receives 30 minutes of
speech-language services per week, that child would accrue approximately 750 minutes,
or 12.5 hours, of service throughout an entire year (provided all sessions were attended).
The early intervention program would invoice that child’s school district for $875, which
is well below the OCDEL reimbursement rate of $5133. It should be noted that the early
intervention program does not invoice school districts for itinerant sessions not attended
by the child. In some cases, the itinerant teacher or therapist has prepared a lesson and
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traveled to the child’s home or preschool, only to find the family unresponsive or the
child absent. In those cases, the district is not billed for the session. Delayed entry to
kindergarten for children with special needs has a negative fiscal impact on the early
intervention program. If the priorities of parents of children with complex special needs
were better understood, it is hypothesized that the WIU Early Intervention program
would experience a decrease in the number of Act 30/K5 students yearly.
Summary
Chapter I provided an overview of why studying the priorities of parents of
children with special needs is integral to developing transition to kindergarten practices
that are highly supportive to parents and children. Chapter II will contain a review of the
literature relevant to the topic and necessary to guide practice. Chapter III will explain the
methodology used to study the priorities and perceptions of parents of children with
complex needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process. Chapter IV will contain
a description of the results based on an analysis of the data. Chapter V will present the
conclusions and a description of how the findings of this study can be applied to practice.
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CHAPTER II
Literature Review
It has been said that life is a series of transitions. Transitions make up the human
experience and begin at the time we are born and end at the time of our deaths. Life’s
transitions take humans through paths of change and varied circumstances that are
sometimes planned and expected, yet also abrupt and unforeseen. Transitions are key
points in developmental trajectories across the human lifespan (Elder, 1998). Although
transitions present new opportunities for learning and growth, they are stressful and
challenging for many who experience them (Hanson et al., 2000; Rosenkoetter et al.,
1994).
Early Educational Transitions
Several of the most formative transitions occur within the first few years of a
person’s life and shape and influence future experiences and opportunities. When
children are born, they transition from the hospital to home. The move from the care and
nurture of one’s family in the home setting throughout infancy and toddlerhood and into
preschool marks one of the first significant educational transitions for a child. Later,
when the preschooler moves from an early childhood instructional setting and into formal
school-age programming, another crucial transition occurs.
In addition to these typical transitions, children with disabilities and their families
also experience moves into and out of early intervention programs (Wolery, 1989). Early
intervention transitions can occur between birth and age three when the child begins to
receive infant-toddler services, at age three when the child transitions into preschool early
intervention services, and at age five when the child leaves preschool early intervention
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and enters kindergarten. Through practice and research, early interventionists know that
when parent concerns and priorities are honored and when parents contribute to the
creation of their child’s special education plan, the family is more involved in supporting
the child’s skill development across the day (Fox et al., 2002).
Early educational transitions present opportunities for programs to share
information about children as well as for families to express priorities, concerns, and
perspectives to teachers and administrative leaders. Throughout the last fifty years,
considerable research has been conducted to better understand these early educational
transitions for young children and their families, which is important since these types of
transitions involve the child and the family as well as the sending and receiving
programs. Educational transitions merit study to support families of children with special
needs and to promote collaboration between organizations (Flynn & McCollum, 1989) to
enhance a child’s ability to adjust to a new setting or placement (Rosenkoetter et al.,
1994), and to comply with legislative mandates related to the transition of children with
special needs from one program to another (Wolery, 1989). Educational transitions are
important to understand because they prepare the child for successful entry and
functioning into the next school setting, and they provide an opportunity for educational
programs to share information about the child and to gather input from the family.
The Importance of Kindergarten Transition
There are few transitions as important as the one that children and families
experience as a child moves from preschool into kindergarten. The transition from
preschool to kindergarten marks a pivotal point in a child’s life trajectory. Kindergarten is
remarkably important for many reasons. The success of a child’s entry into kindergarten
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can impact later school achievement for some children (Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000)
and offers considerable opportunity for parents, teachers, and school leaders to shape a
child’s immediate and long-term success and well-being (Duncan et al., 2007; Entwisle &
Alexander, 1993). Hair et al. (2006) found that the fall of kindergarten student readiness
profiles were significantly associated with first-grade reading, math, and social-emotional
outcomes, which further highlights the importance of early school success for children.
Transition practices of preschool and school-age programs have the potential to
positively or negatively impact the child’s early and later school success.
If the primary goal of one educational setting is to prepare the child for successful
entry and functioning into the next, it is incumbent upon school leaders, practitioners, and
parents to understand how to transitions work and how to make them as successful as
possible for the benefit of the child. Educational transitions are impacted by the dynamic
relationships that are formed between the child, family, peers, teachers, school, and
community over time, which enable them to be conceptualized as a process rather than a
singular moment in time (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). When viewed through the
process lens, educational transitions possess enormous potential to influence the
trajectory of a child’s success in the next setting and in life, both positively and
negatively. The development of early childhood learning opportunities for young children
has evolved in the United States.
The History of Kindergarten
To fully understand early educational transitions for all children, including the
transition supports mandated for children with special needs, one must start by studying
the origins of early childhood education. Today in the United States, kindergarten is the
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entry point to formal schooling for the vast majority of young children, with thirty-nine
states and the District of Columbia requiring school districts to offer half or full-day
kindergarten (Education Commission of the States, 2020). Kindergarten was initially
established to help prepare children for successful participation in formal schooling. The
first kindergarten in the world was established in Germany in 1837 by Friedrich Froebel,
who believed in the importance of early learning opportunities for children that involved
play, songs, nature exploration, and stories (Curtis, 2022; MacKenzie, n.d.). Froebel’s
ideas about early learning were brought to the United States by Margarethe Schurz. Ms.
Schurz opened a German-speaking kindergarten in Watertown, Wisconsin in 1857, the
first of its kind in the United States and situated in a German immigrant community
(“Margarethe Schurz,” n.d.). Several years later, the first US English-speaking
kindergarten was established in Boston in 1860 by Elizabeth Peabody, who had been
influenced by the work of Margarethe Schurz (Eschner, 2017). In the years that followed,
kindergartens began to appear in most major American cities, largely the result of private
donations and charities. These early kindergartens enrolled children from working-class,
immigrant families and sought to teach the whole child without a specific focus on
academic skills like reading and mathematics. Susan Blow helped establish the first
public school kindergarten in 1873 in St. Louis, and after 1890, public schools began
including kindergarten, oftentimes taking over programs that had once been privately
funded. By 1900, roughly 6% of children of kindergarten age attended kindergarten. That
number continued to rise, and by 1920, about 11% of age-eligible children were attending
kindergarten, with public school kindergarten students outnumbering private ones by
nineteen to one.
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As kindergarten became more engrained into the American educational culture,
some educators like John Dewey and Maria Montessori began to emphasize the key role
of the teacher as a facilitator in children’s self-directed learning experiences (Lillard,
2016). Though kindergarten enrollment fell in the 1930s due to economic constraints, by
1940, enrollment again started to increase (Berg, 2008). By 1954, 1.5 million children
were enrolled in kindergarten in the United States (Berg, 2008). During this time, many
states passed laws to lower kindergarten class sizes (Berg, 2008).
The History of Early Childhood Special Education
Although opportunities for early childhood learning experiences continued to
expand since the establishment of the first kindergarten in the late 19th century in the
United States, educational opportunities for children with special needs did not receive
equal attention during the first half of the 20 th century. Instead, most public schools
denied enrollment of children with special needs, which left parents alone to care for their
child with a disability at home or, worse yet, to fight to keep their child out of an
institutional placement (Reichow et al., 2016). As parents assumed much of the
responsibility for the care, education, and well-being of their child with special needs,
advocacy groups began to grow in prominence, usually formed by the parents
themselves. In 1922, the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) was formed as a
meeting group for those interested in children with special needs and eventually
established professional teaching standards (Kode, 2017).
By 1965, over 2 million children in the United States were enrolled in
kindergarten. In that same year, President Johnson declared the War on Poverty, which
spawned the creation of Head Start (Berg, 2008; Reichow et al., 2016). The growing
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prevalence of kindergarten and the development of Head Start reflected a growing
interest in enriching children’s educational experiences by educators, policymakers, and
politicians. Greater focus was placed not only on improving the lives of impoverished
children but also those with disabilities through federal policy initiatives. In 1968, The
Handicapped Children's Early Education Assistance Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-538)
was passed, which established the Handicapped Children’s Early Education Program
(HCEEP). The HCEEP was the first federal initiative to focus on young children with
disabilities (Reichow et al., 2016). Passage of PL 90-538 heralded the formation of model
education programs aimed at providing services for children with disabilities. By 1975,
20,000 children and their families were served directly or through consultation by an
HCEEP, which could be found in all fifty states (Reichow et al., 2016). The HCEEP
projects produced notable results. Child advocacy groups were formed, better practices
aimed at educating young children with disabilities were realized, and certification
programs for early childhood special education teachers were established at colleges and
universities.
Though much progress was made through HCEEP initiatives, there was still much
work yet to be done. By the mid-1970s, it was estimated that out of 7 million children in
the United States with disabilities, one million were not receiving any educational
services, and only 40% of children with disabilities were receiving the services they
needed (Weintraub & Abeson, 1976). Compulsory attendance laws were used to keep
children with disabilities out of school when attendance was not recommended due to the
limitations and needs of the children. When viewed in light of the 1954 Supreme Court
case Brown v. Board of Education, which established that segregationist practices
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violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States
Constitution, preventing children with disabilities from attending school seemed
inherently unlawful and immoral to many.
When the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (Public Law 94142) was passed, it was mandated that all children with disabilities from age three
through age twenty-one receive a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in the
least restrictive environment (LRE) through an individualized education plan (IEP). A
decade later, the Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1986 was passed
(Public Law 99-457), which established Parts B, Section 619 for preschool children with
disabilities and Part H (later Part C) for children in infancy through age two to receive
early intervention services. Previous to P. L. 99-457, services for children under three
years of age were not available. After years of exploration and study of how to best
educate children with disabilities, one key point emerged: intervening early improved
educational outcomes for children while also proving economically advantageous
(Silverstein, 1989).
The Role of the Family in Early Intervention
Robert Silverstein, a Congressional staff member who helped write P.L. 99-457,
gave a speech in 1989 that described how P. L. 99-457 came into existence. He explained
how lawmakers worked across the aisle to include language grounded in early childhood
and early childhood special education research within the law and to include families as
an integral component of the provision of early intervention services. Silverstein (1989)
asserted that “The word ‘family’ must appear ten or fifteen times throughout the
legislation; this was intentional. Congress was trying to say, ‘Do not have professionals
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come into a family situation and assume that the mom and dad don't know anything.
Respect the family’” (Silverstein, 1989, p. 2). Honoring the family’s strengths, needs, and
priorities was evident in 1986 when the first federal law was enacted to mandate the
provision of early intervention services. Even today, the importance of the family’s
participation in the development of the child’s special education program is still
emphasized and promoted.
Act 212 in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania General Assembly passed the Early Intervention Services
Systems Act, also known as Act 212, in 1990. Act 212 established a statewide system for
providing early intervention services to infants, toddlers, and young children in the
Commonwealth (Early Intervention Services Systems Act, 1990). The Pennsylvania
General Assembly, through Act 212, recognized the need to increase opportunities for
young children with special needs, decrease the possibility for developmental delays, and
minimize potential future special education services needed by the child by the time the
child would reach the “age of beginners.” The “age of beginners” is defined by
Pennsylvania law (22 Pa. Code 14 §14.101) as the “minimum age established by each
school district’s board of directors for admission to the school district’s first grade”
(Public School Code, 1949b). Act 212 was intended, in part, to minimize the need for
special education services when the child entered school-age programming.
Act 212 set forth requirements for the timely evaluation and identification of
children in need of early intervention services, the development of an individualized
education plan to meet the child's needs in the least restrictive environment (LRE)
possible, exit criteria for children who may no longer need early intervention services,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
15
and legislative guidance on the formation of a state and local interagency coordinating
councils to support early intervention mandates and initiatives (Early Intervention
Services Systems Act, 1990). With the passage of Act 212, a network of support and
services for children from birth up to the age of beginners was finally realized in
Pennsylvania.
The Academicization of Kindergarten
The passage of Act 212 in Pennsylvania and other laws like it across the United
States roughly coincided with a shift that was simultaneously occurring in kindergarten
programming. Up until the 1980s, the focus of kindergarten had been on a child-centered
approach to learning through play and opportunities to socialize with peers, reflecting the
contributions of Froebel, Dewey, and Montessori. Kindergarten became more universal
in the United States by the early 1980s, with about 30% of students attending a full-day
program and instruction becoming more academically focused (Sassower, 1982).
Kindergarten continued to maintain an academic focus into the latter part of the 20th
century, a noteworthy reality that manifested itself in the opinions and beliefs of teachers
several years later. According to Bassok et al. (2016), the percentage of kindergarten
teachers who reported that they agreed or strongly agreed that children should learn to
read in kindergarten increased sharply from 31% to 80% from 1998 to 2010. Bassok et al.
(2016) also noted striking increases in the percentage of teachers who rated other
academic skills (i.e., alphabet knowledge, color and shape identification, and counting
skills) as important for school readiness for the same periods. Despite increases in the
percentage of teachers who viewed academic skills as critical for school readiness, self-
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
16
regulation, and social interaction skills were still rated by teachers to be among the most
important for children to possess upon kindergarten entry (Bassok et al., 2016).
Due to the increased academicization of kindergarten and the importance of
children’s early learning experiences to future success, educational leaders and
practitioners began to realize the need for effective transition practices to support
successful school entry for all students. Several transition models have been developed
over many decades to support the successful entry of children into kindergarten.
The Child Effects Model of Transition
Just as the American educational system has evolved, so have the various models
of kindergarten transition emerged across the past several decades. The Child Effects
Model of Transition is a longstanding, maturational, and readiness model that considers a
child’s skills and characteristics when trying to determine how successful the child might
be throughout the transition into kindergarten. Proponents of the Child Effects Model of
Transition believe that without certain characteristics or skills, a child might not be
equipped, or “ready,” to meet the demands of the kindergarten learning environment. The
importance of a child being “ready” for kindergarten was amplified in 1990 when
President Bush and the Nation’s Governors adopted six National Education Goals to be
achieved by the year 2000. The first National Education Goal established in 1990
targeted school readiness: “All children in America will start school ready to learn.”
(National Education Goals, 1991; Stedman & Riddle, 1992). The use of school readiness
screenings and assessments continues to be commonplace in elementary schools as
children approach kindergarten entry, and these measures are often used to prepare
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
17
individualized instruction for a child and to identify children who might need additional
testing or support (Little et al., 2016).
In 1995, a few years after the announcement of the National Education Goals, the
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) pushed back on
the adoption of a child readiness-only model for kindergarten transition by stating that
“The traditional construct of readiness unduly places the burden of proof on the child”
and that “it is the responsibility of the schools to meet the needs of children as they enter
school” (National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC], 1995).
NAEYC advocated for consideration of each child’s diverse and unequal life
experiences, varied opportunities for learning and growth, and the extent to which
school expectations are reasonable, supportive, and appropriate (NAEYC, 1995).
Nevertheless, a child’s socioeconomic status, language abilities, and adaptive
skills may contribute to school entry success (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000), and
many parents worry about their child’s readiness to attend kindergarten if certain skills
are not yet developed in the child. Parent and teacher concerns about a child’s readiness
to attend kindergarten might contribute to efforts to delay kindergarten entry for some
children who are age-eligible to attend, including children with special needs. Each year,
up to 10% of children are “red-shirted”, with parents delaying entrance to kindergarten
until the child is socially mature and academically ready (Bassok & Reardon, 2013;
Greenburg & Winsler, 2020).
The Child Effects Model of Transition placed the child as the central and most
prominent player in the kindergarten transition process and overlooked the impact of
other components of a child’s social network (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000). The
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18
Child Effects Model of Transition placed responsibility for successful kindergarten entry
solely on the child and what skills the child brought to the process rather than also
considering the impact that schools could have on the kindergarten transition process.
The “Ready Schools” Movement
About a decade after child maturational models for kindergarten transition had
soared in popularity and in practice, the “Ready Schools Movement” began, which
shifted more attention to the school’s ability to be ready for all children to enter its
classrooms (Pianta et al., 1999). It was the first time that consideration had been given to
making adaptations to the school environment to meet the special and unique needs of the
child and to promote successful entry into kindergarten. According to Pianta et al. (1999),
“ready schools” reach out to families before the start of kindergarten as well as build
connections between families, preschools, and the school community. The concept of
school readiness is reflected in the beliefs and attitudes of parents, especially those with
children who have special needs. Parents of children with special needs recognize the
importance of their children possessing a certain set of school readiness skills, though
they also feel the school must make adjustments and be ready to meet the individual
needs of the child. In a study by Larcombe et al. (2019), a majority of parents of children
with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) believed their child needed to be “ready” for school
but also felt that the school bore some responsibility in being ready to meet the needs of
their children. These parents believed that school readiness looked different due to their
child’s diagnosis of ASD and reported that their child’s level of social and
communication skills was the “most important indicator of school readiness” (Greenburg
& Winsler, 2020). Challenges in social communication, sensory demands, the time
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
19
required to adjust to a new setting or activity, difficulties in understanding the
expectations of the environment as well as in completing self-care tasks like toileting
were all noted by parents as contributing to their child’s readiness to start kindergarten
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents also identified the kindergarten teacher’s willingness and
open attitude to individualize support for their child’s needs in the classroom as a
significant marker of school readiness, which is a reflection of the belief that schools
need to be ready and willing to accommodate the needs of new students (Larcombe et al.,
2019).
The Direct Effects Model of Transition
Beyond child and school readiness frameworks for kindergarten entry, the Direct
Effects Model of Transition also acknowledges the direct effects of other contexts beyond
the child and the school (i.e., family, peers, school, and neighborhood, community) on the
child’s ability to adjust to kindergarten (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). The quality of
contexts surrounding a child impacts a child’s readiness for school. Through research,
proof of the impact of quality early childhood experiences (Howe, 1988), family
characteristics (Moore et al., 2020), caregiver interaction styles (Sheridan et al., 2010),
the volume of words spoken to the child (Hart & Risley, 1995), opportunities for the
child to interact with peers and make friends (Ladd, 1990), and neighborhood
characteristics on the child’s readiness for school (Lapointe et al., 2007; Moore et al.,
2020) has been firmly established. Though the Direct Effects Model of Transition
broadens the Child Readiness Model by taking into account the effects of the contexts
surrounding the child, each context is considered to have an individual, unidirectional
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
20
effect on the child’s competence (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000) and the interactions
between the contexts are not addressed.
The Indirect Effects Model of Transition
The Indirect Effects Model of transition considers a bidirectional relationship that
exists between the child and the various social networks and environments in which the
child lives and functions (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). The Indirect Effects Model of
Transition acknowledges the effect of family, peers, school, neighborhood, and
community on the child as well as the effects of the child on the same in return. The
impact of the interconnectedness of several factors on a child’s development and learning
competence has been well studied. Research on academic disparities among children
revealed that parents’ talkativeness toward their children and cultural beliefs about
communication styles were correlated to socioeconomic status and predictive of future
linguistic and academic success (Hart & Risley, 1995). Research has revealed that
positive family-school partnerships can improve student on-task classroom behavior
(Fefer et al., 2020); however, families of lower socioeconomic backgrounds face greater
challenges and barriers when it comes to participating in their children’s schooling
(Hornby & Lafaele, 2011; Sengonul, 2022). These studies and others like them affirm an
interconnectedness and indirect influence that factors like socioeconomic status, parent
involvement, vocabulary development, and communication styles can have on a child’s
capacity for learning. Though the Indirect Effects Model of Transition considers the more
elaborate and complex impact of various contexts, it still focuses on the static nature of
each and does not consider the dynamic effect of the relationships among them (RimmKaufman & Pianta, 2000).
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
21
The Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition
According to Rimm-Kaufman and Pianta (2000), the Ecological and Dynamic
Model of Transition takes into account the child, direct, indirect, and dynamic impacts of
contexts on a child’s transition into kindergarten. This model eliminates the notion that
only in-child variables are responsible for the success or failure of a child’s transition to
kindergarten (Welchons & McIntyre, 2017). Instead, the child interacts with family,
peers, school, neighborhood, and community over time, and as patterns develop,
relationships are formed that shape the development of the child and produce outcomes
related to the child’s school readiness and performance. The Ecological and Dynamic
Model of Transition elevates the notion that when children transition to school, they do
so in an environment in which several contextual interactions have formed patterns that
will ultimately impact the move from preschool into kindergarten. For example, a parent
may not provide opportunities for their child to interact with other children regularly due
to economic or time constraints. Over time, this pattern may limit the child’s ability to
form social bonds and make friends in kindergarten, which can hurt the child’s
perceptions about school as well as academic performance (Ladd, 1990). In another
example, a kindergarten teacher may have experienced success in working with children
who have special and unique learning needs. Over time, the cumulative effect of those
positive experiences will most likely contribute to the teacher’s high confidence level and
increased capacity for supporting students with disabilities and their families. Students
with special needs, who require modifications and accommodations to their learning plan,
may benefit more from that particular teacher’s instructional style than they might from
another instructor without the same set of experiences. The relationships between
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
22
contexts form patterns over time that either challenge or support the transition to
kindergarten for all children. It is important for school leaders, educators, and parents to
understand the inner workings of these contextual networks and to adopt transition
practices that will support the child’s success in kindergarten.
Kindergarten Transition as a Process
A unique feature of the Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition includes the
establishment, over time, of unique and complex relationships between the child, family,
peers, school, neighborhood, and community. Since these relationships evolve gradually,
practitioners and parents should view transitions as dynamic processes and not merely as
static events (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). Hanson et al. (2000) identified several
factors that facilitated the transition process for parents of children with special needs and
their teachers, which included consideration of the child’s transition into kindergarten as
a process that should be started early as well as information exchange that occurs in
advance of the transition meeting. High-intensity practices, or strategies inclined to
optimize the transition process, should be adopted to maximize collaboration between
early childhood and special education programs and families (Rous et al., 2007). Despite
this conceptualization of transitions unfolding as a process, many parents of children with
special needs and their service providers still report experiencing the child’s educational
transitions as a singular event (Hanson et al., 2000). A potential cause for this reported
experience from parents and service providers may be found in examining the differences
that exist between preschool and kindergarten.
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23
The Move from Preschool to Kindergarten
When children move from preschool into kindergarten, there is typically a change
in location, staff, instructional focus, legislative mandates, program goals and mission,
and eligibility requirements for special education services. The shift from preschool to
kindergarten is particularly noteworthy due to distinct differences between the two
educational settings that may pose challenges for some children, especially those with
special needs. Lack of alignment between children’s preschool experiences and their
experiences in the kindergarten classroom could be a potential cause for the high
prevalence of transition difficulties (Jiang et al., 2021). Kindergarten classrooms are
typically replete of free choice play centers often found in preschool classrooms that
promote child-initiated, routines-based learning (Early et al., 2010). Students in
kindergarten spend considerably more time engaging in academic, teacher-structured
learning activities, particularly in the areas of literacy and mathematics, than they do in
preschool (Early et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000; Vitiello et al., 2020). Class
size is also larger in kindergarten than in preschool (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000;
Vitiello et al., 2020), which impacts the time a teacher can spend in support of students
who need it. Class size differences could contribute to the quality of teacher-child
interactions when formal schooling begins. According to the Vitiello et al. (2020) study,
teacher-child interactions in the Emotional Support and Instructional Support domains
were rated lower in kindergarten as compared to preschool.
The transition from preschool to kindergarten also heralds changes in the ways
that parents and teachers communicate, which reflects the impact that transitions have on
families. Preschool communications are typically parent-initiated and focused on
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24
supporting the family and child’s needs, whereas, in kindergarten, teachers typically
initiate communication with parents to discuss a problem that the child is having (RimmKaufmann & Pianta, 1998). Such differences between preschool and kindergarten can set
the stage for transition challenges for many children and families.
Aside from the differences between preschool and kindergarten, there are also
several key differences between early intervention and school-age support for students
with special needs. Early intervention service providers support and empower families
and preschool teachers to promote the child’s successful participation in everyday
routines and activities through the utilization of embedded instruction that is primarily
delivered through a practice-based coaching model (Inbar-Furst et al., 2020). The service
delivery and instructional approaches are appropriate since children of preschool age are
typically functioning in their homes or early childhood learning environments (Fox et al.,
2002). Early intervention service providers intentionally recognize the family’s priorities,
strengths, and concerns while coaching and teaching target skills in the settings and
during the routines in which the child needs them to function successfully (Inbar-Furst et
al., 2020). On the other hand, school-age special education services are typically
classroom-based and can be delivered in a regular classroom or a resource room setting.
Although home support and family engagement are still essential elements of a child’s
education plan in school-age programming, many parents feel frustrated by what they
perceive as a lack of communication about their child’s progress and behavioral
difficulties after kindergarten begins (Malsch et al., 2011). As children with special needs
transition into kindergarten, interventions shift from routines-based, naturalistic strategies
in preschool early intervention to more academically focused programs in kindergarten
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
25
where learning materials and content are modified to meet the child’s individual learning
needs in the least restrictive environment (LRE) to the greatest extent appropriate.
Incongruence between preschool early interventions and school-age special education
delivery can also be a source of challenge for children with special needs during the
transition into elementary school.
Transition Challenges for Children with Special Needs
A major goal of early childhood special education programs is to promote the
successful entry of the young child with disabilities into kindergarten and for the child to
be included in the least restrictive environment to the greatest extent possible once formal
schooling begins (Conn-Powers et al., 1990). While all children experience transitions
differently, many are at risk for transition difficulties, especially children with special
needs (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021; Justice et al., 2009; McIntyre et al., 2007;
McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000).
Jiang et al. (2021) studied kindergarten entry for 801 students during the 20172018 school year. Teachers reported that 688 of the 801 students (86%) experienced the
transition to kindergarten difficulty. Children with individualized education plans (IEPs)
receiving special education services were at “substantially increased odds of having some
or extensive transition difficulties.” A child’s gender (male) and home language were
also associated with a greater risk of kindergarten transition challenges. Jiang and
colleagues also determined that transition difficulties were “interrelated,” meaning that if
a child exhibited difficulty in one area, the child would likely exhibit difficulty across
several areas of performance.
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26
Perry and Weinstein (1998) suggested that successful school transitions span three
areas: academic, behavioral, and social functioning. Children with disabilities exhibit
difficulty in all three areas, which puts them at risk for transition difficulties. Jiang et al.
(2021) examined children’s ability to meet academic demands, make friends and work in
groups (social functioning) as well as follow schedules and organize (behavioral
functioning). Results indicated that 30% of all children exhibit difficulty in all five areas
and that 74% of all children experienced transition difficulty in at least one area of study,
with meeting academic demands and being organized as the two areas of greatest
difficulty for children upon kindergarten entry (Jiang et al., 2021). A child’s gender and
IEP status were consistent predictors of transition difficulty, with boys struggling more
than girls and children with IEPs experiencing more difficulty than those without (Hair et
al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021).
We know a great deal about the characteristics of children with special needs and
what puts them at risk for transition difficulties. Although having friends at school
positively impacts academic performance and perceptions about school (Ladd, 1990),
children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) oftentimes struggle with change, are less
centrally connected to the social structure of the classroom and spend less time with
friends while at school (Chamberlain et al., 2007; Larcombe et al., 2019). Children with
special needs typically have language learning deficits, which impact socialization and
academic performance (Jiang et al., 2021). The presence of receptive and expressive
language difficulties just before school entry is a significant predictor of kindergarten
outcomes, and the presence of receptive language abilities is strongly predictive of later
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
27
reading outcomes and the ability of the child to process language and follow directions
(Justice et al., 2009; Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2002).
Many children with disabilities tend to form smaller social networks than
typically developing peers and have difficulty regulating social-emotional responses to
situational demands (Chen et al., 2017). Social-emotional regulation is often challenging
for children with special needs, though it is essential for children’s success in adjusting to
kindergarten: Children who are better able to self-regulate their emotions and behaviors
at kindergarten entry are better able to engage in content-area learning (Blair & Razza,
2007). Children’s adaptive behavior upon kindergarten entry was directly related to
teacher reports of behavioral self-control, cognitive self-control, and work habits in the
spring of the kindergarten year (Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2009). The presence of competent
adaptive behaviors and few problem behaviors in preschool was a significant predictor of
positive kindergarten transition outcomes in children with and without disabilities,
strongly suggesting that adaptive behavior is a predictor of early school outcomes
(Welchons & McIntyre, 2017). The reason for a child’s behavioral difficulties can be
quite complex as reported by parents of children with autism spectrum disorder, who cite
that communication difficulties are often the source of the child’s frustration over not
being understood (Larcombe et al., 2019). Children’s needs are unique, varied, and
complex, yet they are generally very well understood by the child’s family. When schools
adopt transition practices that promote collaboration among parents, preschool special
education teachers, and kindergarten teachers to promote the successful transition of a
child with special needs into school, parents, and practitioners report a high degree of
satisfaction with the process (Conn-Powers et al., 1990). Research also suggests that
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
28
high-quality transition practices may mitigate the challenges that children with
disabilities face when entering kindergarten (LoCasale-Crouch et al., 2008). Early
intervention programs and school entities are legally mandated to support children with
disabilities through transitions, including the transition from preschool early intervention
into kindergarten programming. Special education law mandates transition supports for
children experiencing life changes, including the move from preschool early intervention
into kindergarten.
Federal and State Mandates
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004
was first established in 1975 as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. In 1983
amendments were added to the Act, and in 1990 the Act was reauthorized and renamed
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) by Congress. In 2004, the law
was again reauthorized and then renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Improvement Act (IDEIA). The IDEIA is a federal law that sets forth requirements for
educating students with disabilities in the United States. Though the law has undergone
several changes since its inception in 1975, the basic tenets of the law have remained.
Under this federal law, students with disabilities are guaranteed access to a free,
appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) to the
maximum extent appropriate to promote inclusion with non-disabled peers. An
individualized education program (IEP) is developed by a team of individuals (including
the child’s parents) to ensure access to FAPE for the child with special needs, and IEP
teams are mandated to monitor a child’s progress toward goals. Part B of the IDEIA sets
forth principles related to the education of children with disabilities from ages 3 through
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29
21 inclusive, and states receive preschool formula grants in accordance with 20 U.S.C.
§1419 of the IDEIA to fund services for children ages 3-5 with special needs.
Furthermore, Chapter 14 of Pennsylvania’s Public School Code of 1949 outlines the
provisions for the education of students ages 3-21, inclusive, who are suspected or
identified as having exceptional needs and who require specially designed instruction to
access FAPE.
Early Intervention to School-Age Transition in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Special Education (BSE), in coordination with
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Early Intervention Services (BEIS), has set forth requirements
for a smooth transition for children with special needs as they move from preschool early
intervention services into school-age programming (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2003). In Pennsylvania, “for children who are within one year of transition to
a program for school-age students, the IEP must contain goals and objectives which
address the transition process” (Public School Code, 1949c). Furthermore, in February of
the calendar year in which the young child is eligible to attend kindergarten, the
Preschool Early Intervention program is obligated to convene a transition meeting with
the child’s parents and the child’s school district of residence and sends each family an
invitation to a meeting for their child (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022a).
During the meeting, the Preschool Early Intervention program must review with the
family and present an Intent to Register form, which enables parents to indicate whether
they intend to send the child to kindergarten in the fall (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2022b; Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022c). In Pennsylvania,
parents have the option of requesting that their child with special needs remain in the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
30
Preschool Early Intervention program for one additional year rather than transitioning
into school-age programming. At the conclusion of the additional year of preschool early
intervention, the child must transition out of the early intervention program.
Emphasis on the early establishment of kindergarten transition goals in the IEP
for a child with special needs, facilitation of a kindergarten transition meeting between
the Preschool Early Intervention program, parents, and the child’s school district several
months in advance of the start of school, reflects the importance of considering
kindergarten transition as a process (as opposed to a single event in time). Parents of
children with special needs in Pennsylvania have the option of requesting their child
remain in early intervention for an additional year, which reflects a commitment to
consider families integral and valued decision-makers for their children. Although federal
and state laws mandate a set of requirements for Preschool Early Intervention programs
and school districts to follow for a child’s transition into kindergarten, these laws do not
provide information to practitioners about how to execute the process from a quality
perspective. Kindergarten transition practices are important for educational leaders to
study and to understand so that children with special needs and their families can be
maximally supported throughout the process of a child’s entry into school.
Kindergarten Transition Practices
Kindergarten transition policies and practices have a modest positive effect on
students’ academic achievement and parent-initiated involvement during the kindergarten
year (Schulting et al., 2005). Pianta et al. (1999) surveyed 3,895 kindergarten teachers on
their use of and opinions about 21 transition practices and 15 possible barriers to
implementing them during the 1997-1998 school year. In the Pianta et al. (1999) study,
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31
48% of teachers felt that all of the transition practices held merit. The most commonly
used transition practices were of lower intensity, non-individualized, most often endorsed
by teachers, and included talking to the parent after school started and holding an open
house. Practices that were of higher intensity, more individualized to the child, and
included activities that occurred before school started, involved personal contact (e.g.,
home visit, letter to the family and child before school began, a visit by the kindergarten
teacher to the child’s preschool), yet were most often associated with barriers for
implementation (Pianta et al., 1999). Reported barriers to implementing high-intensity,
individualized practices were that class lists are generated too late in the summer to reach
out to incoming students and families, the requirement of summer work for no pay, the
lack of a transition plan in the school district, home visits take too much time and could
be dangerous, disinterest by parents and preschool teachers, lack of administrative
support (Pianta et al., 1999). Results of the Pianta et al. (1999) study revealed that the
most endorsed practices by teachers were those that least aligned to a “ready schools”
framework that focuses on what schools can do to be ready for the child.
LaParo et al. (2000) examined data from a national sampling of kindergarten
teachers to find out what kind of transition practices were being used for children with
special needs. The researchers studied two groups of kindergarten teachers: one group of
teachers had no children with special needs in their class, and the other group consisted of
teachers with at least one child with special needs in their class (LaParo et al., 2000).
Results indicated that although significantly more teachers with at least one child
receiving special education services reported using transition practices that reached back
before school began and consisted of activities like talking to parents or sending a letter
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
32
to parents before schools started, holding an open house before school started, and
participating in kindergarten registration, few differences existed in the reported use of
transition activities for teachers with and without students with special needs (LaParo et
al., 2000). Teachers of students with special needs reported reading records and talking
with the child’s kindergarten teacher as the two most commonly used transition practices
(LaParo et al., 2000). Results of the LaParo et al. (2000) study supported the findings of
Pianta et al. (1999), which indicated that kindergarten transition practices for children
consisted of non-individualized activities that occurred after the start of school. Although
children with disabilities were beginning to receive some transition practices that were
unique from those received by typically developing peers, there were still very minimal
differences between the two groups of students (LaParo et al., 2000).
The overall use of transition activities increased between the school year 19981989 and the school year 2000-2011with the most frequently used transition activities
becoming more customary and least frequently used transition activities becoming less
prevalent (Little et al., 2016). For example, between the two school years a decade apart
from each other, there was a significant increase (from 76% to 87%) in the reported usage
of visitation programs where children and families were supported in visiting the
elementary school in advance of the start of the school year (Little et al., 2016). Sending
information home about kindergarten also increased significantly (from 86% to 95%)
between the two school years as well (Little et al., 2016).
Daley et al. (2011) examined the supports children with special needs received as
they entered kindergarten under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA),
as well as how child, family, school, and district relationships predict the supports that
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33
children with special needs receive upon kindergarten entry. Since LaParo et al. (2000),
there has been little research into the kinds of kindergarten transition practices offered to
children with disabilities and their families. Results of the Daley et al. (2011) study
indicated that the most frequently reported transition practices were of low intensity and
consisted of receiving the child’s preschool records, parents being encouraged to meet
with school staff, classroom visits by the child and family, and providing information to
the family about the transition. Aside from the implementation of one high-intensity
practice (i.e., developing preparatory strategies for the child’s kindergarten entry), the
severity of the child’s disability was not associated with the use of either low or highintensity practices, and in fact, the more severe the child’s disability, the less often
parents participated in the kindergarten transition process (Daley et al., 2011).
Parent Involvement in Kindergarten Transition
When parents participate in their children’s education, the children are more
likely to experience academic success, exhibit appropriate behaviors, and advance
socially, and the transition to kindergarten process is an opportune time to engage parents
in their child’s plan to assist the child in reaching their full potential in school and in life
(Epstein et al., 2019; Hoffman et al., 2020; Jeynes, 2012). In fact, parent participation
may help to partially moderate the effects of transition practices on a child’s academic
performance in kindergarten (Schulting et al., 2005).
Historically, parent involvement has been considered in terms of a parent or
caregiver’s attendance at school-sponsored events or meetings, yet the perception of what
it means for parents to be engaged in their child’s education is broadening to include
when parents establish home support for learning, communicate with the school about the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
34
child’s progress and needs, volunteer at school, participate in decision making for their
child, and collaborate with the community for the betterment of the school system
(Epstein et al., 2019; Hoffman et al., 2020).
Obtaining parent involvement in transition planning is challenging for some
school teams, yet it is a requirement under the federal Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA) for families of children with disabilities. The IDEA contains
provisions for the inclusion of parent’s active participation in the development of the
evaluation of the child by adding information regarding strengths, needs, and priorities as
well as actively participating in the development of the child’s Individualized Education
Plan (IEP) as well as requirements for parent participation during transition planning.
Although IDEA and other state laws require schools to get parents of children with
special needs involved in the special education process, including transition planning for
the child, those laws do not guide school teams on exactly how to do it. Research on
parent engagement indicates that when schools are intentional about getting parents
involved through the support of a key team member (e.g., a service coordinator, school
psychologist, or educational leader), results are greater than when schools merely ask
parents to volunteer time to become involved (Hanson et al., 2000; Jeynes, 2012).
Hoffman et al. (2020) examined the use of the Kids in Transition to School (KITS)
Program, which provides parents with support for learning at home, opportunities for
parents and schools to partner with one another, and gives families a voice in the
decision-making process for their child. Results indicated a significant difference
between the control and the experimental group of parents in the quality of teacher-parent
relationships, parents’ perceptions of the school, and the parent’s ability to support their
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
35
child’s learning at home with the KITS program producing positive results between
families and schools (Hoffman et al., 2020). Overall, the KITS program supported the
development of positive relationships between parents, teachers, and the school. Aside
from supportive strategies intended to engage families in the educational process,
administrative support for those functions is essential to increasing consequential and
impactful parent engagement, and school leadership can facilitate the establishment of a
school climate that is supportive of family-school partnerships built on trustful
relationships and inclusive viewpoints (Christenson et al., 2003).
Parent Concerns
Most parents of typically developing children report few concerns about their
child’s transition into kindergarten, aside from some worries about socio-behavioral skills
like following directions and separating from parents (Wildinger & McIntyre, 2011). In
the Wildinger and McIntyre (2011) study, a large majority of parents of typically
developing children had no concerns about toileting, their child’s ability to communicate
with others, or their child’s ability to form relationships with others. Conversely, parents
of children with special needs experience a range of emotions as their children move
from one educational setting to another. Parents of children with special needs report
feeling guilt and judgment around the time their child transitions to kindergarten (Fontil
et al., 2020). They also report to teachers concerns about safety issues, their child’s
acceptance by other children, their child’s ability to make friends, the educational
placement of the child, and overall feelings of grief over the loss of normalcy (Jewett et
al., 1998). Parents of children with special needs have a separate set of worries and
priorities compared to parents with typically developing children. Parents of special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
36
needs children rank toileting skills as the most important self-care skill upon entry to
kindergarten, and they rank pre-academic and motor skills as the least important for
school readiness (Larcombe et al., 2019). In contrast to parents of typically developing
children, parents of children with special needs worry about their child’s ability to
communicate effectively with others in school, their child’s ability to adjust to school,
behavior problems, following directions, the child being shy or timid, making friends,
being distracted and toileting concerns (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022; Larcombe et al., 2019).
A majority of parents in the Larcombe et al. (2019) study reported that kindergarten
transition was different for their child with special needs as compared to their typical,
same-age peers because of communication challenges, difficulty adjusting to a new
setting, challenges in understanding spoken language and verbal directions, and difficulty
understanding expectations. Parents of children with special needs also expressed
concerns about their child receiving the appropriate amount of support to overcome
sensory difficulties and their child’s need for explicit teaching of self-care skills, like
toileting, through social stories and other visual supports as kindergarten began
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report feeling
as though they must advocate for their children to break the stigma surrounding the
disorder and to always fight to have their child included, which are challenges that
parents of typically developing children rarely encounter (Larcombe et al., 2019).
The severity of a child’s disability is inversely related to the level of parent
participation in the kindergarten transition process (Daley et al., 2011). The greater the
severity of the child’s disability, the less involved parents are throughout the child’s
transition to kindergarten. One reason that parents may not be involved in the child’s
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
37
school transition is that many parents do not feel included in the placement decisions for
their child (Hanson et al., 2000). It is important for school leaders to acknowledge the
significant amount of anxiety, fear, and confusion that parents of children with special
needs often experience when their child moves from one known and familiar educational
environment where relationships have been formed with a set of early intervention
service providers and into an unknown environment with new teachers and staff in
kindergarten. The uncertainty about the process oftentimes contributes to a range of
feelings and emotions for parents, which can challenge the transition process. If schools
want to form collaborative partnerships with parents of children with special needs to
facilitate smooth and successful school transitions, schools need to convey a spirit of
commitment to the child and family as well as devote time and energy to open
conversations with the family about how to best support the child. Practitioners,
researchers, and school leaders should also endeavor to find out what parents of children
with disabilities want and need during the transition to kindergarten process.
Parent Needs and Preferences
Parents of children receiving special education want schools and teachers to
understand their child’s specific needs and be willing to modify the learning environment
as well as to provide individualized instructional supports to maximize the child’s school
experience (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents want schools to be open and welcoming to
their children with special needs, to see the child as capable, and to display a willingness
and a commitment to providing the child with inclusive learning and social experiences
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Still, parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report
feeling unsure whether the teacher is making accommodations for their child in the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
38
classroom as agreed upon during the child’s entry to kindergarten (Larcombe et al.,
2019).
Parents of children with special needs do not want schools to suggest delaying the
child’s entry to school, which parents find offensive (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of
children with special needs want schools to have high expectations for their children
despite how parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report lower academic
expectations from teachers toward their children (Larcombe et al., 2019). When parents
feel as though the school is meeting their child’s needs, they report feeling less pressure
to advocate for their child (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of children with autism
spectrum disorder report that high-intensity transition practices that extend back before
school starts (i.e., visiting the school before kindergarten starts, visualizing the learning
environment, and meeting the teacher before school begins) as being helpful in
supporting their child’s ability to adjust to the new school setting (Larcombe et al., 2019).
When the opinions of the parents of children with special needs were examined, the item
‘What caregiver can do to prepare for transition’ was the most requested kind of
information, which suggests that families are willing to do whatever is necessary to
support their child’s successful entry into kindergarten (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022). If
school systems are able to better understand the perspectives and concerns of parents of
children with complex special needs as the child’s entry to kindergarten approaches,
Preschool Early Intervention programs and school districts will be at a greater advantage
to engage parents in the process.
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39
Summary
Transitions are experienced by all people across their lifespans. Early educational
transitions, such as the move from preschool to kindergarten, are some of the most crucial
ones for young children and their families to navigate. A child’s success in kindergarten
is an incredibly important predictor of a child’s success in later school years, but many
children, including those with special needs, are at risk for transition to kindergarten
difficulty. School leaders are faced with the challenge of implementing transition to
kindergarten practices that are compliant with federal and state laws, supportive of
children with special needs, and considerate of parent concerns and perspectives. Though
parents of children with special needs believe that the child should possess some
readiness skills in advance of kindergarten entry, they also believe the school
environment should be ready to accommodate the child’s individual needs. Though
parents of children with complex special needs tend to be involved less in the
kindergarten transition process, they also report wanting to know how to best support
their child through transition. Understanding the perspectives and concerns of parents of
children with complex special needs as kindergarten entry approaches will enhance the
ability of school leaders to develop supportive transition practices to increase a child’s
likelihood of success in kindergarten and beyond.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
40
CHAPTER III
Methodology
A comprehensive literature review revealed the important role that kindergarten
plays in the future academic success of children (Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000). A child’s
transition into kindergarten marks an opportunity for parents, teachers, and school leaders
to work together to shape a child’s immediate and long-term school success (Duncan et
al., 2007; Entwisle & Alexander, 1993). Children with special needs are at particular risk
for kindergarten transition difficulties due to a variety of factors, including challenges
with academic, behavioral, and social functioning (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021;
Justice et al., 2009; McIntyre et al., 2007; McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann &
Pianta, 2000). Notable differences between preschool and kindergarten instructional
models may also contribute to the transition vulnerability that children with special needs
face when entering school-age programming. Preschool early interventionists use
embedded instruction and rely on practice-based coaching techniques to empower a
child’s caregivers to target skill development within the context of a child’s daily routines
and activities (Inbar-Furst et al., 2020). By comparison, academic achievement,
particularly in the areas of reading, writing, and mathematics, becomes a primary focus
when children reach kindergarten.
While some parents of children with special needs believe that their children
should have a certain set of school-readiness skills before entry into kindergarten, a
majority of parents want to be assured that the school will be ready to educate their child
through the provision of adaptations and accommodations designed specifically to meet
the individual and unique needs of their child (Larcombe et al., 2019). Including parents
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
41
in the transition process is crucial to building trust and collaboration between the family
and the school district.
Federal and state mandates like the IDEIA and Act 212 in Pennsylvania require
schools to involve parents of children with special needs at many crucial points across the
special education trajectory: during evaluation processes, throughout the development of
a child’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP), and at times of transition, including the
transition out of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten. Although these laws
outline “what” should happen at these crucial points, these laws do not provide specific
guidance on “how” to best execute these requirements from a quality perspective.
Understanding the concerns and priorities of families of children with complex special
needs throughout the transition from preschool to kindergarten will help school leaders
develop transition practices designed to maximally support the child and build trustful
and collaborative relationships with families. Educational transitions, like the one from
preschool early intervention to school-age special education programming, hold
enormous potential to shape a child’s future success in school and throughout life.
Purpose
This study examined the perceptions and priorities of parents of children with
complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention into
kindergarten, the level of understanding by special education leaders of parent concerns,
and the extent to which the transition to kindergarten practices of the early intervention
program and school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania align with what
parents need and want. This field of study is especially important since a child’s
successful entry into kindergarten can impact future school success and also because
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
42
children with complex special education needs are at risk for transition difficulties.
Understanding parent priorities is the first step in supporting special education leaders’
ability to design practices to promote collaboration and build trust. When parents feel as
though they are being understood and believe their child’s needs are being met, parents
feel less pressure to advocate for their children (Larcombe et al., 2019).
This study also has financial implications for the preschool early intervention
program as well as for school districts. In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of
electing their child to remain in early intervention for one additional year beyond the first
year of eligibility to attend kindergarten. Neither the preschool early intervention
program nor the child’s school district receives funding for these children, referred to
colloquially as “K5” or “Act 30” students by school leaders. Encouraging the timely
transition of children out of early intervention and into kindergarten not only benefits the
child by getting them into a program that offers more instructional days per year with a
longer daily schedule than a typical preschool schedule permits, but it also alleviates a
financial burden for the preschool early intervention program and school districts. The
timely transition of children out of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten also
aligns with the Office of Child Development and Early Learning’s (OCDEL) guidance:
While parents have the option of having their child remain in Early Intervention
when their child is eligible for kindergarten, it is incumbent on the IEP team to
fully inform the parents of the advantages of transitioning to school-age
programming with same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education,
2003).
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43
This study utilized a mixed-methods research design to explore the perceptions
and priorities of parents and special education leaders as well as to investigate the
alignment of parent needs and concerns with the transition practices of the preschool
early intervention program and the school districts across Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania. Participants included parents and special education leaders, who completed
a survey, which enabled the collection of quantitative data. Some survey participants
from both the parent and special education leader groups consented to complete a semistructured interview with the researcher, which provided qualitative data for the study.
Data collection and analysis addressed three research questions.
Research Questions:
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
The first research question specifically aimed to understand what is most
important to parents of children with complex special needs as their child transitions out
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
44
of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten. The second question enabled the
researcher to explore what school leaders perceive to be most important to the parents of
children with complex special needs as they prepare for their child’s move into leaders’
respective school districts. The third question enabled a comparison of parents’ reported
perceptions and priorities to the current transition to kindergarten practices of the early
intervention program and school districts to find out how well those practices aligned
with what parents reported to be important to them.
Setting
This study included parents of preschool children with special needs who were
receiving early intervention services through the WIU preschool early intervention
program and who were eligible to enter kindergarten in the fall of 2023. The second
participant group was comprised of special education leaders from school districts and
the intermediate unit in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Westmoreland County is
situated in southwestern Pennsylvania and is primarily comprised of suburban and rural
areas, with the City of Greensburg located roughly in the center of the county. The land
area in square mileage in Westmoreland County is 1071.71, and the population per
square mile is 345.1 (U.S. Census, n.d.). In 2020, the population of Westmoreland
County was 354,663, and the population in the City of Greensburg was 14,976 (U.S.
Census, n.d.). Age statistics from the U.S. Census indicate that 18.2% of the population
in Westmoreland County is comprised of children under the age of 18, with 4.3% of the
population being under the age of five. Residents of Westmoreland County over age 65
comprise 23.7% of the population, which indicates that approximately 58.1% of the
population in the county is between the ages of 19-64 (U.S. Census, n.d.). Statistics on
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
45
race indicate that 94.3% of the population of Westmoreland County are White, 2.8%
Black or African American, 1.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.0% Asian, and 0.2% American
Indian (U.S. Census, n.d.).
Housing, family, and living arrangement data from the U.S. Census Bureau
indicate that there were 168,321 housing units in Westmoreland County in 2021, with
77.9% of occupants owning the home in which they lived (U.S. Census, n.d.). The
median value of a home owned by its occupants during 2017-2021 was $162,300, and the
average number of occupants per household was 2.8 (U.S. Census, n.d.). During 20172021, 91.6% of the population had been living in the same home for at least one year.
These data indicate that over a majority of residents own their homes and that housing
permanence is relatively stable in Westmoreland County.
U.S Census data from 2020 also reveal that 94.4% of residents 25 years and older
had earned a high school diploma and that 30.8% of the population had earned a
bachelor’s degree or higher. Sixty-one percent of residents 16 years of age and older
comprise the civilian workforce in Westmoreland County, and the median household
income in 2021 was $64,708 (U.S. Census, n.d.). In 2021, persons living in poverty in
Westmoreland County comprised 11.2% of the population (U.S. Census, n.d.).
Westmoreland County is comprised of 17 school districts, which vary greatly in
size from one another. The Hempfield Area School District ranks as the largest school
district in Westmoreland County with 5,279, and the Norwin School District places
closely behind with 5,078 students as of December 1, 2021 (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2023). Mid-size districts in Westmoreland County are Belle Vernon, FranklinRegional, Greater Latrobe, Greensburg-Salem, Kiski Area, New Kensington-Arnold, and
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
46
Penn-Trafford have a student population range of 2,000-4,000 students (Pennsylvania
Department of Education, 2023). Smaller school districts with fewer than 2,000 students
are Burrell, Derry, Jeannette City, Ligonier, Monessen City, Mount Pleasant,
Southmoreland, and Yough (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023). As of
December 1, 2021, there were 43,693 students enrolled in Westmoreland County’s school
districts, and 7,467 of them, or 17%, were receiving special education services
(Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023).
The preschool early intervention program in Westmoreland County provides
special education services to children, ages three to five, who exhibit a 25% delay or
greater in one or more areas of development. The preschool early intervention program in
Westmoreland County is operated by the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU). The
WIU is one of 29 intermediate units across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that were
established in 1970 by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to function as regional
education service agencies (Public School Code, 1949a). During the 2021-2022 school
year, the WIU preschool early intervention program served an aggregate of 1,498
children, ages three to five, with identified special needs (Office of Child Development
and Early Learning [OCDEL], 2022). The WIU early intervention program coordinated
transition to kindergarten meetings for 472 preschool children and their families in
February 2023. Of those 472 children, 72 of them were considered “K5” or Act 80
students, which means that they were actually eligible to transition to kindergarten in the
fall of 2022, yet their parents elected for them to remain in early intervention for the
2022-2023 school year. The “K5” group represented 15.3% of all kindergarten transition
meetings in February 2023 in Westmoreland County.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
47
The 472 children for whom the WIU early intervention program facilitated a
kindergarten transition meeting in February 2023, represented a range of disability
categories: Autism (62), Developmental Delay (112), Hearing Impairment, including
Deafness (8), Multiple Disabilities (5), Orthopedic Impairment (2), Other Health
Impairment (4), Speech-Language Impairment (274), Visual Impairment, including
Blindness (4), and Traumatic Brain Injury (1). In Pennsylvania, the Developmental
Disability category is only applicable during the preschool years and is not a recognized
disability category once children transition into school-age programming. Hempfield
Area School District had the most transition to kindergarten meetings in February 2023,
with 57, and the Monessen City School District had the fewest with ten.
Participants
The participants in this study were comprised of two groups: parents of preschoolage children with complex special education needs and special education leaders from the
school districts in Westmoreland County as well as from the WIU preschool early
intervention program. For the purposes of this study, a child with “complex special
education needs” was operationally defined as any child, regardless of disability
category, who was receiving two or more early intervention services (i.e., specialized
instruction, speech-language, occupational therapy, physical therapy, vision support,
and/or hearing services). A review of early intervention records in October 2022 by the
researcher revealed that there were 167 children in the preschool early intervention
program receiving two or more services as outlined in their Individual Education Plans
(IEP) who were eligible to attend kindergarten in the fall of 2023. The researcher sent the
Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT (Modified) Survey to the parents of all
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
48
167 children (Appendix A). The Form contained a link to the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) Survey – Modified, which was used with written
permission from Dr. Laura Lee of the University of Oregon (Appendix B) and
administered through Google Forms (Appendix C). Parents who completed the survey
were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview with the researcher. All parent
participants who agreed to be interviewed completed the Parent Consent to Participate –
Semi-Structured Interview Form (Appendix D) and answered questions posed by the
researcher (Appendix E).
Leaders of special education programs in Pennsylvania public schools are
required to be appropriately credentialed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education awards Supervisory Certificates to
individuals who have completed at least five years of satisfactory certified experience in
the area in which the Supervisory Certificate is sought, have completed an approved
graduate program, and who have presented evidence of satisfactory achievement on
prescribed assessments (Public School Code, 1949d). An educator in Pennsylvania
possessing a Supervisor of Special Education certification is qualified to manage and
monitor special education systems and to serve as a liaison between school district
administration and the certified special education staff (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2023b). The Pennsylvania Department of Education (2023b) outlines that
Supervisors of Special Education should enhance the attainment of the district’s
expectations and goals by authorizing activities using judgment not equally shared by all
professionally special education certified staff and provide direct input to administrators,
which affects the employment, assignment, transfer, promotion, layoff, discharge, or
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
49
other similar personnel actions of other professional level employees certified in special
education.
Supervisors of Special Education in Pennsylvania are qualified to provide supervisory
duties only in the area of special education, though educators in Pennsylvania holding a
Principal PK-12 certificate are also qualified to direct and supervise special education
staff at a building or district level (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023b).
The researcher sent the Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate
Form – Special Education Leader Transition Survey - Kindergarten (SELTS-K) to 22
special education leaders representing all 17 school districts as well as the preschool early
intervention program in Westmoreland County (Appendix F). All leaders were employed
by their respective school districts or intermediate unit to manage special education
programming. The Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate Form shared
with the special education leaders contained a link to the Special Education Leader
Transition Survey - Kindergarten (SELTS-K), which was administered through Google
Forms (Appendix G). The SELTS-K was developed by the researcher and designed to
mirror much of the content represented in the FEIT Survey-Modified, which was
administered to parents in the study. Special education leaders who completed the
SELTS-K were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview with the researcher.
All special education leader participants who volunteered to be interviewed completed
the Special Education Leader Consent to Participate Form - Semi-Structured Interview
(Appendix G) and answered questions administered by the researcher (Appendix I).
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
50
Research Plan
The research plan for this action research project is based on several noteworthy
findings that were presented throughout the literature review. Children with disabilities
experience more transitions than their non-disabled peers, including moves into and out
of early intervention and special education environments – oftentimes from birth - which
can be stressful for the child and family (Wolery, 1989). The move from preschool to
kindergarten can be challenging for any child, but children with disabilities are at
particular risk for transition difficulties (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021; Justice et al.,
2009; McIntyre et al., 2007; McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000).
Parents are important decision-makers for their children. When the opinions of parents of
children with special needs are examined, they most request information related to what
they can do to prepare for their child’s transition, which suggests a willingness and desire
to support the process (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022).
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Special Education (BSE), in coordination with
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Early Intervention Services (BEIS), has set forth requirements
for a smooth transition for children with special needs as they move from preschool early
intervention services into school-age programming (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2003). Each February, early intervention programs in Pennsylvania schedule
and convene transition meetings with school districts and the parents of children with
special needs who are eligible to attend kindergarten later in the fall. In Pennsylvania,
parents have the option of electing their child to remain in the preschool early
intervention program for one additional year, thus delaying the transition into
kindergarten. However, early intervention programs are guided by OCDEL to inform
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
51
families of the advantages of transitioning their child to school-age programming on time
and with their same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2003). A review
of transition data from the WIU preschool early intervention program reveals that
approximately 15% of children eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of 2022 (i.e.,
roughly 70 students) remained in early intervention for the 2022-2023 school year.
Delaying kindergarten entry for children with special needs not only runs contrary to the
guidance from OCDEL, but it also has deleterious fiscal implications for school districts
as well as for the early intervention program, as neither the preschool early intervention
program nor the school district receives funding for these children.
Parents of children with special needs have a unique set of worries and priorities
compared to parents with typically developing children. Parents of children with special
needs report feeling guilt and judgment around the time their child transitions to
kindergarten (Fontil et al., 2020). They also report to teachers concerns about safety
issues, their child’s acceptance by other children, their child’s ability to make friends, the
educational placement of the child, and overall feelings of grief over the loss of normalcy
(Jewett et al., 1998). Understanding the priorities, needs, and concerns of this parent
group during their child’s transition out of preschool early intervention and into schoolage programming will enable special education leaders to shape practices and to develop
processes intended to maximally support the child’s special needs and to build
collaborative and trustful partnerships with families. If families feel well supported and
assured of their child’s well-being throughout the transition process, they might be more
likely to send their child to kindergarten with same-age peers. Parents of children with
complex special needs also might be more open to developing a collaborative and trustful
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
52
relationship with their child’s school district much earlier and with more success if school
leaders better understood what matters most to parents at this critical time.
The research plan for this action research project included the use of a
quantitative survey for parents (Appendix C) and special education leaders (Appendix G).
Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents (Appendix E) and
special education leaders (Appendix I). The combination of quantitative and qualitative
data collection approaches yielded a mixed-methods research design for this project. The
parent survey was modified by the researcher from its original version and used with
written permission obtained from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre on August 5, 2022, from the
University of Oregon (Appendix B).
The fiscal implications of this project are minimal as they relate to the resources
needed by the researcher to conduct the research plan. In a broader sense, however,
outcomes of this research could result in fiscal ramifications for school districts as well as
for the preschool early intervention program. When children remain in early intervention
for an additional year, they do so at the request of the child’s parents and with permission
from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, but without funding to the preschool
early intervention program. The WIU early intervention program bills school districts for
services provided to these students, but not usually to the level of $5133 it receives for
other non-Act 30 students. In turn, school districts also do not receive funding for the
education of these students, though they are obligated to reimburse the preschool early
intervention program. If special education leaders from school districts and the early
intervention program are able to gain deeper insight into the priorities, concerns, and
needs of parents of children with complex special needs, it strengthens a program’s
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
53
ability to maximally support the child and family while potentially lowering the
percentage of children who remain in early intervention beyond their eligibility to attend
kindergarten in their school district. When children receiving early intervention services
transition to kindergarten “on time” and with their same-age peers, it lessens the financial
obligations of school districts and the preschool early intervention program.
Research Design, Methods, and Data Collection
This action research project was approved by the Pennsylvania Western
University Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires
09/05/2023. The researcher also received permission from Dr. Jason Conway, Executive
Director of the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit, to proceed with the project before its
onset. Informed consent was obtained from all participants in this study by the researcher
for survey and interview participation.
A mixed methods research design was utilized to answer the three research
questions. Mixed methods is a group of approaches that combine quantitative and
qualitative data strands in a single study. According to Mertler (2022), interest in using a
mixed methods approach has increased over the past decade as researchers have
recognized the value that each data type brings to a study. Quantitative data provides a
broader, more generalized understanding of a topic, and qualitative data enables a deeper
understanding of a phenomenon with fewer participants. Quantitative studies can provide
vast amounts of numeric data that can be considered more representative of a sample,
while qualitative studies yield robust amounts of narrative and descriptive data.
Although both kinds of data were collected for this study, the researcher prioritized the
collection of quantitative data over that of qualitative, reflecting a type of mixed methods
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
54
approach that is known as an “explanatory-sequential research design” (Mertler, 2022).
Known also as “explanatory design,” this particular type of mixed-methods research
design includes the sequential collection of data in phases. Quantitative data is prioritized
over qualitative data: it is collected first and is then examined and analyzed. The decision
to prioritize quantitative data over qualitative is driven by the constructs of the research
question(s). Once collected and analyzed, results obtained from the quantitative data are
used to inform the collection of qualitative data. It is crucial to note that mixed methods
researchers must not only collect quantitative and qualitative data, but they must also
integrate them as well (Mertler, 2022).
Quantitative data was collected via surveys. A survey consent form and the
Family Experiences and Involvement in Transition (FEIT) Survey-Modified were sent to
167 families of children eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who
were receiving more than one special education service through the WIU Early
Intervention program. Participants were informed that if they elected to access the survey
link, they were granting informed consent to participate in the study as well as permitting
the use of data collected through the survey. The survey was administered via Google
Forms, and it contained 26 questions. Respondents remained anonymous, as email
addresses were not collected in the Google Form. Question types included short answer,
linear scale, check box, drop-down box, multiple choice, and multiple choice grid.
Question types were divided into four sections: Demographics and Background
Information, Priorities and Supports in Transition Planning, Next Steps – Interview
Opportunity, and Parting Thoughts.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
55
Survey consent forms and the Special Education Leader Transition Survey –
Kindergarten (SELTS-K) were sent to 22 special education leaders representing the 17
school districts and the preschool early intervention program in Westmoreland County.
Recipients of the consent/email were informed that if they chose to access the provided
survey link, they were granting informed consent to participate in the study as well as
permitting the use of data collected through the survey. The SELTS-K was administered
via Google Forms, and it contained 22 questions. Respondents remained anonymous, as
email addresses were not collected in the Google Form. Question types included short
answer, linear scale, multiple choice, and multiple choice grid, as well as drop-down
menu questions. Questions were divided into the following sections:
Background/Experience, Priorities and Supports in Transition Planning, Next Steps –
Interview Opportunity, and Parting Thoughts.
Qualitative data was collected via semi-structured interviews. Parents and special
education leaders who completed the survey were eligible to participate in an interview
with the examiner. Participants were informed that if they volunteered to submit to an
interview, anonymity with the researcher would be forfeited, as they would need to
provide an email address for the purpose of making contact to schedule the interview.
Once interest was indicated in participating in an interview, parent and school leader
participants were sent interview consent forms by the examiner. All interviews were held
in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office, and permission was sought by the researcher from
each interviewee to record the interview via the Zoom platform. Interview participants
were informed that consent was voluntary, they could stop the interview at any time
without question by the researcher, and they could choose not to answer a question.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
56
Participants were also informed by the researcher that their responses would remain
anonymous to others aside from the researcher, and interview participants were able to
obtain a copy of the interview if they requested one. Recorded interviews were saved on a
secure server and analyzed at a later date by the researcher. The semi-structured parent
interview (Appendix E) consisted of eight questions, and the semi-structured special
education leader interview (Appendix I) consisted of twelve questions. The research
questions, data sources, and the timeline for this action research project were well
aligned.
Research Question One
What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten? The 26-question Family Experiences and Involvement in Transition
(FEIT) Survey-Modified, which was modified from its original version and used with
permission from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre, was sent to the parents of children eligible to
transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who were receiving more than one
special education service through the WIU Early Intervention program in November and
December 2022. Participants who completed the FEIT Survey-Modified and who agreed
to be interviewed by the researcher were asked eight questions in a semi-structured
interview format during January 2023. Interviews were recorded with participant consent
and were stored on a secure server.
Research Question Two
What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
57
needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten? The
22-question Special Education Leader Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K),
which was developed by the researcher to mirror data collected by the FEIT-Modified
Survey, was sent to special education leaders representing 17 school districts and the
preschool early intervention program in December 2022. A 12-question, semi-structured
interview was conducted by the researcher with special education leaders who completed
the SELTS-K and who provided informed consent to be interviewed. With participant
consent, interviews were recorded and stored on a secure server in January 2023.
Research Question Three
How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU Early
Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania?
Surveys sent to the parent and special education leader participant groups contained a
variety of question forms (linear scale, drop down, multiple choice, multiple choice-grid,
and short answer) to measure parent priorities (parent survey) and kindergarten transition
practices of school entities (special education leader survey). Surveys were sent to both
participant groups in December 2022. A small sample of participants from each group
agreed to submit to an interview conducted by the researcher. Results obtained from both
surveys and interview sets are used to examine the alignment of parent priorities with the
transition to kindergarten practices of school districts and the early intervention program.
Fiscal Information
When parents feel as though their priorities and concerns are not addressed during
their child’s transition out of preschool early intervention and into school-age special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
58
education programming, they might be more likely to elect for their child to remain in
early intervention for an additional year and delay the child’s entry into kindergarten.
Neither the preschool early intervention program nor the child’s school district receives
funding for the provision of services to these children. The preschool early intervention
program invoices school districts for services rendered to these children, but not typically
to the level of the $5133 that the program receives for children not yet eligible to
transition to kindergarten. The number of students remaining in early intervention has
minimally fluctuated over the years, with a five-year average of 68 students, as shown in
Figure 1. The four-year average reimbursement received from school districts by the
early intervention program for school years 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and
2021-2022 is $129,693. If the early intervention program had received monies for those
same children through OCDEL’s state allocation, the reimbursement for those children
would have averaged $347,760 for the same four-year period. The result is an average
negative cost differential of $218,067 for the early intervention program across the years
2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and 2021-2022 as depicted in Figure 2. School
district invoicing for the 2022-2023 school year has not been completed at the time of
this writing. However, during the 2022-2023 school year, there were 70 Act30/K5
students who remained in the early intervention program, which correlates to the trend
that has been observed since the 2018-2019 school year.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
59
Figure 1
Act 30/K5 Students in the WIU EI Program
A C T 3 0 / K5 ST UD E NT S IN T H E WIU E I P R O G R A M
Number of Students
80
76
70
70
70
68
21-22
22-23
5 year Average
70
55
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
18-19
19-20
20-21
School Year
Figure 2
Act 30/K5 Student Fiscal Impact on the WIU EI Program
Fiscal Impact of Act 30/K5 Students on the WIU EI Program
$400,000
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
$0
($100,000)
18-19
19-20
20-21
21-22
4-year Average
($200,000)
($300,000)
School District Reimbursement to the WIU EI program for Act 30/K5 Students
OCDEL Reimbursement Not Received by the WIU EI program for Act 30/K5 Students
Difference
Regardless of a child’s age or eligibility to transition to kindergarten, the
preschool early intervention program is legally, morally, and ethically bound to provide
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
60
the same level and quality of service needed by the child to access a free and appropriate
public education (FAPE). In the eyes of Pennsylvania’s OCDEL, the Westmoreland
Intermediate Unit should be able to accomplish that task for $5133 per child. However,
when Act 30/K5 students remain in early intervention for the additional year (beyond
when they are eligible to go to the school district), the early intervention program
receives an average of $1907 per student through invoicing the Act30/K5 students’
school districts, which is $3226 less per child than what the program would receive from
the state allocation to properly meet the needs of the child and to ensure access to FAPE.
When school leaders understand the priorities and perspectives of parents of
children transitioning from preschool early intervention services into school-age
programming, it is logical to assume that school leaders stand better equipped to support
those families and children throughout any transition process, especially the child’s
transition into kindergarten. If families feel optimally understood and supported, it is
hypothesized that the number of Act30/K5 students in the preschool early intervention
program would be reduced, which would alleviate a financial burden for the program.
Increasing the number of students transitioning into their school districts also has
benefits for school districts as well. A school district provides, in almost all cases, a full
day of educational programming to the child, whereas the preschool early intervention
program is structured to provide (at most) a half day of educational programming. The
longer time spent in a school day would undoubtedly benefit the child, who is ageeligible to attend kindergarten. In addition, when children transition to kindergarten with
their same-age peers, the school district team can begin to intervene more quickly to meet
the child’s needs as they relate to the district’s curriculum and expectations for learning
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
61
and being ready to learn. Intervening early in a focused and intentional manner would
likely lead to improved student outcomes and increased cost savings for a school district
in the long run. The overall cost of implementing this action research plan pales in
comparison to the potential cost savings to the early intervention program and the overall
and long-term educational benefits that could be realized for children with complex
special education needs.
Validity
Validity is a critical characteristic of research and is defined as the “degree to
which all the accumulated evidence supports the intended interpretation of test scores for
the proposed purpose” (Mertler, 2022). Validity refers to the extent to which a study’s
methods measure what they are intended to measure. Mertler (2022) describes several
actions that researchers can take to ensure the validity of the research. Qualitative
researchers should take precautions to ensure the factual accuracy of the information
being collected to promote the trustworthiness and credibility of the data. Quantitative
data, on the other hand, primarily pertains to numeric information. Numeric data might be
accurate, but quantitative researchers must take care to ensure that the numeric data
collected measures what the study intended to measure. In other words, does the data
collected answer the research questions posed in the study?
One strength of a mixed methods research design is found in the combination and
integration of qualitative and quantitative data sources. The strength of one approach can
bolster the weakness of the other. Qualitative data, though narrow in breadth, is more
robust in depth. For example, a qualitative study may include fewer participants from
whom to gather data, but the data collection methods (e.g., interviews, focus groups,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
62
observation, and note-taking) provide the researcher with a deeper understanding of the
phenomenon under investigation. Quantitative research sampling strategies vary greatly
from those used in qualitative research. Typically, quantitative studies involve more
people than qualitative ones, which makes the results more generalizable to a larger
population.
When researchers collect data from a variety of sources, a study’s validity is
strengthened. “Triangulation” refers to the “process of relating multiple sources of data to
verify their trustworthiness, accuracy, and consistency” (Mertler, 2022). The current
study utilizes data collected from surveys (quantitative) and interviews (qualitative) from
two different participant groups (i.e., parents and special education leaders). The
collection of data from multiple sources that comprise this study’s methodology adds to
the credibility and validity of its findings. Results obtained from one data collection
method that are also reflected in the other is an indication that the results are valid. This
study’s internal validity is also enhanced by the researcher’s utilization of a modified
version of the Family Experiences in Transition Survey, which was based on the original
version first utilized by Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre in her own investigations.
Integrating data from various sources and examining the relationships among
them can also provide evidence of a study’s validity. Accurate results from the
integration of data would not be credible without the creation of an audit trail. In this
study, participant answers to Google Form survey questions were collected and stored in
a Google Sheet on a secure server maintained by the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit.
Participant interviews were recorded with informed consent, which created an audit trail
for qualitative data collected. Data were collected during a finite period of time from two
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
63
participant groups, which decreased the likelihood that participant responses were
influenced by outside variables. Participant groups were defined and created, and
respondents represented a random sampling of each group, which additionally enhanced
this study’s internal validity.
External validity is the extent to which a study’s results are generalizable to other
groups or settings (Mertler, 2022). The sample used in this study represented two groups:
parents of children with complex special education needs who were eligible for
kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and special education leaders from school districts in the
same county. Results obtained can be generalized to the larger groups represented by
these samples since they represent fairly homogenous populations in a primarily ruralsuburban county in southwestern Pennsylvania. The in-depth description of the setting
and participants in this study by the researcher further enhances its external validity.
Summary
This research study aimed to determine the priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten as well as the perceptions of parent priorities by the
preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders. This study also
examined the extent to which the reported priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs were reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the
WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania. The participants in this study were comprised of two groups: parents of
preschool-age children with complex special education needs and special education
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
64
leaders from the school districts in Westmoreland County as well as from the WIU
preschool early intervention program.
A mixed methods research design was utilized to answer the three research
questions. Mixed methods is a group of approaches that combine quantitative and
qualitative data strands in a single study. The current study utilizes data collected from
surveys (quantitative) and interviews (qualitative) from the two different participant
groups (i.e., parents and special education leaders). The collection of data from multiple
sources that comprise this study’s methodology adds to the credibility and validity of its
findings.
The researcher sent the Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT
(Modified) Survey to the parents of all children receiving more than one early
intervention service and who were eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of 2023
(Appendix A). The Form contained a link to the Family Experiences and Involvement in
Transition (FEIT) Survey – Modified, which was used with written permission from Dr.
Laura Lee of the University of Oregon (Appendix B) and administered through Google
Forms (Appendix C). Parents who completed the survey were invited to participate in a
semi-structured interview with the researcher. All parent participants who agreed to be
interviewed completed the Parent Consent to Participate – Semi-Structured Interview
Form (Appendix D) and answered questions posed by the researcher (Appendix E). The
fiscal implications of this project are minimal as they relate to the resources needed by
the researcher to conduct the research plan. In a broader sense, however, outcomes of this
research could result in fiscal ramifications for school districts as well as for the
preschool early intervention program. When children remain in early intervention for an
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
65
additional year, they do so at the request of the child’s parents and with permission from
the Pennsylvania Department of Education, but without funding for the preschool early
intervention program or the child’s school district. Understanding the priorities of the
parents of these children could potentially encourage the timely transition of these
children to kindergarten, where they could receive a longer instructional day alongside
their same-age, non-disabled peers.
Chapters I and II provided an overview of the overall problem being addressed by
this action research project and a comprehensive review of the literature, respectively.
Chapter III offered an overview of the study’s methodology, which included a description
of the participants, setting, research plan, research design, data collection methods, and
the fiscal implications of the project. Chapter IV will provide an in-depth description of
the data analysis process, including the results obtained from a variety of data sources
and the interpretation of the data as well as a summary of findings.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
66
CHAPTER IV
Data Analysis and Results
Participants in this capstone research project were the parents of preschool-age
children with complex special education needs eligible to transition to kindergarten in the
fall of 2023 and special education leaders from school districts and the early intervention
program. Data were obtained from both participant groups through Google Form surveys
and semi-structured interviews. The parent survey and interview questions captured
information about the priorities of parents during their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten. Survey and interview questions that were
administered to the school district and early intervention special education leaders probed
their perceptions of parent priorities and concerns during the kindergarten transition.
Results obtained from the survey and interview questions were used to determine to what
extent, if any, parent priorities are reflected in the kindergarten transition practices of
school districts and the early intervention program. The process utilized to analyze the
data for this action research project is presented in this chapter, along with a summary of
the results that will answer each of the research questions.
Research Questions
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
67
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
The parent survey, Family Experiences in Transition (FEIT), was modified from
its original version and used with permission from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre, a researcher
who had used the instrument and reported findings in a peer-reviewed journal publication
(McIntyre et al., 2010). The resulting FEIT-Modified survey was sent electronically to
167 parents of children who were receiving more than one early intervention service from
the WIU Early Intervention program and who were age-eligible to attend kindergarten in
their school district of residence in the fall of 2023. The parent survey was disseminated,
and data were received from 27 respondents in November-December 2022. The FEITModified collected an assortment of demographic data, and survey questions consisted of
Likert scale questions, multiple choice, one required open-ended question, and one
optional open-ended question. The first and required open-ended question asked parents
to describe in their own words what it means for a child to be “ready for kindergarten.”
The second open-ended question asked parents who indicated they were not “not likely”
to send their child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, to share the reasoning for their
decision in the form of a short answer.
Of the 27 FEIT-Modified survey respondents, five parents agreed to participate in
a semi-structured interview with the researcher, which was conducted in December 2022January 2023. All five parents consented for the interviews to be recorded, which were
conducted via the Zoom platform. Interviews were recorded and stored on a secure server
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
68
at the WIU and were used to supplement the written notes collected in real-time by the
researcher.
The Special Education Leader Transition-Kindergarten (SELTS-K) survey was
developed by the researcher and designed to parallel many questions from the FEITModified. The SELTS-K survey was sent electronically to 22 special education leaders
from school districts and the WIU Early Intervention program in November 2022, and
data from the SELTS-K were received in November-December 2022 by 12 respondents.
The SELTS-K collected demographic data and included Likert scale questions, multiple
choice, and two open-ended questions. Of the 12 special education leaders who
completed the SELTS-K, eight consented to participate in a semi-structured interview
with the researcher, which were conducted in December 2022-January 2023 via Zoom.
All eight participants consented to recorded interviews, which were stored on a secure
server at the WIU.
Triangulation
Triangulation is “a process of relating multiple sources of data to verify their
trustworthiness, accuracy, and consistency” (Mertler, 2022, p. 20). Descriptive and
inferential statistical analyses were performed on the quantitative survey data and the
qualitative interview data to assist in the triangulation process. Descriptive statistical
analysis permits the summarization and simplification of data, while inferential statistical
analysis enables the researcher to determine whether “the findings of a given study (e.g.,
the size of the difference between two groups or the strength of the relationship between
two variables) are large enough in the sample studied to represent a meaningful
difference or relationship in the population from which the sample was drawn” (Mertler,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
69
2022, p. 14). The FEIT-Modified survey and the SELTS-K were comprised of various
question types, which resulted in the integration and comparison of responses from
diverse queries that ultimately contributed to a more extensive understanding of the
phenomena under study.
Data Analysis
Frequency counts were used to tabulate the demographic data from both the
FEIT-Modified survey and the SELTS-K measure. Surveys were administered through
Google Forms, and data gathered from Likert scale questions on both surveys were
collected into a Google Sheet. Those numbers were copied and pasted into an Excel
spreadsheet for calculation of the mode and the median values for each potential area of
parental concern and each potential area of transition to kindergarten support in order to
best describe the distribution of responses. The interquartile range (IQR) was derived and
used to determine the response variance for each item. When the IQR was smaller in
value, it meant that there was more similarity (and less variance) between respondent
answers. Conversely, a larger IQR was indicative of less similarity (and more variance)
between respondent answers. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed several times to
determine the existence of a statistically significant relationship between variables in this
study. The null hypothesis, which proposed that no relationship existed between
variables, was accepted in some cases and rejected in others.
Semi-structured interviews recorded via Zoom were uploaded to the transcription
software Scribbr where the audio file was translated into text. Interview transcripts were
compared to the notes taken by the researcher in real-time during the live interview.
Those responses were color-coded according to themes that emerged in the answers of
participants from the parent as well as from the special education leader group.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
70
Research Question One: What are the priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The results for research question one were collected via a parent survey and
interview questions and were intended to capture information about the priorities of
parents during their child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
FEIT-Modified Survey Data
The output results of these survey questions show the total survey responses
between all parents of preschool-age children with complex special education needs
eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and were used to establish a
median, mode, or no mode. The first section of questions on the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) – Modified survey asked a series of demographic and
background questions to better understand who was being surveyed. Of the 27 parents
who responded to the FEIT-Modified survey, 70.37% of parents had a male preschoolage child with complex special education needs, and 29.63% of parent respondents had a
female preschool-aged child with complex special education needs. Results indicated that
92.59% of parents responded to the survey about a White preschool-aged child, and
7.41% responded to the survey about a Black or African American preschool-aged child.
None of the surveyed parents had a preschool-aged child of American Indian or Alaskan
Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian, or Other Pacific Islander descent. Additionally, 92.59%
of parents classified their child’s ethnic background as Non-Hispanic/Non-Latino and
7.41% of parents classified their child’s ethnic background as Hispanic/Latino, which
closely aligned to the most recent statistics on race in Westmoreland County,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
71
Pennsylvania. Statistics on race indicate that 94.3% of the population of Westmoreland
County are White, 2.8% Black or African American, 1.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.0%
Asian, and 0.2% American Indian (U.S. Census, n.d.). No respondents declined to answer
questions about race or ethnicity on the FEIT-Modified survey.
One hundred percent of respondents to the FEIT-Modified survey reported that
English is the primary language spoken in the home of the preschool-aged child with
complex special education needs. Of the parents who were surveyed, nearly 60% rated
themselves as “very likely” or “extremely likely” to send their child to kindergarten in the
fall of 2023.
Following the demographic section of questions, parents were then asked to
respond to a set of questions on the survey asking to describe the level of their concern in
different areas as their child transitions to kindergarten. The question design gave those
surveyed four options and required a “pick one” option. The four options used to
describe the level of concern were “No concern,” “A few concerns,” “Some concerns,”
and “Many concerns.” Parents were asked to answer questions about eleven different
areas in which they may have some level of concern during the transition to kindergarten
process for their child. Figure 3 shows a data table illustrating the eleven areas in which
parents were asked to rate their concerns and illustrates the parent responses, in counts,
based on their selection when completing the survey.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
72
Figure 3
Levels of Parent Concern in Different Areas, Numeric Breakdown
Areas of
Concern
Academics (e.g.,
knowing the
alphabet)
Behavior (e.g.,
tantrums)
Following
directions
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the teacher
Getting used to a
new school
Child being
ready for
kindergarten
Separating from
the family
Toilet training
Level of Concern
No Concerns
A few concerns
Ability to
communicate
needs
Riding a school
bus
Some concerns
Many concerns
8
3
10
6
4
10
9
4
3
8
10
6
10
9
5
3
14
6
4
3
3
8
7
12
2
3
10
12
12
7
4
4
5
4
6
12
1
5
8
13
7
6
5
9
Figure 4 illustrates the same data as Figure 3 and is represented as five side-byside bar graphs, which show the distributions of responses from parents about the first
five areas of concern.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Figure 4
Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 1-5
Counts
LEVELS OF C ONC ERN IN DIFFERENT AREAS AS P ERC EIVED
BY P ARE NTS DURING TRANSITION TO KINDE RGARTE N
No concerns
A few concerns
Academics
Behavior
Some concerns
Many concerns
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Following
directions
Area of Concern
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the teacher
73
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
74
Figure 5 illustrates the same data as Figure 3 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs, which show the distributions of responses from parents of the final six areas
of concern.
Figure 5
Levels of parent concern, comparison of areas 6-11
LEVELS OF C ONC ERN IN DIFFERENT AREAS AS PERC EIVED
BY P ARE NTS DURING TRANSITION TO KINDE RGARTE N
No concerns
A few concerns
Some concerns
Many concerns
14
Counts
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Getting used Child being
Separating Toilet training Ability to
to a new
ready for
from family
communicate
school
kindergarten
needs
Riding a
school bus
Area of Concern
In order to perform statistical analysis on the data in Figures 3, 4, and 5, a
numerical value was given to represent each response category with 1 being given to the
response “No concern” and 4 being given to the response “Many concerns.” The data in
row 1 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about their
preschool-age child’s academic abilities as they prepare to transition to kindergarten.
Results indicated 29.62% of parents described their level of concern as “No concerns”
and 11.11% described their level of concern as “A few concerns.” Additionally, 37.04%
responded with “Some concerns” and 22.22% had “Many concerns” about their child’s
academic abilities in the transition to kindergarten. The data in row 1 of Figure 3 is also
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
75
pictured as the first distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine the
distribution of responses is asymmetrical with a center of 3, given by the mode, which
represents a response of “Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical
units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
represented was 3, which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 2 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s behavior as they prepare to transition to kindergarten.
14.81% of parents described their level of concern to be “No concerns” and 37.04%
described their level of concern as “A few concerns.” In addition, 33.33% responded with
“Some concerns” and 14.81% had “Many concerns” about their child’s behavior in the
transition to kindergarten. The data in row 2 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the second
distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is symmetrical with a center of 2, given by the mode, which represents a response of “A
few concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 2,
the same as the mode, and which represents a response value of “A few concerns.”
The third area of concern is shown in row 3 of Figure 3 and regards parent
concern about the preschool-aged special education student’s ability to follow directions.
Results indicated that 11.11% of parents had “No concerns” and 29.62% had “A few
concerns” about their child’s ability to follow directions. Additionally, 37.04% of parents
had “Some concerns” and 22.22% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to
follow directions. The data in row 3 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the third distribution in
Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine that the distribution of responses is slightly
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
76
skewed to the left with a center of 3, given by the mode, which represents a response of
“Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 3,
the same as the mode, which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 4 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s ability to get along with other children as they prepare
to transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 37.04% of parents described their
level of concern to be “No concerns” and 33.33% described their level of concern as “A
few concerns.” In addition, 18.51% responded with “Some concerns” and 11.11% had
“Many concerns” about their child’s ability to get along with other children. The data in
row 4 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the fourth distribution in Figure 4. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the right with a
center of 1, given by the mode, which represents a response of “No concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR).
The median response to the survey question represented was 2, which is slightly higher
than the mode, and which represents a response value of “A few concerns.”
Data in row 5 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about
their preschool-age child’s ability to get along with the teacher as they prepare to
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 51.85% of parents described their level
of concern to be “No concerns” about their child’s ability to get along with the teacher,
22.22% described their level of concern as “A few concerns”, 14.81% responded with
“Some concerns”, and 11.11% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to get
along with the teacher. The data in row 5 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the final
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
77
distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine that the distribution of
responses is strongly skewed to the right with a center of 1, given by the mode, which
represents a response of “No concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1.5 categorical
units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
represented was 1, the same as the mode, and which represents a response value of “No
concerns.”
The sixth area of concern is shown in row 6 of Figure 3 and regards the parent’s
concern about the preschool-aged special education student’s ability to get used to a new
school. Results indicated that 11.11% of parents had “No concerns”, and 29.62% had “A
few concerns” about their child’s ability to get used to a new school. Furthermore,
14.81% of parents had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% had “Many concerns” about their
child’s ability to get used to a new school. The data in row 6 of Figure 3 is also pictured
as the first distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine that the
distribution of responses is skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode,
which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2
categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question represented was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the
distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 7 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child being ready for kindergarten. Results indicated that
7.41% of parents had “No concerns”, 11.11% had “A few concerns” about their child’s
preparedness for kindergarten, 37.04% of parents had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% had
“Many concerns” about their child’s level of preparedness for kindergarten. The data in
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
78
row 7 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the second distribution in Figure 5. The data was
analyzed to determine that the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the left with
a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question represented was 3, which is slightly lower than
the mode of the distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
Data in row 8 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about
their preschool-age child’s readiness to be separated from the family. Results indicated
that 44.44% of parents had “No concerns”, 25.93% had “A few concerns”, 14.81% had
“Some concerns”, and 14.81% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to be
separated from the family. The data in row 8 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the third
distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is skewed to the right with a center of 1, given by the mode, which represents a response
of “No concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 2,
which was slightly higher than the center of the distribution, and which represents a
response value of “A few concerns.”
Shown in row 9 of Figure 3 is parent perception of concern about their child’s
preparedness in toilet training as they prepare to transition to kindergarten. Results
indicated that 18.52% of parents had “No concerns”, 14.81% had “A few concerns”,
22.22% had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% of parents had “Many concerns” about their
child’s preparedness in toilet training. The data in row 9 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the
fourth distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
79
responses is skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a
response of “Many concerns”. The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given
by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the distribution, and which represents
a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 10 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s ability to communicate their needs. Results indicated
that 3.7% of parents had “No concerns”, 18.52% had “A few concerns”, 29.63% had
“Some concerns”, and 48.15 had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to
communicate needs. The data in row 10 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the fifth
distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is strongly skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a
response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given
by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the distribution, and which represents
a response value of “Some concerns.”
The final row shows the data for parent level of concern about their child riding a
school bus to kindergarten. Results indicated that 25.93% of parents had “No concerns”,
22.22% had “A few concerns”, 18.52% had “Some concerns”, and 33.33% of parents had
“Many concerns” about their child’s ability to ride the bus. The data in the final row of
Figure 3 is also pictured as the final distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to
determine the distribution of responses is asymmetrical with a center of 4, given by the
mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
80
2.5 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question represented was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the
distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
Upon further analysis of question 7 of the FEIT-Modified survey, there are five
categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 4, which represents the highest
categorical level of concern. The five areas of concern are the preschool-age child’s
ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the
child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. More than 80 percent
of parents reported that they have either “Some concern” or “Many concerns” about their
child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, making this the parent’s highest area of
overall concern. The second highest area of overall parental concern regarding the
preschool-age special education child’s transition to kindergarten was concern about the
child’s ability to communicate their needs. More than 75% of parents rated their level of
concern about their child’s ability to communicate their needs to be in the “Some
concern” or “Many concerns” levels of the scale. The third overall highest area of
concern was toilet training, and approximately 67% of parents rated their level of concern
to be either “Some concern” or “Many concerns” with regard to their own child’s ability
to transition to kindergarten with toilet training skills. Almost 60% or 3 out of 5 parents
who responded to the FEIT-Modified survey rated their level of concern about their
child’s ability to get used to a new school to be in one of the two highest levels of
concern, either “Some concern” or “Many concerns”, and more than half, approximately
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
81
52% of parents, rated their level of concern for their child’s ability to ride the bus to be
either “Some concern” or “Many concerns.” These results are illustrated in Figure 6.
Figure 6
Areas of greatest parent concern
Areas of Greatest Concern to Parents
Areas of Conern
Getting used to a new school
A child being ready for kindergarten
Toilet training
Ability to communicate needs
Riding a school bus
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Percent of Parents with "Some" or "Many" Concerns
There are three categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 1,
which represents the lowest categorical level of concern. These three areas of concern are
getting along with other children, getting along with the teacher, and separating from the
family. Results indicated that 70.37% of parents who responded to the FEIT-Modified
survey rated their level of concern about the child’s ability to get along with other
children as either “No concerns” or “A few concerns”, the two lowest ratings of concern.
Of those parents who responded, 74.07% rated their level of concern about the child’s
ability to get along with the teacher as “No concerns” or “A few concerns.” Additionally,
70.37% of parents responded “No concerns” or “A few concerns” as their level of
concern about their child being separated from the family. These three areas of concern
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
82
can be considered the lowest areas of concern to parents of children with complex special
education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten.
In section 2 of the FEIT-Modified survey, parents were asked to respond to a set
of questions about the importance of twelve supports that could potentially be offered
during the transition to kindergarten process. The question design gave those surveyed
five options and required a “pick one” option. The five options used to describe the level
of concern were numbered 1-5, where 1 represented a response of “Not important”, 2
represented a response of “Slightly important”, 3 of “Neutral”, 4 of “Very important”,
and 5 represented a response of “Extremely important”. Figure 7 shows a data table
illustrating the twelve areas in which parents were asked to give their rating of
importance.
Figure 7
Parent importance ratings of twelve supports, numeric breakdown
Supports
Early intervention
program hosts a
meeting about what to
expect
Receive monthly contact
from your child's early
intervention teacher
Parents to attend the
transition to
kindergarten planning
meeting
Early intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Not
important
Rating of Importance
Slightly
Neutral
important
Very
important
Extremely
important
1
2
4
7
13
1
3
4
7
12
1
0
1
4
21
1
0
4
0
22
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Potential kindergarten
teacher to attend the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Visit child’s kindergarten
classroom before
kindergarten starts
Member of child's
school district transition
team to observe child
Receive correspondence
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Receive a home visit
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Attend kindergarten
orientation activities
with other incoming
kindergarten students
School district transition
planning team to
conduct a full evaluation
of child
Receive information
about how to register
your child for
kindergarten
1
1
3
5
17
0
0
2
3
22
2
0
3
7
15
0
0
4
6
17
8
5
9
1
4
0
0
3
7
17
0
1
3
5
18
1
2
5
4
15
83
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
84
Figure 8 illustrates the same data as Figure 7 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from parents of the first six areas of
supports.
Figure 8
Parent support importance ratings, comparison of supports 1-6
P ARE NT IMP ORTANC E RATINGS OF SUP P ORTS IN
TRANSITION P LANNING
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
25
Counts
20
15
10
5
0
Early
Receive monthly
intervention
contact from
program hosts a your child's early
meeting about intervention
what to expect
teacher
Parents to
attend the
transition to
kindergarten
planning
meeting
Early
intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at
the transition to
kindergarten
meeting
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
Potential
kindergarten
teacher to
attend the
transition to
kindergarten
meeting
Visit your child’s
kindergarten
classroom
and/or
elementary
school before
kindergarten
starts
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
85
Figure 9 illustrates the same data as Figure 7 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from parents of the final six areas of
supports.
Figure 9
Parent supports importance ratings, comparison of supports 7-12
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
TR A NSITION PLA NNING
Counts
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Member of
Receive
Receive a home
Attend
School district
Receive
child's school correspondence visit from your kindergarten
transition
information
district
from your child's
child's
orientation
planning team about how to
transition team kindergarten
kindergarten activities with to conduct a full register your
to observe child
teacher
teacher
other incoming evaluation of
child for
kindergarten
child
kindergarten
students
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
To perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 7, 8, and 9, a numerical value
was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the response “Not
important” and 5 being given to the response “Extremely important.” The data in row 1
of Figure 7 shows how parents perceive their rating of the importance of the early
intervention program hosting a meeting for parents to learn about what to expect in the
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 74.07% or nearly three out of four
parents responded that having a meeting about what to expect during the transition
process was either “Very important” or “Extremely important,” and only 3.70% thought
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
86
that the meeting was “Not important.”. This data is also pictured in the first distribution
of Figure 8 and was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is strongly
skewed to the left with a center of 5, given by the mode, which represents a response of
“Extremely important.” The spread of the distribution is 1.5 categorical units, given by
the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 4, which represents a response value of “Very important” and is slightly below the
mode value.
The information presented in row 2 of Figure 7 illustrates the perceptions of
parents regarding the importance they attribute to receiving monthly contact from their
child's early intervention teacher. Only 14.81% of parents considered this as “Not
important” or “Slightly important,” whereas a significant majority (70.37% of
respondents) expressed that such monthly contact was “Very important” or “Extremely
important.” This data is also depicted in the second distribution of Figure 8 and was
analyzed to reveal a strong left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode,
representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the center point with a value
of 5. The spread of the distribution, measured by the interquartile range (IQR), is 2
categorical units. The median response to the survey question was 4, indicating a value of
“Very important,” which slightly deviates from the mode value.
The data shown in row 3 of Figure 7 highlights how parents perceive the
importance of attending a transition to kindergarten planning meeting with
representatives from the early intervention program and the child’s school district. An
overwhelming majority, 92.59% of parents, indicated that attending such a meeting was
either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the first
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
87
distribution of Figure 8, and an analysis of the responses revealed a pronounced left
skewness in the distribution. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the center point with a value of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 0
categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to
the survey question was 5, which aligns with the mode value and signifies a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 4 of Figure 7 illustrates how parents perceive
the importance of having the early intervention teacher present at the transition to
kindergarten meeting. Among the parents who responded, 81.48% expressed that it was
“Extremely important” for the early intervention teacher to attend. This data is also
visualized in the fourth distribution of Figure 8, which was analyzed to reveal a strong
left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely
important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution
exhibits a spread of 0 categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and
indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The data presented in row 5 of Figure 7 reveals the perceptions of parents
regarding the importance of having the potential kindergarten teacher attend the transition
to kindergarten meeting. Among the parents who participated, 81.48% emphasized that it
was either “Very important” or “Extremely important” for the potential kindergarten
teacher to be present at the meeting. This data is also depicted in the fifth distribution of
Figure 8, and an analysis of the responses indicates a strong left skewness in the
distribution. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
88
central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1 categorical unit, as
denoted by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was
5, matching the mode value and reflecting a response of “Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 6 of Figure 7 showcases how parents perceive
the importance of visiting their child's kindergarten classroom before the start of
kindergarten. A significant majority (92.59% of parents) indicated that visiting the
kindergarten classroom was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.”
Remarkably, no parents considered the visit as “Not important” or “Slightly important.”
This data is also illustrated in the final distribution of Figure 8, which was analyzed to
reveal a strong left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode, representing an
“Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The
distribution demonstrates a spread of 0 categorical units, as determined by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning
with the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 7 of Figure 7 depicts how parents perceive the
importance of having a member of the child's school district transition team observe their
child. Of the parents surveyed, 81.48% expressed that this was either “Very important” or
“Extremely important.” This data is also visualized in the first distribution of Figure 9,
and an analysis of the responses indicates a strong left skewness in the distribution. The
mode, representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a
rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, matching
the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
89
The data presented in row 8 of Figure 7 demonstrates how parents perceive the
importance of receiving correspondence from their child's kindergarten teacher. An
overwhelming majority (85.19% of parents) indicated that this was either “Very
important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also illustrated in the second
distribution of Figure 9 and was analyzed, revealing a strong left skewness in the
distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1
categorical unit, as determined by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to
the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and indicating a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 9 of Figure 7 illustrates how parents perceive
the importance of receiving a home visit from their child's kindergarten teacher. Results
indicated that 48.15% of parents considered this as either “Not important” or “Slightly
important,” whereas only 18.52% of parents who responded felt that it was either “Very
important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the third distribution
of Figure 9 and was analyzed to reveal an asymmetrical distribution of responses. The
mode, representing a “Neutral” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 3.
The distribution exhibits a spread of 2 categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile
range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 3, aligning with the mode
value and indicating a response of “Neutral.”
The data presented in row 10 of Figure 7 provides insights into how parents
perceive the importance of having their child attend kindergarten orientation activities
alongside other incoming kindergarten students. An overwhelming majority (88.89% of
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
90
parents) expressed that this was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This
data is also depicted in the fourth distribution of Figure 9, and upon analysis, it was found
that the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the left. The mode, representing an
“Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The
distribution demonstrates a spread of 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile
range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode
value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The data presented in row 11 of Figure 7 showcases how parents perceive the
importance of having the school district transition planning team conduct a full
evaluation of their child. A significant majority (85.19% of parents) indicated that this
was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the
fifth distribution of Figure 9, which was analyzed to reveal a strong left skewness in the
distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1
categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and indicating a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 12 of Figure 7 reflects how parents perceive the
importance of receiving information about how to register their child for kindergarten. A
notable 70.37% of parents considered this as either “Very important” or “Extremely
important.” This data is also represented in the final distribution of Figure 9, and an
analysis of the responses reveals a strong left skewness in the distribution. The mode,
which signifies an “Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
91
rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 2 categorical units, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning
with the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
Upon further analysis of Section 2 of the FEIT-Modified survey, there are nine
categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 5, given by the mode, as well
as a median value of 5, which represents the highest rating of importance. These nine
areas of support include: attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting in
February, having an early intervention teacher in attendance at the meeting, having a
potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s
kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s school district transition team
observe the child, receiving correspondence from the child’s kindergarten teacher,
attending kindergarten orientation activities with other incoming kindergarten students,
having the school district transition planning team to conduct a full evaluation of the
child, and receiving information about how to register the child for kindergarten. Of these
nine areas of support, more than 80 percent of parents responded with “Very important”
or “Extremely important” for eight of the support areas. The ninth area, receiving
information about how to register the child for kindergarten, had 70.37% of responses as
“Very important” or “Extremely important.” Most significantly, two areas of support had
92.59% of responses in either the “Very important” or the “Extremely important”
category. These two areas of support were attending the transition to kindergarten
planning meeting and visiting the child’s classroom before kindergarten starts. Transition
to kindergarten supports of highest importance to parents are shown in Figure 10.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
92
There were two free-form questions (one required and one that was optional) on
the FEIT-Modified survey, which permitted respondents to answer in short answer, opentext format and yielded the collection of qualitative data. In an attempt to better
understand the perceptions of parents of preschool children with special needs about the
transition to kindergarten process, parents were prompted to share their ideas on the
following: “In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be ‘ready’ for
kindergarten.” Figure 10 represents the parent responses to this item. Of the 27 parents
who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, 18 respondents (67%) cited a child’s ability to
follow directions, nine respondents (33%) referenced the child’s ability to interact
socially with others, nine respondents (33%) referenced a child’s ability to communicate
effectively, five respondents (19%) referenced being toilet-trained, four respondents
(15%) referenced a child’s ability to appropriately regulate their emotions, four
respondents (15%) referenced a child’s academic as being integral to a child’s
kindergarten readiness.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
93
Figure 10
Parent perspectives on kindergarten readiness
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF PARENT RESPONSES
The second open-ended question on the FEIT-Modified survey was optional and
asked, “If you are ‘not likely’ to send your child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023,
please share why in the space provided below.” Out of four respondents, three (75%)
referenced concerns about their child’s communication skills, one respondent (25%)
referenced concern about their child’s lack of independence with dressing and toilet
training, and one respondent (25%) cited the child’s late summer birthday and the fact
that the child would be the “youngest in his class” as being the reason for not enrolling
the child in kindergarten.
Semi-Structured Parent Interview Data
Out of the 27 respondents who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, five parents
consented to complete a semi-structured interview with the researcher. The first semistructured interview question that pertained to parent perceptions regarding kindergarten
transition asked parents, “In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be
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94
‘ready’ for kindergarten.” Two out of the five respondents (40%) referenced a child’s
ability to communicate effectively, socialize appropriately with peers, appropriately
regulate emotions, and maintain an appropriate attention span. Most remarkably, each of
the five respondents (100%) explicitly expressed that a child’s academic knowledge was
not relevant to a child being “ready” for kindergarten.
The second semi-structured parent interview question asked participants to
describe how the WIU Early Intervention (EI) program could support the family before,
during, and after the legally required transition meeting that would take place for their
child in February 2023. Four out of the five respondents (80%) referenced how they
would appreciate the WIU EI program preparing the families about what to expect during
the February transition meeting, and one respondent (20%) indicated that she would like
for the WIU EI program to give her an “honest appraisal” of her child’s skills in advance
of the February meeting.
Three out of five respondents (60%) indicated that they would be best supported
during the February transition meeting by the WIU EI program by being given time to
ask questions and contribute to a collaborative and holistic information-sharing
discussion about their child. Two respondents (40%) referenced being introduced to
everyone at the meeting and having their roles explained as a way that the WIU EI
program could be supportive. Two respondents (40%) referenced having the child’s
preschool teacher present at the meeting, and one respondent (20%) indicated that having
the child’s potential kindergarten teacher at the February transition meeting would be
supportive measures.
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In terms of supportive measures that the WIU EI program could take to support
the family after the February transition meeting, one respondent (20%) referenced having
the WIU EI program invite the school district personnel to an IEP meeting for the child.
Two respondents (40%) referenced finding out who their child’s kindergarten teacher
would be before school started, and two respondents (40%) referenced being given a tour
of the elementary school. One respondent (20%) was not sure what supports would be
helpful after the February transition meeting and stated, “My child is very anxious. Any
way that that could be supported would be great.”
The next set of questions on the semi-structured parent interview pertained to the
ways in which the child’s school district could support the parent during and after the
February transition meeting. Four of the respondents (80%) referenced having
representatives from the school district clearly “laying out” the transition process and
explaining what to expect. One of those four respondents actually described that having a
“visual map of what the process is going to be” would be incredibly helpful to her. Two
of the respondents (40%) indicated that the school district could be supportive by
answering parents’ questions and by fostering a collaborative discussion about their child
and the child’s needs.
In terms of the ways in which the school district could be supportive of the parent
in the months following the February transition meeting, three of the five respondents
(60%) indicated that touring the school or kindergarten classroom as well as meeting the
teacher before the start of school would be supportive measures for the school district to
provide. One respondent (20%) indicated that receiving a follow-up call from the school
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96
district after the February transition meeting to keep the parent informed about “where
things stand with my child’s evaluation.”
Parents were then asked, “What is your greatest concern when you think about
your child going to kindergarten and why?” Responses to this question were varied. Two
respondents (40%) referenced their child’s ability to communicate with others as being
their greatest concern: “If she can communicate with the people around her and the other
kids is a concern of mine because she is nonverbal, and she uses a device.” Another
respondent (20%) referenced her child’s happiness and ability to make continued
progress as her greatest concern: “Her enjoying school and her liking where she goes to
school, and of course making progress.” Another parent shared that having her child “get
the services he needs” as being her greatest concern when she thinks about her child
going to kindergarten. The final respondent (20%) cited her child’s behavior and his
tendency toward aggression to be her greatest concern: “Behavior. His aggression and
how the teachers are going to manage him. The way you interact with him will either
make him or break him.”
When asked if they would send their child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, each
of the five respondents (100%) answered in the affirmative. When asked “why” they
intended to send their child to kindergarten (as opposed to electing for the child to remain
in early intervention for an additional year), the responses were varied. Two of the
respondents (40%) referenced the risk of their child being “bored” if they did not go to
kindergarten “on time.” One parent explained that “the risk of him being bored would be
worse than him struggling a little bit.” Two other respondents (40%) indicated age to be a
factor in sending their child to kindergarten with same-age peers. One respondent (20%)
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97
indicated that she wanted her child to “perhaps be around kids that are more verbal” and
also that she had seen her child “evolve” and “make progress” since being in early
intervention. That same respondent further shared, “I just know she’s ready.”
One of the last questions on the semi-structured parent interview asked, “What is
your greatest priority when you think about your child transitioning out of early
intervention and into kindergarten?” All five respondents (100%) provided answers that
pertained to the overall well-being of the child. Reported priorities of parents included
seeing the child socialize and make friends, making sure the child will like the new
school, making sure the child is “happy,” and watching the child being “emotionally
ready” to be part of a bigger building. One parent even explained that “I’m not worried
about the academic side as long as he is engaged, making friends, and develops social
relationships.” Parent rejection of academics as being important to them during the
kindergarten transition process through either the exclusion of it from their answer to this
question on the semi-structured interview or the explicit verbal rejection of it aligned
with the data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey Question 7. On Question 7, when
parents were asked to share how concerned they were about “Academics,” the median
response to the survey question represented was 3, which represented a response value of
“Some concerns.” This resulting concern level paled in comparison to the concern
parents reported in other areas (e.g., communicating effectively, getting used to a new
school, and riding a school bus).
Quantitative and qualitative data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey as
well as the qualitative data collected during the semi-structured parent interview, revealed
that the priorities of parents of preschool children with complex special needs during the
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98
transition to kindergarten process include areas of potential concern and ideas about the
importance of specific support measures that could be provided by the early intervention
program or the school district. Parents in this study reported the highest level of concern
in the following areas as these areas pertain to their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten on the FEIT-Modified survey: the preschool-age
child’s ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten, the child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their
needs in the kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. Aside
from being one of the five areas of greatest concern for parents on the parent survey, the
child’s ability to communicate needs was also reflected in the answers of two of the
respondents (40%) during the semi-structured parent interview, making it a highly
concerning area for parents of children with complex special needs as they prepare to
have their child transition into kindergarten. Concerns about their child’s ability to
communicate with others was the reason given by 3 out of the 4 respondents (75%) when
asked why they were “Not likely” to send their child to kindergarten “on time” and with
their same age peers in the fall of 2023.
Potential supportive measures that could be provided by the early intervention
program or school districts were another area of inquiry explored to find out more about
what is important to parents during this time of transition for their child. Out of twelve
items presented to parents on the FEIT-Modified survey, nine of them received the
highest overall rating of importance from parents: attending the transition to kindergarten
planning meeting in February, having the child’s early intervention teacher in attendance
at the meeting, having the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
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99
meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s
school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence from the
child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with other
incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team to
conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register the
child for kindergarten. Nearly 93% of respondents on the FEIT-Modified survey rated
attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s
classroom before kindergarten starts to be either “Very important” or “Extremely
important.”
During the semi-structured interview, parents were questioned about the ways in
which the early intervention program and the school district could support them through
their child’s transition to kindergarten experience. Supports mentioned during the
interview that were also revealed in the survey data included: having the child’s early
intervention teacher and potential kindergarten teacher attend the transition meeting in
February and visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom before the start of school. It is
noteworthy that visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom before the start of school was
mentioned prominently in the survey data as well as in the semi-structured interview. It
was one of two areas of support in which nearly 93% of respondents rated it as either
“Very important” or “Extremely important,” making it one of the most important
supports to parents of children with complex special needs as their child transitions from
preschool early intervention to kindergarten.
Parent participants in this study were asked questions about what it meant for a
child to be “ready” for kindergarten to gain additional insight into parents’ perceptions
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100
surrounding the transition to school-age programming. Qualitative data obtained from the
administration of one open-ended, short-answer question on the FEIT-Modified survey
revealed the answer to that question. Child functioning and performance across the
following areas were listed as being present when a child is “ready” to go to
kindergarten: following directions, socializing appropriately, being able to communicate
needs, attention span, toilet training, academics, and emotional regulation. It is interesting
to note that when the five respondents to the semi-structured parent interview were asked
that question, child functioning in the areas of communication skills, attention span,
socialization skills, and emotional regulation were mentioned. Academics was rejected by
all parent interview participants as an area to be considered to determine if a child is
“ready” for kindergarten.
Triangulation of the data for this study and to answer research question one
included analysis and consideration of data from a variety of sources. The results
obtained were compared using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results revealed
through the analysis of survey and interview data of this mixed methods research design
are considered highly valid since they were derived from multiple data sources, which
adds to the overall strength of the study.
Research Question Two: What do preschool early intervention and school district
special education leaders consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of
children with complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The results for research question two were collected via a survey of special
education leaders and interview questions that intended to capture information about
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101
what special educators perceive the priorities of parents to be during their child’s
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
SELTS-K Results
The output results of these survey questions show the total survey responses
between all special education leaders who responded and were used to establish a
median, mode, or no mode. The first section of questions on the Special Education
Leader Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K) asked a series of demographic
questions to better understand the background of leaders who were being surveyed. Of
the 12 education leaders who responded to the SELTS-K, 25% had 1-4 years of
experience as a special education leader, 33.33% had 5-9 years of experience, 25% had
10-14 years of experience, and 16.67% of special education leaders had 15-19 years of
experience. Of those special education leaders who responded to the survey, job titles
included seven Special Education Directors, two Student Services Directors, one Early
Intervention Supervisor, one Early Intervention Service Coordinator, and one Assistant to
the Superintendent of Student Services.
Special education leaders were next asked to respond to a set of questions on the
survey asking to describe what they perceive the parent of a special education child’s
level of concern is in different areas as their child transitions to kindergarten. The
question design gave those surveyed four options and required a “pick one” option. The
four options used to describe the level of concern were “No concern,” “A few concerns,”
“Some concerns,” and “Many concerns.” Special education leaders were asked to answer
questions about eleven different areas in which parents may have some level of concern
during the transition to kindergarten process. These eleven areas corresponded to the
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102
potential areas of concern represented in the FEIT-Modified survey. Figure 11 shows a
data table illustrating the eleven areas in which special education leaders were asked to
rate their perceived level of parent concerns and shows the educator responses, in counts,
based on their selection when completing the survey.
Figure 11
Special education leader (SEL) perceptions of parent concerns, numeric breakdown
Areas of
Concern
Academics (e.g.,
knowing the
alphabet)
Behavior (e.g.,
tantrums)
Following
directions
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the
teacher
Getting used to
a new school
Child being
ready for
kindergarten
Separating from
the family
Toilet training
Ability to
communicate
needs
Riding a school
bus
No Concerns
Level of Concern
A few concerns Some concerns
Many concerns
0
6
5
2
0
1
2
9
0
4
7
1
0
4
6
2
2
7
3
0
0
0
7
5
0
2
4
6
1
6
4
1
1
3
4
4
0
1
5
6
0
2
5
5
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103
Figure 12 illustrates the same data as Figure 11 and is represented as five side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
in the first five areas of concern.
Figure 12
SEL perceptions of parent concerns, areas 1-5
Count
PA R E N T L E V E L O F C O N C E R N I N D I F F E R E N T A R E A S A S
P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
No concerns
A few concerns
Academics
Behavior
Some concerns
Many concerns
10
8
6
4
2
0
Following
directions
Getting along Getting along
with other with the teacher
children
Areas of Concern
Figure 13 illustrates the same data as Figure 11 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
about the final six areas of concern.
Figure 13
SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 6-11
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PA R E N T L E V E L O F C O N C E R N I N D I F F E R E N T A R E A S A S
P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Count
No concerns
A few concerns
Some concerns
Many concerns
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Getting used Child being
to a new
ready for
school
kindergarten
Separating
from family
Toilet training
Ability to Riding a school
communicate
bus
needs
Areas of Concern
In order to perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 11, 12, and 13, a
numerical value was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the
response “No concern” and 4 being given to the response “Many concerns.” The data in
row 1 of Figure 11 shows how special education leaders perceive parent level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s academic abilities as they prepare to transition to
kindergarten. There were no special educators who described the parent level of concern
to be “No concerns” for their child’s academic abilities, and 50% described the parent
level of concern as “A few concerns” for this area. Results further indicated that 41.67%
responded with “Some concerns,” and 8.33% perceived that parents had “Many
concerns” about their child’s academic abilities in the transition to kindergarten. The data
in row 1 of Figure 11 is also pictured as the first distribution in Figure 12. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is slightly skewed to the right with a
center of 2, given by the mode, which represents a response of “A few concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
105
median response to the survey question represented was 2.5, which represents a response
value somewhere between “A few concerns” and “Some concerns.”
The data in row 2 of Figure 11 shows how special education leaders perceive
parent level of concern about their preschool-age child’s behavior as they prepare to
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 8.33% of special educators described the
parent level of concern to be either “No concerns” or “A few concerns,” 16.67%
responded with “Some concerns,” while 75% perceived that parents had “Many
concerns” about their child’s behavior in the transition to kindergarten. The data in row 2
of Figure 11 is also pictured as the second distribution in Figure 12. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is skewed to the left with a center of
4, given by the mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 0.25 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median
response to the survey question represented was 4, which represents a response value of
“Many concerns” and is the same as the value for the mode.
The information presented in row 3 of Figure 11 pertains to how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's
ability to follow directions during the transition to kindergarten. Notably, no special
educators reported “No concerns” from parents. Instead, 91.67% indicated that parents
would have “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to follow
directions in this transition. Additionally, 8.33% of special education leaders believed
that parents would have “Many concerns.” The data in row 3 of Figure 11 is also depicted
as the third distribution in Figure 12. Upon analysis, it was determined that the
distribution of responses exhibits asymmetry, with a central value of 3 representing the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
106
mode, indicating “Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as
denoted by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was
3, which aligns with the mode value and represents a response of “Some concerns.”
The information provided in row 4 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of
special education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents concerning their
preschool-age child's ability to get along with other children during the transition to
kindergarten. It is noteworthy that no special educators reported “No concerns” from
parents in this regard. Instead, 83.33% indicated that parents would have “A few
concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to socialize with other children
during the transition. Additionally, 16.67% of special education leaders believed that
parents would have “Many concerns.” The data in row 4 of Figure 11 is also represented
as the fourth distribution in Figure 12. Upon analysis, it was determined that the
distribution of responses exhibits relatively symmetrical characteristics, with a central
value of 3 representing the mode, signifying “Some concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3, which aligns with the mode value and
represents a response of “Some concerns.”
The data presented in row 5 of Figure 11 depicts the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents regarding their preschoolage child's ability to establish a positive relationship with the teacher during the transition
to kindergarten. Results indicated that 16.67% of special educators reported “No
concerns” from parents in this aspect, and 83.33% indicated that parents would have “A
few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to get along with the
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107
teacher. No special education leaders expressed the belief that parents would have “Many
concerns.” The data in row 5 of Figure 11 is also represented as the final distribution in
Figure 12. Data analysis revealed that the distribution of responses exhibits a relatively
symmetrical pattern, with a central value of 2 representing the mode, indicating “A few
concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 0.25 categorical units, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 2, aligning
with the mode value and representing a response of “A few concerns.”
The data presented in row 6 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents about their preschool-age
child's ability to adapt to a new school environment. Notably, no special educators
reported “No concerns” or “A few concerns” from parents in this regard. However, all
respondents, totaling 100%, indicated that parents would have “Some concerns” or
“Many concerns” about their child's ability to adjust to a new school. The data in row 6
of Figure 11 is also represented as the first distribution in Figure 13. Analysis of the data
revealed that the distribution of responses demonstrates a slight right skew, with a central
value of 3 representing the mode, indicating “Some concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as determined by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3, aligning with the mode value and
representing a response of “Some concerns.”
The data presented in row 7 of Figure 11 depicts how special education leaders
perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's overall
readiness for kindergarten. Notably, there were no special educators who reported 'No
concerns' from parents in this aspect. Approximately 50% of respondents indicated that
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108
parents would have “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's overall
readiness for kindergarten. The remaining 50% of special education leaders perceived a
higher level of concern, categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in row 7 of Figure
11 is also represented as the second distribution in Figure 13. Upon analysis, it was
determined that the distribution of responses skews to the left, with a central value of 4
representing the mode, which corresponds to “Many concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3.5, which falls between “Some concerns”
and “Many concerns” and slightly below the value associated with the mode.
The data shown in row 8 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents about their preschool-age
child separating from the family. Among the special education leaders, 8.33% reported
“No concerns” in this area, and 83.33% of respondents indicated that parents would have
“A few concerns” or “Some concerns”' about their child's separation from the family. The
remaining 8.33% of special education leaders perceived a higher level of concern,
categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in row 8 of Figure 11 is also depicted as the
third distribution in Figure 13. Analysis of the data revealed a slight right skew in the
distribution of responses, with a central value of 2 representing the mode, which
corresponds to “A few concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as
indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
was 2, reflecting a response value of “A few concerns,” which aligns with the value for
the mode.
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The data presented in row 9 of Figure 11 provides insights into how special
education leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschoolage child's toilet training abilities. Among the special education leaders surveyed, 8.33%
indicated that parents would have “No concerns” in this area. Approximately 58.33% of
respondents believed that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns”
about their child's toilet training abilities. The remaining 33.33% of special education
leaders perceived a higher level of concern, labeling it as “Many concerns.” The data in
row 9 of Figure 11 is also represented as the fourth distribution in Figure 13. Upon
analysis, it was observed that the distribution of responses is bimodal and skewed to the
left, with a central value of 3 indicated by the median, which represents a response of
“Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, as determined by
the interquartile range (IQR). The survey question responses exhibited two modes, both
at 3 and 4, representing values of “Some concerns” and “Many concerns,” respectively.
The data presented in row 10 of Figure 11 sheds light on how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's
ability to communicate their needs. None of the special education leaders surveyed
indicated that parents would have “No concerns” in this regard. Approximately 50% of
respondents believed that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns”
about their child's ability to communicate their needs. The remaining 50% of special
education leaders perceived a higher level of concern, labeling it as “Many concerns.”
The data in row 10 of Figure 11 is also represented as the fifth distribution in Figure 13.
Upon analysis, it was observed that the distribution of responses is skewed to the left,
with a central value of 4 indicated by the mode, which represents a response of “Many
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
110
concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as determined by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was
3.5, representing a response value between “Some concerns” and “Many concerns” and
slightly below the value for the mode.
The data presented in the last row of Figure 11 illustrates how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child
riding a school bus. None of the special education leaders surveyed reported that parents
would have “No concerns” in this regard. Approximately 58.33% of respondents
indicated that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their
child riding a school bus. The remaining 41.66% of special education leaders perceived a
higher level of concern, categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in the final row of
Figure 11 is also depicted as the last distribution in Figure 13. Through analysis, it was
determined that the distribution of responses is bimodal and skewed to the left, with a
central value of 3 indicated by the median, representing a response of “Some concerns.”
The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as measured by the interquartile range
(IQR). Notably, the survey question yielded two modes with response values of 3 and 4,
corresponding to “Some concerns” and “Many concerns,” respectively.
Additional analysis of this section of questions on the SELTS-K revealed three
categories with a distribution of responses centered at 4, which represents the highest
categorical level of concern. The three areas of concern are the child’s behavior, the
child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, and the child’s ability to communicate their
needs in the kindergarten setting. Results indicated that 91.67% of special education
leaders reported that they perceived parents would have either “Some concern” or “Many
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
111
concerns” about their child’s behavior during the transition to kindergarten. Additionally,
91.67% of special education leaders perceived parent level of concern about their child’s
ability to communicate their needs as either “Some concern” or “Many concerns.” Thus,
behavior and ability to communicate needs were the two areas over which special
education leaders perceived parents would have the highest level of concern. The third
area of concern that special education leaders felt parents would be highly concerned
about was the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten. Results indicated that
83.33% of special education leaders felt that parents would have either “Some concerns”
or “Many concerns” about their child’s level of preparedness for kindergarten.
For research question one, parents responded to the FEIT-Modified survey that
revealed five areas of the highest level of concern: the preschool-age child’s ability to get
used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the child’s toilet
training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten
setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. Of the three areas that special
education leaders felt were the highest area of concern for parents, two of the areas
corresponded to the actual highest level of concern ratings from parents. The two areas in
which special education leaders felt parents would have a high level of concern, and
according to the responses from parents in the FEIT-Modified survey, did, in fact, have a
high level of concern were the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten and the
child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting.
The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified survey, and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the level of concern that parents had or were
perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about their child’s overall
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
112
preparedness for kindergarten. The null hypothesis was established to test whether there
was a difference between how special education leaders and parents perceived their level
of concern about the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten. After performing the
test, the data was found to have a U-value of 151, which allows for the use of the z-score.
The z-score is -0.3195, and the p-value was reported as .74896. At the 5% significance
level, the result is not significant, and we fail to reject the null hypothesis. There is no
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the parent level of concern about their child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten.
Following this result, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEITModified survey and SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the level of concern that
parents had or were perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about
their child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting. The null
hypothesis was established to test whether there was a difference between how special
education leaders and parents perceived their level of concern about the child’s ability to
communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting. After performing the test, the data
was found to have a U-value of 147.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The zscore is -0.42601, and the p-value was reported as .6672. At the 5% significance level,
the result is not significant, and we fail to reject the null hypothesis. There is no
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the parent level of concern about their child’s ability to communicate
their needs.
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113
Finally, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified and the
SELTS-K survey results about the overall rating of the level of concern that parents had
or were perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about their child’s
overall behavior. It was found in previous analysis that special education leaders
perceived this to be one of the highest areas of concern for parents, whereas this was not
found in the FEIT-Modified survey results. The null hypothesis was established to test
whether there was a difference between how special education leaders and parents
perceived their level of concern about the child’s overall behavior. After performing the
test, the data was found to have a U-value of 53, which allows for the use of the z-score.
The z-score is -3.30155, and the p-value was reported as .00096. At the 5% significance
level, the result is significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing
evidence that there is a difference between parents’ reported level of concern and the
degree to which special education leaders perceive the parent level of concern about their
child’s overall behavior.
In section 2 of the SELTS-K, special education leaders were then asked to
respond to a set of questions asking to give their perception of a parent’s rating on the
importance of a series of priorities and supports in place during the transition to
kindergarten process. The question design gave those surveyed five options and required
a “pick one” option. The five options used to describe the level of concern were
numbered 1-5, where 1 represented a response of “Not important,” 2 represented a
response of “Slightly important,” 3 of “Neutral,” 4 of “Very important,” and 5
represented a response of “Extremely important.” Special education leaders were asked to
answer questions about twelve different supports which parents may experience during
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
114
the transition to kindergarten process. Figure 14 shows a data table illustrating the twelve
areas in which special education leaders were asked to give their perception of parent
ratings of support importance.
Figure 14
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, numeric breakdown
Supports
Early intervention
program hosts a
meeting about what to
expect
Receive monthly contact
from your child's early
intervention teacher
Parents to attend the
transition to
kindergarten planning
meeting
Early intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Potential kindergarten
teacher to attend the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Visit child’s kindergarten
classroom before
kindergarten starts
Member of child's
school district transition
team to observe child
Receive correspondence
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Receive a home visit
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Not
important
Rating of Importance
Slightly
Neutral
important
Very
important
Extremely
important
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Attend kindergarten
orientation activities
with other incoming
kindergarten students
School district transition
planning team to
conduct a full evaluation
of child
Receive information
about how to register
your child for
kindergarten
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
115
Figure 15 illustrates the same data as Figure 14 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
for the first six areas of support.
Figure 15
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, supports 1-6
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
T R A N S I T I O N P L A N N I N G A S P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L
E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Counts
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Early intervention Receive monthly Parents to attend Early intervention
Potential
program hosts a contact from your the transition to teacher to be in
kindergarten
meeting about
child's early
kindergarten
attendance at the teacher to attend
what to expect
intervention
planning meeting
transition to
the transition to
teacher
kindergarten
kindergarten
meeting
meeting
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
Visit your child’s
kindergarten
classroom and/or
elementary school
before
kindergarten starts
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
116
Figure 16 illustrates the same data as Figure 14 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
for the final six areas of support.
Figure 16
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, supports 7-12
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
T R A N S I T I O N P L A N N I N G A S P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L
E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
12
Counts
10
8
6
4
2
0
Member of child's
Receive
school district
correspondence
transition team to from your child's
observe child
kindergarten
teacher
Receive a home
visit from your
child's
kindergarten
teacher
Attend
School district
Receive
kindergarten transition planning information about
orientation
team to conduct a how to register
activities with
full evaluation of
your child for
other incoming
child
kindergarten
kindergarten
students
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
To perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 14, 15, and 16, a numerical
value was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the response
“Not important” and 5 being given to the response “Extremely important.” It is
significant and worth noting that of the 12 priorities and supports that special education
leaders were asked to give their perception of a parent’s rating on the importance of each
support, each distribution of responses was exactly the same. Each of the 12 distributions
was unimodal. Of the 12 survey respondents, 11 special education leaders rated each
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
117
support a ‘5’ which corresponds to an “Extremely important” rating. Just one respondent
had different responses to each survey question in this section, and that individual
responded with a rating of ‘2’ or “Slightly important” for all twelve supports. Responses
from this respondent were a possible outlier, and a larger sample size would have helped
to identify this as such. Each of the 12 distributions was unimodal with a center of 5,
given by the mode and representing a response of “Extremely important.” The spread of
each of the 12 distributions is 0 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR).
The median response to each of the 12 survey questions was 5, which represents a
response value of “Extremely important” and is the same as the mode value for each
question.
In analyzing research question one and responses to the FEIT-Modified survey, it
was found that there were nine parent response distributions centered at 5, representing
the highest rating of importance. These nine areas of support are: attending the transition
to kindergarten planning meeting, having an early intervention teacher in attendance at
the meeting, having the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s
school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence from the
child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with other
incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team to
conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register the
child for kindergarten. Upon analysis of the responses to the SELTS-K and in order to
answer research question two, it was found that all 12 special education leader response
distributions were centered at 5, representing the highest rating of importance. These
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
118
twelve areas of support include the nine areas of support that parents found to be most
important, as well as three additional areas. The additional areas of support are the early
intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on these three areas to
determine if there was a statistical difference in how parents perceived their level of
importance and how special education leaders perceived parent ratings of support
importance.
The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified survey and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance parents felt or were perceived
to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about having the early intervention
program host a meeting about what to expect as the child nears the entry to kindergarten.
The null hypothesis was established to test whether there was a difference between how
special education leaders and parents perceived their rating of the importance of having
the early intervention program host the meeting. After performing the test, the data was
found to have a U-value of 96.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The z-score is 1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the 5% significance level, the result is
significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing evidence that there is a
difference between how parents and special education leaders perceived the rating of the
importance of having the early intervention program host a meeting.
Following this result, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEITModified survey and the SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance
parents felt or were perceived to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
119
receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher. The null hypothesis
was established to test whether there was a difference between how special education
leaders and parents perceived their rating of importance for receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher. After performing the test, the data was found
to have a U-value of 90.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The z-score is 1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the 5% significance level, the result is
significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing evidence that there is a
difference between how parents and special education leaders perceived the rating of the
importance of receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher.
Finally, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance parents felt or were perceived
to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about receiving a home visit from the
child’s kindergarten teacher. The null hypothesis was established to test whether there
was a difference between how special education leaders and parents perceived their rating
of the importance of receiving a home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher. After
performing the test, the data was found to have a U-value of 38.5, which allows for the
use of the z-score. The z-score is -1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the
5% significance level, the result is significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the rating of the importance of receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher.
Of the twelve areas of support, special education leaders correctly perceived the
level of importance that parents felt towards nine support areas. These nine areas
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
120
included: attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting, the early intervention
teacher being in attendance at the meeting, potential kindergarten teacher being in
attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member
of the child’s school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence
from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with
other incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team
to conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register
the child for kindergarten. Upon analysis, it was determined that in the remaining three
areas of support, special education leaders may have misunderstood the perceptions of
parents. These three areas of support included the early intervention program hosting a
meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact from the child’s early
intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher.
There was one open-ended question included on the SELTS-K, which provided
the researcher an opportunity to collect qualitative data from special education leaders
respective to the question, “Describe what you think people mean when they say that a
child is ‘ready’ for kindergarten.” Figure 17 represents the special education leader
responses to this item. Of the 12 respondents, parents who completed the SELTS-K, nine
respondents (75%) cited academics, six respondents (50%) referenced toilet training, five
respondents (42%) referenced following directions, three respondents (25%) referenced a
child’s communication skills, three respondents (25%) referenced emotional regulation,
one respondent (17%) referenced attention span, and one respondent (17%) referenced
getting along socially with others.
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121
Figure 17
SEL perspectives on kindergarten readiness
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION LEADER RESPONSES
Figure 18 represents a comparison of parent and special education leader
responses to what it means for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten. Notable differences
were observed most prominently in the areas of academics, toilet training, and following
directions.
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122
Figure 18
A comparison of responses about kindergarten readiness in children
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF RESPONDENTS
Parent
Special Education Leader
Semi-structured Special Education Leader Interview Data
There were two questions on the special education leader semi-structured
interview that questioned respondents about what they considered to be the most
concerning to parents and also the most important to parents of children with special
needs through the transition out of early intervention and into school-age programming.
Of the 12 respondents to the SELTS-K, six special education leaders consented to be
interviewed by the researcher. Four of the 6 respondents (67%) mentioned that parents
are most concerned about their child’s safety, and 2 respondents (33%) reported that a
child’s communication skills are the most concerning area for parents. One respondent
(17%) reported that she believed parents to be most concerned about their child riding the
school bus, and another respondent (17%) reported that she believed parents to be most
concerned about toilet training.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
123
In terms of what special education leaders perceive as most important to parents
of incoming kindergarten students from early intervention with special needs, two
respondents (33%) reported having their child be socially accepted, “included and not
forgotten.” Two respondents (33%) mentioned that making sure their child gets the
needed supports in kindergarten to be the most important thing to parents of preschoolers
with special needs during the kindergarten transition process. One respondent (17%)
reported that knowing who the child’s kindergarten teacher will be is of the highest
importance to parents.
Quantitative and qualitative data collected from the SELTS-K as well as the
qualitative data collected during the semi-structured parent interview revealed what
special education leaders perceive to be the priorities of parents of preschool children
with complex special needs during the transition to kindergarten process. Inferential
statistical analysis was used to determine a statistically significant difference between
how special education leaders perceive the importance of certain supports to parents and
how parents actually report how important those supports would be to them during this
time of transition for their child. Those three areas of significant difference include the
early intervention program hosting a meeting to prepare parents for what to expect during
the transition meeting, receiving monthly contact from the preschool early intervention
teacher to answer questions about kindergarten transition, and receiving a home visit
from the child’s kindergarten teacher before school starts. Another area of discrepancy
between what special education leaders perceive and what parents report was found in the
question about what it means for a child to be “ready” to go to kindergarten. Notable
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
124
discrepancies were found in the areas of academics, toilet training, and following
directions.
Data triangulation occurred through the collection of data from multiple sources
during a finite period of time. Statistical analysis enabled the comparison of data sets to
determine if significant differences existed between them. Demographic data revealed
that the racial/ethnic representation in the sample of parent participants very closely
aligned with the most recent U.S. Census data for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania,
which adds another layer of validity to this study.
Research Question Three: How are the reported priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of
the WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
To better understand how the reported priorities of parents of preschool-age
children with complex special needs are reflected in the transition to kindergarten
practices of the WIU preschool EI program and the school districts in Westmoreland
County, one must first understand the lawful requirements of each educational entity as
they relate to a child’s move out of early intervention and into school-age programming.
One major legal responsibility of preschool early intervention programs and school
districts in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is to support the transition of preschoolage children with disabilities from early intervention services into school-age
programming. Act 212 of 1990, the Early Intervention Systems Act, establishes the legal
requirements involved with the provision of early intervention services to children in
Pennsylvania, including the services required to facilitate a smooth transition of the child
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
125
from preschool early intervention and into school-age programming. Planning for the
move into kindergarten must begin when the child is within one year of transition to a
school-age program. Within that time frame, preschool early intervention Individualized
Education Plan (IEP) teams are required to develop transition plans intended to support
the child and the family through the child’s move out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. Act 212 of 1990 further requires that preschool early intervention programs
in Pennsylvania convene transition meetings each February for children eligible to attend
preschool or first grade in the fall. During the transition meeting, the Preschool Early
Intervention program must review with the family and present an Intent to Register form,
which enables parents to indicate whether they intend to send the child to kindergarten in
the fall (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022b; Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2022c). In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of requesting that their child
with special needs remain in the Preschool Early Intervention program for one additional
year rather than transitioning into school-age programming. At the conclusion of the
additional year of preschool early intervention, the child must transition out of the early
intervention program.
Parental choice about whether the child will be enrolled in the school district or
charter school is recorded on the Intent form. Once the Intent form is received by the
child’s school district of residence and the parents indicate the intent to enroll the child in
kindergarten or first grade with the school district, school districts are then legally
required by Act 212 of 1990 to inform the family about the Notice of Options for the
child’s transition out of early intervention and into school-age programming
(Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022d). Such options include the agreement
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126
between the parents and school district to adopt and implement the preschool early
intervention IEP in its entirety or with revisions upon the child’s entry into kindergarten
or agreement between the parents and the school district or charter school to conduct a reevaluation of the child in preparation for the child’s transition into school-age
programming. Aside from these legal requirements for preschool early intervention and
school districts, the law does not offer guidance about how to conduct the kindergarten
transition process from a quality perspective to maximally support parent priorities and
the child’s needs.
Only one of the 12 supports (8%) presented to parents in the FEIT-Modified
survey (attending a transition to kindergarten meeting with representatives from the WIU
early intervention program and your child’s school district that will take place in
February 2023) happens with regularity due to the fact that holding the February
transition meeting is required by Act 212 of 1990 in Pennsylvania. In the fall of 2022,
representatives from the WIU EI program and from a few school districts participated in
a virtual meeting to explain to families what to expect during the February transition
meeting. That virtual kindergarten transition preparation meeting was attended by
approximately 30 families. In addition, when possible, the WIU EI program attempts,
when possible, to have the child’s early intervention teacher attend the February
transition meeting; however, the lack of substitute teacher coverage oftentimes prevents
the EI teacher from attending. Although some of the other supports may happen on
occasion throughout the transition to kindergarten process, they are not occurring in each
school district in Westmoreland County with sustained regularity. Results of this study
revealed that there is a vast difference between the priorities reported by parents in terms
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
127
of supports needed are only minimally evident with regularity across all school districts
and the early intervention program.
Discussion
The responses obtained through the administration of the FEIT-Modified survey
revealed that parents of preschool children with complex special needs have many
concerns when they think about their child transitioning out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. The five areas of reported highest concern for parents, listed in order from
most concerning to least, were: worry about their child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten, concerns about the child’s ability to communicate their needs, toilet
training, the child’s ability to get used to a new school, and the child’s ability to ride the
school bus. Parents reported the least amount of concern about their child’s ability to get
along with other children, their child’s ability to get along with the teacher, and their
child being separated from the family when the child made the transition from early
intervention to kindergarten.
Parents of children with special needs are most concerned about their child’s
overall preparedness for kindergarten. Data was collected via the FEIT-Modified survey
and during the semi-structured parent interview to find out what parents think it means
for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten. On the FEIT-Modified survey, parents
identified several child characteristics that should be observed for a child to be
considered “ready” for kindergarten. A majority of parents (67%) identified a child’s
ability to follow directions as being associated with a child’s readiness to attend
kindergarten. Thirty-three percent of parents identified a child’s ability to socialize
appropriately and to possess an adequate attention span for learning as being integral to a
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
128
child’s readiness for kindergarten. Twenty-five percent of parents identified a child’s
communication skills, 19% of parents referenced toilet training, and 15% of parents listed
emotional regulation as well as academics as being integral to a child being “ready” to go
to kindergarten. Some of these same child characteristics were mentioned during the
semi-structured parent interviews. Two out of five parent interview participants (40%)
identified a child’s communication skills, social skills, emotional regulation, and
attention span. Since these same child characteristics were reported on the FEITModified survey as well as during the parent interviews, one could interpret them as
being quite concerning to parents during the transition to kindergarten process. One
hundred percent of parents who were interviewed rejected academics as being integral to
a child’s kindergarten readiness. Rejection of academics as being associated with a
child’s kindergarten readiness was determined by the researcher based on its exclusion
from the answers of four respondents and the explicit verbal rejection of it from one
respondent: “It’s not super important how many letters or numbers or colors they know.”
Parents of preschool children with special needs are exceptionally concerned
about their child’s ability to communicate with others when they think about their child’s
transition into kindergarten. When parents, who identified as ‘Not likely’ to send their
children to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, reported the reasoning for their decision on
the FEIT-Modified survey, three out of the four respondents (75%) only cited concerns
about their child’s difficulty with communication skills. Communication skills were not
only mentioned on the survey as well as during parent interviews, but it was also reported
as the main reason for parents not to send their children to kindergarten “on time” with
their same-age peers, making it an extremely high concern area for parents.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
129
The FEIT-Modified survey also collected data from parents about the types of
kindergarten transition supports and their perceived importance of each. Analysis of
parental responses revealed that there were nine supports that received the highest
possible ranking of importance from parents. Those nine areas were: attending the
transition to kindergarten planning meeting in February, having an early intervention
teacher in attendance at the meeting, having a potential kindergarten teacher in
attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member
of the child’s school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence
from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with
other incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team
to conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register
the child for kindergarten. Of these nine areas of support, more than 80 percent of parents
responded with “Very important” or “Extremely important” for eight of the support areas.
The ninth area, receiving information about how to register the child for kindergarten,
had 70.37% of responses as “Very important” or “Extremely important.” Most
significantly, two areas of support had 92.59% of responses in either the “Very
important” or the “Extremely important” category. These two areas of support were
attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s
classroom before kindergarten starts. Statistical analysis helped the researcher to
determine these two areas to be of the highest priority to parents as they consider their
child’s transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten.
Data collected during parent interviews revealed that parents would feel most
supported by the WIU EI program and the school district in the following ways:
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
130
preparing the families about what to expect during the February transition meeting, being
given time to ask questions and contribute to a collaborative and holistic information
sharing discussion about their child during the transition meeting, having the child’s
preschool teacher and the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
February transition meeting. Being permitted to tour the child’s elementary school and
visit the kindergarten classroom before school starts were reported as important supports
by parents during the interviews.
During the semi-structured parent interviews, parents were asked to comment on
what they considered to be their highest priority when they thought about their child’s
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten. All five respondents (100%)
provided answers that pertained to the overall well-being of the child. Reported priorities
of parents included seeing the child socialize and make friends, making sure the child
will like the new school, making sure the child is “happy,” and watching the child being
“emotionally ready” to be part of a bigger building. Once again, parents rejected
academics as being relevant during the kindergarten transition process, which aligned
with the parent data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey.
After data was collected from the SELTS-K, analyzed, and compared to the
results obtained from the FEIT-Modified survey, it was determined that special education
leaders’ perceptions of parent priorities and concerns are not always accurate. Significant
differences were determined to exist between special education leader perceptions of
parent importance rankings for the following transition to kindergarten supports: having
the WIU EI program hold a kindergarten transition preparation meeting in advance of the
February transition meeting, having monthly contact from the child’s early intervention
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
131
program to answer questions about the kindergarten transition process, and having a
home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher before school starts. In these three areas,
special education leaders reported that parents perceived these supports as being
somewhat or extremely important when in reality, parents do not place much importance
on these supports.
A comparison of special education leader and parent responses to potential
concern areas for parents revealed more alignment than what was observed for the
potential supports question. The three areas of concern that special education leaders
reported were of the highest concern for parents: the child’s behavior, the child’s overall
preparedness for kindergarten, and the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting. Of the three areas that special education leaders felt were the highest
area of concern for parents, only the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten and the
child’s ability to communicate needs in the kindergarten setting corresponded to the
actual highest level of concern ratings from parents. Statistical analysis revealed that a
significant difference exists between the importance that special educators reported that
parents place on their child’s behavior and actual parental concern about that variable.
A high degree of variance was noted on the topic of a child’s readiness for
kindergarten between parent and special education leader responses to the question,
“What does it mean for a child to be ready for kindergarten?” A child’s overall
preparedness for kindergarten was rated as a high concern area for parents by both the
parent and special education leader group. However, these groups differed noticeably,
especially in the areas of academics, following directions, and toilet training as being
relevant to a child’s readiness to attend kindergarten, as illustrated in Figure 15. A
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
132
majority of special education leaders (75%) referenced academics as being related to a
child’s readiness to attend kindergarten, whereas only 15% of parents surveyed felt the
same about academics. Half (50%) of special education leaders reported toilet training as
being part of the kindergarten readiness discussion, whereas only 19% of parent survey
respondents reported the same. Finally, only 42% of special education leaders mentioned
a child’s ability to follow directions as being related to a child’s readiness for
kindergarten, whereas 67% of parent respondents reported the same.
The phrase “ready for kindergarten” is often used when discussing whether a
parent will or will not send their child, with or without disabilities, to kindergarten “on
time” and with their same-age peers. For parents of children with disabilities, the
elements identified as relating to a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten varied from those
identified by special education leaders in some instances. It seems as though special
education leaders place more emphasis on academics and toilet training when they
describe what others are talking about when they refer to a child being “ready” for
kindergarten than parents of children with special needs.
There is only one requirement for a child to attend kindergarten in the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania, a child must meet their school
district’s “minimum entry age for kindergarten, which may not be less than a
chronological age of 4 years 7 months before the first day of the school term” in order to
be eligible to attend kindergarten (Public School Code, 1949d). Compulsory education
begins at age six in Pennsylvania, and although a child’s attendance in kindergarten is not
mandatory, there are no skill-based requirements for a child to attend. Quite interestingly,
no one from either survey participant group referenced a child’s age as being a relevant
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factor associated with a child’s readiness to attend kindergarten. It is possible that the age
requirement, as being the only factor necessary to be established before a child can attend
kindergarten, is still being overshadowed by child readiness-only models of kindergarten
transition and influenced by the academicization of kindergarten. Basing the
determination of “kindergarten readiness” for a child, with or without special needs, on
the presence or absence of a particular skill or skill set “places the burden of proof on the
child” (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1995). If we regard a
child’s transition into kindergarten as a process, as opposed to a single event in time, we
may wish to contemplate the adoption of a more dynamic approach to supporting parents
and their children, which includes consideration of the impact of family, peers, school,
teachers, neighborhood, and community on the child as well as the effects of the child on
the same in return. The impact of the interconnectedness of several factors on a child’s
development and learning competence is what may be the best predictor of success
during the child’s transition into kindergarten and beyond.
Summary
The desired outcome of this study was to gather, analyze, and summarize the data
collected from various sources to better understand the perceptions and priorities of
parents of preschool-age children with special needs throughout their child’s transition
from early intervention into school-age programming. The research design enabled the
investigator to study the phenomena within a framework of scientific inquiry that enabled
the establishment of valid results. The results obtained provide a deeper understanding of
the perspectives of parents and practitioners and will support the development of better
practices to support families and children.
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Chapter IV described the collection of quantitative and qualitative data from two
participant groups through the use of surveys and semi-structured. Descriptive and
inferential statistics were used to describe relationships among variables and to
triangulate the data to enhance the validity of findings. Chapter V will present the
conclusions of this study, derived from the results, along with limitations of the study and
recommendations for future research.
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CHAPTER V
Conclusions and Recommendations
Special education leaders in early intervention programs and in school districts
across Pennsylvania are required, by law, to support the transition of preschoolers with
disabilities out of early intervention services and into school-age programming. Though
Act 212 of 1990 in Pennsylvania outlines the legal requirements for early intervention
programs and school districts to follow from a compliance perspective, such laws do not
inform practitioners about how to support parents and children from a quality standpoint.
One goal in wanting to find out more about what parents are thinking and feeling during
this time of change for their child is to support the timely move out of children out of
early intervention and into kindergarten. Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development
and Early Learning (OCDEL) provides the following guidance:
While parents have the option of having their child remain in Early Intervention
when their child is eligible for kindergarten, it is incumbent on the IEP team to
fully inform the parents of the advantages of transitioning to school-age
programming with same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education,
2003).
The timely transition of preschoolers with special needs into school-age programming
supports the exposure of the child to, in most instances, a longer instructional day with
same-age peers while also avoiding a negative fiscal impact on the early intervention
program.
Chapter III outlined the mixed methods research design, which was used to set the
framework for the collection and analysis of data that ultimately answered three research
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questions in this study. Chapter IV provided a detailed explanation of the data analysis
methods used to analyze the data collected to arrive at a set of results. Twenty-seven
parents of children with complex special needs eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of
2023 completed a parent survey, and five parent participants agreed to be interviewed by
the researcher. Twelve special education leaders from the WIU EI program and several
school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, completed the special education
survey, and six agreed to be interviewed by the researcher. Data were collected during a
finite period of time during the 2022-2022 school year. Statistical analyses and the
collection of data from multiple sources through various question types supported the
triangulation of data, which bolstered the validity of the study. Chapter V will present a
discussion of the conclusions derived from the analyzed results, the limitations of the
study, and recommendations for future research.
Conclusions
Each research question will be examined individually in this chapter to explore
the findings that led to each conclusion related to the perceptions and priorities of
parents, the viewpoints of special education leaders as they relate to what parents think
are concerning and important, and the identification of those reported outcomes in the
transition to kindergarten practices of the early intervention program and school districts.
Research Question One: What are the priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The first research question aimed to determine what is most important to the
parents of children with complex education needs throughout their child’s transition out
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of the WIU EI program and into kindergarten at one of the 17 school districts in
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. This question was answered through the collection
of survey and interview data from the parent participant group. Likert scale survey
questions were divided into two sections: a section that asked parents to describe their
level of concern about 11 potential variables as well as a section that asked parents to
rank the importance of 12 potential supports for kindergarten transition. The concept of
what it means for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten was explored through the
inclusion of a short answer question on the parent survey as well as through a question
asked during the parent interview. The parent interview protocol also included questions
about what concerns parents have and about what is most important during this time of
change for their child with special needs.
Results of this study indicated that parents have many concerns about their child
transitioning out of preschool early intervention and into school-age programming, which
is consistent with previous research on the topic (Fontil et al., 2020; Haciibrahimoglu,
2022; Jewett et al., 1998; Larcombe et al., 2019). In this study, the five areas of highest
concern to parents of children with complex special needs when they consider their
child’s move out of early intervention and into kindergarten are: the preschool-age child’s
ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the
child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. More than 80% of
parents, who were surveyed, reported that they have either “Some concern” or “Many
concerns” about their child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, making this the
parent’s highest area of overall concern. The second highest area of overall parental
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concern regarding the preschool-age special education child’s transition to kindergarten
was concern about the child’s ability to communicate their needs, followed closely by
concerns about the child’s toilet training skills. When parents were interviewed, the
concern areas expressed by nearly half of the respondents included the child’s ability to
communicate. Other parents who were interviewed indicated they were most worried
about their child’s behavior as well as their child getting the necessary services to make
continued progress.
This concept of parent concern was explored through a question on the survey
that pertained to the reasoning behind a parent’s decision to hold their child back from
kindergarten and elect for the child to remain in early intervention for an additional year.
Of the four parent survey respondents who indicated they were “Not likely” to send their
child to kindergarten “on time” and with their same-age peers, three of them (75%) listed
concerns with their child’s communication skills as being the reason for their decision.
The report of concern about a child’s communication skills on the parent survey and
during the parent interviews as well as its emergence as a reason for not sending a child
to kindergarten “on time” and with same-age peers, clearly establishes it as one of the
highest priorities and considerations for parents of preschoolers with complex special
needs.
Data gathered pertaining to the importance of 12 potential kindergarten transition
supports gave deeper insight into the perspectives of parents of preschoolers with
complex special needs as these parents considered their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into school-age programming. Nearly all parents ranked attending the
transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s classroom before
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kindergarten starts as being either “very” or “extremely” important. The importance of
these two supports also emerged during the parent interviews. Over half of the
respondents (60%) indicated that touring the school or kindergarten classroom would be a
supportive measure for the school district to provide, positioning this variable as one of
the most important supports that parents of children with complex special needs could be
provided during their child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
One respondent to the parent survey referenced her child’s anxiety level as being an area
in which she would welcome support. It is highly plausible that facilitating a tour of the
elementary school or the kindergarten classroom for the parent and even the child in
advance of school starting would help to decrease the anxiety level for her child and
potentially others as well.
The importance of the February transition to kindergarten meeting to parents
cannot be overstated, as evidenced by the results of this study. Aside from being ranked
by nearly all respondents in the parent survey as being “very” or “extremely” important,
80% of parents interviewed mentioned the importance of being provided a clear overview
of the transition process by the school district as well as being supported by the WIU EI
program and the school district in contributing to a collaborative discussion about their
child during the transition meeting.
Besides the substance of information discussed and the establishment of a
collaborative climate at the February transition meetings, parents are also very interested
in who is invited to attend the February transition meeting for their child. Over 80% of
survey respondents ranked having the early intervention and the child’s potential
kindergarten teacher in attendance at the February transition meeting as being either
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“very” or “extremely” important, and some parents referenced the importance of having
the child’s preschool early intervention teacher and kindergarten teacher there as well.
Since the presence of these teachers was identified in both the survey and the interview
data, they should be considered highly important supports for parents during this time of
change for their children.
Though having a member of the child’s school district transition team observe the
child, receiving correspondence from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending
kindergarten orientation activities with other incoming kindergarten students, and having
the school district transition planning team conduct a full evaluation of the child were
ranked by over 80% of parent survey respondents as either “very” or “extremely”
important, they were not identified by parents during interviews conducted by the
researcher. Their importance as supports to families, however, should not be overlooked.
When given the chance to answer the question about their greatest priorities
during their child’s transition to kindergarten using an open-ended question format during
the semi-structured interview, parents overwhelmingly provided answers that pertained to
their child’s overall well-being and happiness. Interestingly, no parents reported
academics as being a priority for them as they considered their child’s transition out of
preschool early intervention and into school-age programming.
Research Question Two: What do preschool early intervention and school district
special education leaders consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of
children with complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
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The second research question aimed to determine the perceptions of special
education leaders from the early intervention program and school districts about the
concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special needs as their children
transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten. Survey and interview data
were collected and statistically analyzed to determine the existence of a statistical
significance in areas of concern and in areas of potential transitional supports.
Results indicated some overlap in reported concern areas for parents and those
identified by special education leaders as also being concerning to parents. Over 90% of
respondents to the special education leader survey perceived parents would have the
highest level of concern about their child’s ability to communicate, and over 80% of
respondents referenced a child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten as being highly
concerning to parents. These results coincided with those reported by parents on the
survey and interview instruments, which indicated a high degree of accuracy in the
understanding of parent concerns by special education leaders for these two areas.
The third area of concern considered by over 90% of respondents on the special
education survey to be highly concerning to parents of children with complex special
needs on the cusp of their child’s transition into kindergarten pertained to concern
regarding the child’s behavior, which was not identified on the parent survey as an area
of high concern. Statistical analysis determined the existence of a significant relationship
between the way in which special education leaders perceive the concern of parents about
their child’s behavior and the actual level of concern parents have about that variable.
In terms of special education leader understanding of the potential transitional
supports that parents find important, statistically significant results were obtained for a
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few of the areas listed on the survey. An explanation of the results in this area must begin
with reference to a significant and noteworthy outcome from the special education leader
survey. Of the 12 potential transitional supports that special education leaders were asked
to give their perception of a parent’s rating of importance, each distribution of responses
was exactly the same. Of the 12 special education leader survey respondents, 11 of them
rated each of the 12 supports a ‘5’ which corresponds to an “Extremely important” rating.
These twelve areas of support include the nine areas of support that parents found to be
most important, as well as three additional areas. The additional areas of support are the
early intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly
contact from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the
child’s kindergarten teacher. Inferential statistical analyses were performed on these three
areas to determine if there was a statistical and significant difference in how parents
reported the level of importance of each support and how special education leaders
perceived parent ratings of importance. There was convincing evidence that there is a
statistical and significant difference between how parents and special education leaders
perceived the rating of importance in all three of the following areas: the early
intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher.
The notion of a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten was also explored in this
study through survey and interview data collection of both participant groups. Parents
were asked, through a short answer survey question, to share their ideas on the following:
“In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be ‘ready’ for kindergarten.”
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Of the 27 parents who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, 18 respondents (67%) cited
a child’s ability to follow directions, nine respondents (33%) referenced the child’s
ability to interact socially with others, nine respondents (33%) referenced a child’s ability
to communicate effectively, five respondents (19%) referenced being toilet-trained, four
respondents (15%) referenced a child’s ability to appropriately regulate their emotions,
four respondents (15%) referenced a child’s academic as being integral to a child’s
kindergarten readiness. Interestingly, academics was rejected by all parent interview
participants as an area to be associated with a child being “ready” for kindergarten, which
stands in stark contrast to the answers provided by special education leader survey
participants.
When posed the question: “Describe what people mean when they say a child is
“ready” for kindergarten,” 75% of special education leaders cited academics, which is
highly discrepant from the 15% of parents who responded the same. In addition to the
area of academics, notable discrepancies between what parents and special education
leaders report about kindergarten readiness in children were also observed prominently in
the areas of toilet training and following directions. For toilet training, a higher
percentage of special education leaders associated the variable with kindergarten
readiness (50%) than parents (19%), whereas a higher percentage of parents (67%)
associated a child’s ability to follow directions as being related to a child’s readiness for
kindergarten as opposed to a lower percentage of special education leaders (42%). When
presented with a question that assumed the application of a child-centered model of
kindergarten transition, parents of children with complex special needs and special
education leaders appear to have differing perspectives about the conditions associated
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with a child’s readiness to go to kindergarten. Aside from one parent who listed their
child’s late summer birthday as being the reason for “not likely” sending the child to
kindergarten “on time” and with same-aged peers, which was actually in response to a
different question on the parent survey, no other participant from either group identified a
child’s age as being a factor related to a child’s “readiness” to go to kindergarten. In
Pennsylvania, a child’s ability to meet the age requirement set by the school district is the
only kindergarten “readiness” factor that needs to be met in order for a child to be eligible
to attend kindergarten (Public School Code, 1949d). Although the wording of the
questions pertaining to kindergarten “readiness” on the parent and the special education
leader surveys may have contributed to answers that placed the responsibility for a
successful kindergarten transition squarely on the shoulders of the child without any
regard for action or planning on the part of the school teams, it would be fairly reasonable
to conclude that elements inherent in the Child Effects Model of Transition, which was
described in Chapter II, are still prevalent in the minds and in the perceptions of parents
of children with special needs and special education leaders, who participated in this
study.
Research Question Three: How are the reported priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of
the WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
In this study, parents reported that attending the February transition to
kindergarten meeting to discuss their child in a collaborative atmosphere and to receive
information about the transition process from the school district is one of the two most
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important supports. The other support, rated by nearly 100% of parent survey
respondents, was touring the elementary school or the child’s kindergarten classroom in
advance of the start of school. The February transition meeting and an explanation of the
Notice of Options by the school district are two of the three legally required transitional
supports required by Act 212 of 1990 (Public School Code, 1949d; Pennsylvania
Department of Education, 2022d). In this regard, the WIU EI program, which is
responsible for coordinating the transition to kindergarten meeting, and all 17 school
districts in Westmoreland County are clearly reflecting the reported priorities of parents
of children with complex special needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process.
Fiscal Implications
While other potential transitional supports reported by parents as being “very” or
“extremely” important may be provided by the WIU EI program or school districts on an
occasional basis, they are not provided consistently in all instances. In some cases, the
reason for failure to implement might be based on a resource or fiscal restraint. For
example, over the past two years, the WIU EI program has made a strong effort to
include the child’s preschool early intervention teacher as a participant in the February
transition meeting. Priority for attendance at a February transition meeting is given for
the cases of children with the most complex and involved needs. However, staffing
challenges and the lack of substitute teachers have made the provision of this support for
all cases difficult to provide. Certainly, the advent of virtual meetings has alleviated this
burden somewhat by permitting the early intervention teacher to attend the February
transition meeting remotely, yet there are still scheduling and lingering staffing
challenges in implementing this support program-wide at this time. Attendance of the
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child’s potential kindergarten meeting at the February transition meeting presents similar
challenges for a school district. Without a substitute teacher to “cover” that teacher’s
class, it would be a challenge for that teacher to attend the February meeting. Even if a
substitute teacher could be secured, the added expense of such a support may create a
fiscal challenge for some districts. Even if special education leaders better understood
that more is needed to maximally support parents of children with special needs upon the
transition into kindergarten and out of early intervention, staffing, and fiscal challenges
may impose a barrier to their implementation. For the WIU EI program, it is fiscally
advantageous for children to transition to kindergarten “on time” and with same-age
peers. Any cost associated with securing additional staff to provide coverage during the
February transition meetings should be weighed against the unrealized subsidies for the
provision of special education supports and services to these children.
Recommendations
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do
better” (Angelou, 2023). It is likely the fervent hope of all researchers that the findings
revealed through scientific study and inquiry will serve to positively inform practice
within one’s field of study. This research project is no different in that regard, as potential
recommendations for future practice on this topic are discussed.
While some supports may be more challenging and costly to implement, there
may be others that are more feasible, especially in the short term. One strategy for the
consideration of changes to the transition to kindergarten process for either the WIU EI
program or school districts might be to examine the relationships that exist between
concerns and supports that were revealed through this study. Connecting reported areas
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of highest concern for parents and the supports that parents rated as most important could
be one immediate and highly effective way that schools could support parents of children
with complex needs through this time of change. For example, the variable “getting used
to a new school” was one of the five areas of highest reported concern by parents in this
study when they considered their child’s transition out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. Touring the elementary school and seeing the child’s kindergarten
classroom in advance of school starting was ranked by almost all of the parent survey
respondents as being “very” or “extremely” important. If school districts decided to offer
a tour of the school and of the child’s kindergarten room before school starts, the concern
could be alleviated, and the support provided. Before this study, it is possible that the
special education leaders in Westmoreland County working in both the WIU EI program
and in school districts may not have fully understood the deep importance of touring the
elementary school and seeing the child’s kindergarten classroom before school starts is
for parents of children with complex special needs. It is just one example of how the
insights gained from this study could shape the transition to kindergarten practices for the
benefit of children and their families.
On the topic of concerns, it is extremely important that special education leaders
understand how deeply concerned parents are concerned about their child’s ability to
communicate and their child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten as consideration is
given to future practices. It is vitally important that the WIU EI program continues to
support the communication needs of its students from the time of the child’s entry into
the program until the child’s transition to kindergarten. Already, the WIU EI program
places the establishment of a functional system of communication for each child with
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special needs as one of its highest priorities. Results of this study emphasize the need for
a continued commitment in this area from early interventionists, early childhood teachers,
parents, and early intervention leaders as well as the continued partnership with school
district special education leaders to share information about the child’s system of
communication to maximize support to parents in this area and to promote the success of
the child in kindergarten.
The deep concern expressed by parents about their child’s overall preparedness
for kindergarten in this study cannot be overlooked as current practices are examined, and
future ones are developed. A more comprehensive understanding of what it means for a
child to be “ready,” or prepared, for kindergarten was gained by asking parents what that
concept meant to them. Overwhelmingly, parents rejected academics as being important
to a child being “ready” for kindergarten on the survey as well as during the interviews,
which stood in stark contrast to the answers provided by special education leaders.
Similarly, while half of the special education leaders surveyed associated toilet training
with a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten, a minority of parents reported the same. It
should be noted, however, that toilet training was ranked as one of the top five concerns
by parents in the survey, which should not be overlooked. Even though it appears as
though parents are concerned about this variable as their child approaches the transition
to kindergarten, the parents in this study did not associate toilet training with contributing
to a child’s “readiness” to go to kindergarten. As special education leaders participate in
discussions with parents during the February transition meetings, they may wish to
consider the inclusion of information about how the child would be supported in this
regard and avoid any perception of conveying to parents that a child’s ability to use the
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restroom independently would prevent, or make undesirable, a child’s transition into
kindergarten.
Limitations
Although mixed methods research designs draw strength from the integration of
quantitative as well as qualitative data, there are limitations to any research study, and
this one is no different. In this study, a parent survey was sent to 167 parents of children
receiving two or more special education services from the WIU EI program; however,
only 27 parents completed it. This limited sample, which represented a 6% return rate,
was well below what was hoped for by the researcher. Of the 27 who completed the
survey, only five parents consented to and completed an interview with the researcher.
Although the participation rates for the special education leader survey and the interview
were more robust, the representation of leaders from all 17 school districts was not
reached. Small sample sizes in research studies can prevent the generalization of the
results to the larger population and can negatively impact the detection of statistical
differences between variables.
Another limitation of this study is found in the phrasing of some of the survey and
interview questions. Although the FEIT-Modified survey was based on an instrument
used in research by Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre and colleagues, the SELTS-K had been
developed by the researcher and used for the first time in this study. In addition, the
wording of the question pertaining to kindergarten readiness in children was worded
slightly differently on the parent survey than it was on the special education survey,
which could have skewed the results when the two sets of responses were compared. In
addition, the wording of the kindergarten readiness question on both surveys could have
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predisposed participants to provide answers reflective of the Child Effects Model of
Transition, which may or may not form the basis of ideas about kindergarten readiness
for children with complex special needs in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Recommendations for Future Research
The topic of study under investigation in this mixed methods research study
should be examined further with a larger sample to verify the validity of the results.
Beyond replication of the findings contained within this study, this inquiry has prompted
ideas about future study in this area. Perspectives about kindergarten readiness in
children were explored with parents of children with complex special needs and special
education leaders in this study. Although many child characteristics were identified by
both groups, parents in this study also identified areas of concern and categories of
important supports for the kindergarten transition process, which suggests
acknowledgment of the Indirect Effects Model for Transition, a more dynamic approach
to conceptualizing the process of kindergarten transition. Future study could include the
interaction of several components and the influence of each on the other. This study was
designed to collect data from two participant groups before the February kindergarten
transition meetings were held. Much information was gained about the supports that
parents conjectured would be important to them before any were actually provided.
Future studies could survey parents about the helpfulness of the list of supports provided
by the WIU EI program or the child’s school district. The transition of a child with
special needs “on time” and alongside same-age peers was another aspect of this study.
When students remain in the WIU EI program, a negative fiscal impact is borne by the
program. It may be of interest to conduct research with the parents of the children who
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remain in the WIU EI program beyond the year in which the child is eligible to attend
kindergarten to find out more about the perspectives and priorities of this group. By
design, these parents were excluded from participation in this study so that the results
obtained would represent the priorities and perspectives of parents of children with
complex special needs who were never before eligible to attend kindergarten.
Summary
Special education leaders from early intervention programs and school districts
are legally required to support the transition to kindergarten process for preschoolers with
disabilities. Families of children with special needs experience many educational
transitions, and children with special needs are at risk for experiencing challenges during
the transition from early intervention into school-age programming. In Pennsylvania,
parents can elect for their child with special needs to remain in early intervention for an
additional year, despite the child being age-eligible to attend kindergarten in their school
district. OCDEL encourages members of IEP teams to inform families of the benefits of
having children with special needs transition to kindergarten alongside same-age peers,
which includes equitable access to a longer instructional day in most cases and
membership in an educational environment with more opportunities for learning. Early
intervention programs do not receive subsidies for the provision of legally mandated
special education services for children of eligible kindergarten age; therefore, the timely
transition of children to kindergarten is fiscally important to programs. Parents of
children with special needs report a specific set of worries than parents of typically
developing children when the topic of kindergarten transition is studied. If special
education leaders better understood the specific concerns and priorities of parents and
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could design practices and procedures to maximally support families and children, the
critical transition from early intervention into kindergarten could be enhanced, and the
educational success of the child supported, potentially, for years to come.
Chapter I of this study provided an overview of why studying the priorities of
parents of children with special needs is integral to developing transition to kindergarten
practices that are highly supportive to parents and children. Chapter II presented a
comprehensive review of the literature related to the topic under investigation and
necessary to guide practice. Chapter III offered an overview of the study’s methodology,
which included a description of the participants, setting, research plan, research design,
data collection methods, and the fiscal implications of the project. Chapter IV included an
in-depth description of the data analysis process, including the results obtained from a
variety of data sources and the interpretation of the data as well as a summary of findings.
Chapter V presented the conclusions, a description of how the findings of this study can
be applied to practice, the limitations of this study, and suggestions for future research
into the topic of transition to kindergarten for preschoolers with complex special needs.
In summary, this research revealed significant and factual information about the
perceptions and priorities of parents of children with complex special needs throughout
the transition from early intervention programming into kindergarten. Rather than relying
on one’s own speculation about what might be important to the parents of preschool
children with complex special needs as they prepare for their child’s entry into schoolage programming, special education leaders can now be more assured of how parents
really feel about the process and use the results to potentially design new or to revise
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existing kindergarten transition practices that are specifically tailored to meet the
identified needs of parents during this very important transition in the life of their child.
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154
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APPENDIX A
Institutional Review Board
250 University Avenue
California, PA 15419
instreviewboard@calu.edu
Melissa Sovak, Ph.D.
Dear Denise,
Please consider this email as official notification that your proposal titled “The Priorities and
Perceptions of Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs Throughout the
Transition to Kindergarten Process” (Proposal #PW22-018) has been approved by the
Pennsylvania Western University Institutional Review Board as submitted.
The effective date of approval is 09/06/2022 and the expiration date is 09/05/2023. These dates
must appear on the consent form.
Please note that Federal Policy requires that you notify the IRB promptly regarding any of the
following:
(1) Any additions or changes in procedures you might wish for your study (additions or changes
must be approved by the IRB before they are implemented)
(2) Any events that affect the safety or well-being of subjects
(3) Any modifications of your study or other responses that are necessitated by any events
reported in (2).
(4) To continue your research beyond the approval expiration date of 09/05/2023, you must file
additional information to be considered for continuing review. Please contact
instreviewboard@calu.edu
Please notify the Board when data collection is complete.
Regards,
Melissa Sovak, PhD.
Chair, Institutional Review Board
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APPENDIX C
Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT (Modified) Survey
Dear Parent,
You know me as the administrator for your child’s early intervention program at the Westmoreland
Intermediate Unit. I am also a doctoral student at Pennsylvania Western University (formerly California
University of Pennsylvania) and am conducting a research study titled “The Priorities and Perceptions of
Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs Throughout the Transition to
Kindergarten Process.” Outcomes of this research will potentially assist special education leaders in
early intervention programs and in school districts in developing a more comprehensive understanding of
how to best support parents of children receiving early intervention services as the transition to
kindergarten process approaches and unfolds.
You are being contacted because your child is eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023. I am
interested in finding out more about your priorities and perceptions surrounding your child’s upcoming
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten, which will unfold as the 2022-2023 school year
progresses. Even if you are unsure about whether you will send your child to kindergarten next fall,
you are still welcome and eligible to participate in this survey.
Within this study, you will be asked to participate in a survey that is collected via Google Forms and will
take approximately 15 minutes to complete. You will be asked basic demographic questions along with
several multiple-choice, rank order, and Likert Scale questions in which you will rate answers along a scale
of 1 to 5 related to your priorities and perceptions of the transition to kindergarten process for your child.
If you are willing to share your perspective and insight, please follow the link below to answer the survey
questions. Your contribution is a critical part of the data collection. While you will not benefit directly from
participating in the study, information that is gathered may be of value to the Westmoreland Intermediate
Unit and to the school districts in our county. The risks associated with participating are minimal. There are
no physical or mental risks from participating in this study and every attempt will be made to protect your
privacy. While I may present the results of the research as a published study and potentially in journals or
periodicals, your name and other identifying information will remain confidential. The study will not cost
you anything to participate in and there will not be direct compensation for participating. You should feel
empowered to make an informed decision and are able to discuss and ask the researcher any questions you
may have.
Remember, consent to participate is voluntary. If you do not wish to participate, you are not obligated to
complete the survey and you are able to stop participating at any time without explanation or penalty.
If you have any questions about this research study, please contact Denise Lohr at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or 724-219-2312 or Pennsylvania Western University Professor, Dr. Keruskin at
keruskin@pennwest.edu. This research has been approved by the Pennsylvania Western University
Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires 09/05/2023. By clicking on
this link, you are indicating your agreement to participate and permit the use of data collected through the
survey: https://forms.gle/n4ch2M87qncy2XEH7
Sincerely,
Denise Lohr, M.A., CCC-SLP
Early Childhood Services Administrator
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit
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APPENDIX E
Parent Consent to Participate Form – Semi-Structured Interview
Dear Parent,
You indicated interest in participating in a virtual interview regarding the transition to kindergarten
process. Your participation in this study will help the researcher learn more about how parents of
preschool age children with complex special education needs perceive the transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten for their child as well as their priorities throughout the process.
If you agree to participate in this interview, you will be asked to join a virtual Zoom meeting with the
researcher. The researcher will ask you detailed questions about your priorities and perceptions
surrounding your child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
All interviews will be conducted in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office. Participants will be asked
permission to record the virtual interview to support the researcher’s ability to review collected
information at a later time and to ease the burden of transcribing answers “in the moment.”
Participants may decline recording of the interview or request that the recording end at any time
during the interview with the researcher. All recordings will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
Interviews are expected to last approximately 30-60 minutes each.
Your participation is voluntary. You may withdraw from the study at any time by notifying the
researcher. There will be no penalty if you choose not to participate. The researcher will not ask you
why you opted to withdraw. There are minimal risks to this study. You will not be asked questions of
a sensitive nature. The interview questions may make you feel uncomfortable as some people do not
like to volunteer information/feedback that could be perceived as negative or complaining. However,
participants are reminded that they are not required to answer any questions of which they choose.
Participants can also stop their participation at any time without question. Interview responses
collected will be kept confidential, which means only the researcher will see or have access to the
data. Your responses are anonymous. No names or other identifying information will be reported in
the report of the findings. Data will be stored on a secure server and will be password-protected.
If you decide to participate in this study, you will assist the researcher in better understanding the
priorities and perceptions of parents of early intervention students with complex special education
needs as the transition to kindergarten process approaches and unfolds.
If you have questions about this study, please contact the researcher, Denise Lohr, at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or at 724-219-2312. If you would like to speak with someone other than the
researcher, please contact Dr. Todd Keruskin, who is a professor at Pennsylvania Western University
at keruskin@pennwest.edu.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I give consent for the researcher to record the interview. I
understand that the recording will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I do not give consent for the researcher to record the
interview.
______ I do not agree to participate in the interview.
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APPENDIX F
Semi-Structured Interview Questions - Parent
Thank you for agreeing to participate in this interview. The answers you provide will
help special education leaders to better understand parents’ perceptions, needs and
concerns as their children with complex special education needs transition out of
preschool early intervention services and into kindergarten. Your anonymity will be
preserved, and you will be able to obtain a copy of this interview record if you choose.
You may stop this interview at any time without question by the researcher. The risks
assumed by participating in this study are minimal. You may decline to answer any
question(s) that you so choose.
1. Your child has been receiving preschool early intervention services with the
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit’s Early Intervention program. Tell me about your child
and his/her needs.
2. Your child is eligible to go to kindergarten next fall. How do you feel about that?
3. In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be “ready for kindergarten.”
4. You will be invited to a transition meeting in February between the early intervention
program and your child’s school district. Talk about how the early intervention program
could support you in the months leading up to your child’s transition to kindergarten
meeting in February. How could the early intervention program support you and your
child during the transition meeting? After the transition meeting (March-August)?
5. Talk about how your child’s school district could support you during the transition
meeting in February. How could your child’s school district support you and your child
after the transition meeting (March-August)?
6. What is your greatest concern when you think about your child going to kindergarten?
Why?
7. Will you send your child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023? Why or why not?
8. What is your greatest priority when you think about your child transitioning out of
early intervention services and into kindergarten? How could the early intervention
program support you in this regard? How could your child’s school district support you in
this regard?
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APPENDIX G
Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate Form – Special Education Leader
Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K)
Dear Special Education Leader,
I am a doctoral student at Pennsylvania Western University (formerly California University of
Pennsylvania) and am conducting a research study titled “The Priorities and Perceptions of Families of
Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Education Needs Throughout the Transition to
Kindergarten Process.” For my research, a child with “complex special education needs” is a child who
is receiving more than one service in the early intervention program. Outcomes of this research will
potentially assist special education leaders in developing a more comprehensive understanding of how to
best support parents of children receiving early intervention services as the transition to kindergarten
process approaches and unfolds.
You are being contacted because part of my research involves comparing what parents think and feel about
the transition to kindergarten process to the perceptions and opinions of special education leaders, such as
yourself. I will also compare what parents feel is important during kindergarten transition with the practices
in place in many of our school districts in the county to find out how much of what parents need is actually
reflected in our practices as special education leaders. Therefore, I am very interested in finding out more
about your insights surrounding the transition of students out of early intervention and into your school
district.
Within this portion of the study, you will be asked to participate in a survey that is collected via Google
Forms and will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. You will be asked basic professional questions
along with several multiple-choice, rank order, and Likert Scale questions in which you will rate answers
along a scale of 1 to 5 related to your perceptions and insights about what parents of children with complex
special education needs feel is most important during their child’s transition out of early intervention and
into kindergarten.
If you are willing to share your perspective and insight, please follow the link below to answer the survey
questions. Your contribution is a critical part of the data collection. While you will not benefit directly from
participating in the study, information that is gathered may be of value to the Westmoreland Intermediate
Unit and to the school districts in our county. The risks associated with participating are minimal. There are
no physical or mental risks from participating in this study and every attempt will be made to protect your
privacy. While I may present the results of the research as a published study and potentially in journals or
periodicals, your name and other identifying information will remain confidential. The study will not cost
you anything to participate in and there will not be direct compensation for participating. You should feel
empowered to make an informed decision and are able to discuss and ask the researcher any questions you
may have.
Remember, consent to participate is voluntary. If you do not wish to participate, you are not obligated to
complete the survey and you are able to stop participating at any time without explanation or penalty. If
you have any questions about this research study, please contact Denise Lohr at KNE1153@pennwest.edu
or 724-219-2312 or Pennsylvania Western University Professor, Dr. Keruskin at
keruskin@pennwest.edu. This research has been approved by the Pennsylvania Western University
Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires 09/05/2023.
By clicking on this link, you are indicating your agreement to participate and permit the use of data
collected through the survey: https://forms.gle/g8htt2nDWcaefjyP9
Sincerely,
Denise Lohr, M.A., CCC-SLP
Early Childhood Services Administrator
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit
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APPENDIX H
181
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APPENDIX I
Special Education Leader Consent to Participate Form – Semi-Structured Interview
Dear Special Education Leader,
You indicated interest in participating in a virtual interview regarding the transition to kindergarten process
in your school district or early intervention program. Your participation in this study will help the
researcher learn more about how parents of preschool age children with complex special education needs
perceive the transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten for their child as well as to learn more
about their priorities throughout the process. This study will also explore how accurately special education
leaders understand the concerns and priorities of parents of preschool age children with complex special
education needs as those parents consider their child’s entry into kindergarten.
If you agree to participate in this interview, you will be asked to join a virtual Zoom meeting with the
researcher. The researcher will ask you detailed questions about your insights into the transition to
kindergarten process.
All interviews will be conducted in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office. Participants will be asked
permission to record the virtual interview to support the researcher’s ability to review collected information
at a later time and to ease the burden of transcribing answers “in the moment.” Participants may decline
recording of the interview or request that the recording end at any time during the interview with the
researcher. All recordings will be deleted at the conclusion of the study. Interviews are expected to last
approximately 30-60 minutes each.
Your participation is voluntary. You may withdraw from the study at any time by notifying the researcher.
There will be no penalty if you choose not to participate. The researcher will not ask you why you opted to
withdraw. There are minimal risks to this study. You will not be asked questions of a sensitive nature. The
interview questions may make you feel uncomfortable as some people do not like to volunteer
information/feedback that could be perceived as negative or complaining. However, participants are
reminded that they are not required to answer any questions of which they choose.
Participants can also stop their participation at any time without question. Interview responses collected
will be kept confidential, which means only the researcher will see or have access to the data. Your
responses are anonymous. No names or other identifying information will be reported in the report of the
findings. Data will be stored on a secure server and will be password-protected.
If you decide to participate in this study, you will assist the researcher in better understanding the how
special education leaders view the transition to kindergarten process and how well they understand the
concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special education needs.
If you have questions about this study, please contact the researcher, Denise Lohr, at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or at 724-219-2312. If you would like to speak with someone other than the
researcher, please contact Dr. Todd Keruskin, who is a professor at Pennsylvania Western University at
keruskin@pennwest.edu.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I give consent for the researcher to record the interview. I
understand that the recording will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I do not give consent for the researcher to record the interview.
______ I do not agree to participate in the interview.
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APPENDIX J
Semi-Structured Interview Questions - Special Education Leader
Thank you for agreeing to participate in this interview. Your participation in this study
will help the researcher learn more about how parents of preschool age children with
complex special education needs perceive the transition out of early intervention and into
kindergarten for their child as well as to learn more about their priorities throughout the
process. This study will also explore how accurately special education leaders understand
the concerns and priorities of those same parents when those consider their child’s
departure from early intervention services and prepare for entry into kindergarten. Your
anonymity will be preserved, and you will be able to obtain a copy of this interview
record if you choose.
1. What led you to pursue a career in special education leadership? For how long have
you worked in special education leadership? For how long have you served in your
current role?
2. What is the most rewarding part of your job? The least?
3. Tell me about the relationships that you already have with parents of children with
complex special education needs in grades kindergarten through grade 3 (K-3) in
your district. So in other words, with the families of children who have recently (in
the past 3 years) transitioned from early intervention and into kindergarten. Describe
how you built those relationships? What were the challenges?
4. What do you feel concerns parents the most when they think about their child with
special needs going to kindergarten?
5. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special needs during the
transition to kindergarten process? In other words, what are the things that are most
important to these parents?
6. What is the most important thing for parents to know as their child with complex
special needs approaches that point of transitioning out of early intervention services
and into your school district?
7. What is the most important thing for parents to do as their child with complex
special needs approaches that point of transitioning out of early intervention services
and into your school district?
8. How do you think your district’s process for transition to kindergarten aligns with
what you feel families need? What would you change (if anything) about the
process?
9. Talk about the challenges that you encounter with parents of incoming kindergarten
students with complex special education needs? What are your ideas about ways to
overcome those challenges? How can the intermediate unit assist you in this regard?
10. Describe the rewards you gain as a result of working with parents of incoming
kindergarten students with complex special needs? What about the process, if
anything, makes you feel as though you have made a positive difference for children
and their families?
11. How could the early intervention program further assist you and your school district
during the transition to kindergarten process?
12. Please add any additional information that you would like to share.
The Priorities and Perceptions of Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs
Throughout the Transition to Kindergarten Process.
A Doctoral Capstone Project
Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies and Research
Department of Education
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Education
Denise L. Lohr
Pennsylvania Western University
June 2023
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Copyright by
Denise L. Lohr
All Rights Reserved
June 2023
ii
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iv
Dedication
To my late grandmothers, Nellie Elizabeth Rolla Lohr and Verna Alice Smith
Poole, two very strong-willed, hard-working, and intelligent women, who raised large
families on farms in western Pennsylvania during a time when women did not have the
opportunities to achieve their own dreams and aspirations as they do today. Though I
miss them dearly, I know that they are with me in this accomplishment.
To my parents, Roger and Doris, thank you for providing me with examples of
love, hard work, faith, optimism, perseverance, and commitment. All three of your
children have dedicated their careers to helping others, which is a testament to the strong
values of service and sacrifice that you instilled in each of us. I would not be where I am
today without your support and encouragement. I love you both.
To my children, Haley Elizabeth and Matthew Spencer, I love you more than you
will ever know. I hope that you will find the same love for learning that I have and that
you will always remember that nothing is impossible with hard work and perseverance. I
know that you will both go far in life and that you will always remember to be the helpers
and the encouragers of those less fortunate than yourselves.
To my very special nephew, Cameron Jacob, who works hard each day to do the
things that most of us take for granted. It is my fervent hope that this work will, if even in
some small and perhaps unknowable way, make straighter the path of a child with special
needs through the embrace of understanding, inclusion, and acceptance by others. You so
beautifully exemplify how each of us is perfect in our own way, fearfully and
wonderfully made. I love you very much, and I dedicate this work to you.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
v
Acknowledgments
Aside from my parents and my children, I also want to thank my sister, Brenda,
and my brother, Jason, as well as their respective families. I would not have been able to
complete this journey without your love and support. To Kevin, thank you for your love,
patience, and encouragement. I am exceptionally fortunate to have you in my life.
A special thank you to Dr. Todd Keruskin, Faculty Capstone Committee Advisor
for this project. Your calm and deliberate words of encouragement have guided me
throughout this past year of research and writing. I also want to thank Ms. Emma
Bernardoni for completing the statistical analyses for this project, which brought my
results to life. Thank you, Emma, for the time you took to meet with me to explain the
mathematical processes you used and to ensure my understanding of them.
I also want to thank a few of my colleagues, who sometimes seem more like
family to me than co-workers. To Dr. Jason Conway, thank you for your feedback and
guidance on this project as well as for the leadership example you set for all of us at the
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU). To Dr. Amanda Winnor, thank you for your
friendship and boundless encouragement, and also for hiring me at the WIU nearly ten
years ago. You saw something in me that I thought I had lost, and I am forever grateful to
you for helping to set me on a path that led me to where I am today. To Dr. Matthew
Thomas, thank you for your friendship, calm reassurance, sense of humor, and words of
encouragement. On many days, those were the only things that got me through. To the
soon-to-be Dr. Rebecca Henderson and the soon-to-be Dr. Jason Stragand, I would not
have wanted to navigate this doctoral program with anyone else but the two of you. We
started it together, and now we will soon finish it together. Your support has meant so
much to me over these past three years.
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vi
Table of Contents
Dedication
iv
Acknowledgments
v
List of Figures
x
Abstract
xi
Chapter I. Introduction
1
Background
1
Capstone Focus
1
Research Questions
3
Expected Outcomes
4
Fiscal Implications
4
Summary
6
Chapter II. Literature Review
7
Early Educational Transitions
7
The Importance of Kindergarten Transition
8
The History of Kindergarten
9
The History of Early Childhood Special Education
11
The Role of the Family in Early Intervention
13
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vii
Act 212 in Pennsylvania
14
The Academicization of Kindergarten
15
The Child Effects Model of Transition
16
The “Ready Schools” Movement
18
The Direct Effects Model of Transition
19
The Indirect Effects Model of Transition
20
The Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition
21
Kindergarten Transition as a Process
22
The Move from Preschool to Kindergarten
23
Transition Challenges for Children with Special Needs
25
Federal and State Mandates
28
Early Intervention to School-Age Transition in Pennsylvania
29
Kindergarten Transition Practices
30
Parent Involvement in Kindergarten Transition
33
Parent Concerns
35
Parent Needs and Preferences
37
Summary
39
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viii
Chapter III. Methodology
40
Purpose
41
Setting
44
Participants
47
Research Plan
50
Research Design, Methods, and Data Collection
53
Research Question One
56
Research Question Two
56
Research Question Three
57
Fiscal Information
57
Validity
61
Summary
63
Chapter IV. Data Analysis and Results
66
Triangulation
68
Data Analysis
69
Research Question One Results
70
FEIT-Modified Survey Data
70
Semi-structured Parent Interview Data
93
Research Question Two Results
100
SELTS-K Data
101
Semi-structured Special Education Leader Interview Data
122
Research Question Three Results
124
Discussion
127
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Summary
Chapter V. Conclusions and Recommendations
Conclusions
ix
133
135
136
Research Question One
136
Research Question Two
140
Research Question Three
144
Fiscal Implications
145
Recommendations
146
Limitations
149
Recommendations for Future Research
150
Summary
151
References
154
APPENDIX A. IRB Approval Letter
166
APPENDIX B. Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre Approval Letter
167
APPENDIX C. Parent Email/Consent to Participate – Survey
168
APPENDIX D. Parent Survey Instrument (FEIT-Modified)
169
APPENDIX E. Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – Interview
178
APPENDIX F. Semi-Structured Interview Questions-Parent
179
APPENDIX G. Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate – Survey
180
APPENDIX H. Special Education Leader Survey Instrument (SELTS-K)
181
APPENDIX I. Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate – Interview
189
APPENDIX J. Semi-Structured Interview Questions – Special Education Leader
190
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x
List of Figures
Figure 1. Act 30/K5 Students in the WIU EI Program
59
Figure 2. Act 30/K5 Student Fiscal Impact on the WIU EI Program
59
Figure 3. Levels of Parent Concern in Different Areas, Numeric Breakdown
72
Figure 4. Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 1-5
73
Figure 5. Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 6-11
74
Figure 6. Areas of Greatest Parent Concern
81
Figure 7. Parent Importance Ratings of Twelve Supports, Numeric Breakdown
82
Figure 8. Parent Supports Importance Ratings, Comparison of Supports 1-6
84
Figure 9. Parent Supports Importance Ratings, Comparison of Supports 7-12
85
Figure 10. Parent Perspectives on Kindergarten Readiness
93
Figure 11. Special Education Leader (SEL) Perceptions of Parent Concerns,
Numeric Breakdown
102
Figure 12. SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 1-5
103
Figure 13. SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 6-11
104
Figure 14. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Numeric Breakdown
114
Figure 15. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Supports 1-6
115
Figure 16. SEL Perceptions of Parent Support Ratings, Supports 7-12
116
Figure 17. SEL Perspectives on Kindergarten Readiness
121
Figure 18. Comparison of Responses About Kindergarten Readiness
122
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xi
Abstract
Each year, early intervention programs across Pennsylvania support the transition of
thousands of children with special needs into school-age programming through
collaborative efforts with school districts. While special education leaders may
understand the legal requirements associated with the transition from early intervention
into kindergarten, very little is definitively known about the perceptions and priorities of
the parents of children with complex special needs during this time. This study utilized a
mixed methods approach to examine the priorities of parents of children, who were ageeligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who were receiving more than
one service from the early intervention program in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Data was collected through the administration of the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) – Modified survey and the Special Education Leader
Transition Survey – Kindergarten (SELTS-K) as well as semi-structured interviews. A
significant difference between how concerned parents are about their child’s behavior
during kindergarten transition and how school leaders perceived parental concern in this
area was discovered. Significant differences between participant groups were found in the
importance of the following supports: having the early intervention program host a
meeting to prepare parents for the child’s transition meeting with the school district,
receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a
home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher. Notable differences on the topic of
kindergarten readiness in children were also detected between participant groups.
Keywords: transition to kindergarten, transition planning, early childhood special
education, early intervention, parent concerns, parent involvement
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1
CHAPTER I
Introduction
Background
Act 212 of 1990, also known as the Early Intervention Systems Act, outlines the
provisions and requirements for early intervention programs to provide services to
preschool children with disabilities in Pennsylvania. One major responsibility of
preschool early intervention programs in the Commonwealth is to support the transition
of young children with disabilities from preschool services into school-age programming.
Without interruption in services and with procedural compliance, preschool early
intervention programs support the transition of thousands of children with special needs
into kindergarten across Pennsylvania each year.
Each preschool early intervention program devises its own processes and
procedures to complete the process. The Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU) Early
Intervention program coordinates with the 17 school districts in Westmoreland County to
hold hundreds of transition to kindergarten meetings each year with families and staff.
These transition meetings primarily take place during the month of February each school
year. Many of the children eligible to transition to kindergarten have complex special
needs that require the provision of multiple supports and services.
Capstone Focus
Though compliance with state and federal regulations is paramount in the
planning and execution of the transition to kindergarten process by the educational
leaders of preschool and school-age special education programs across the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, very little is understood about what is most important to
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
2
parents as they approach and navigate the process for their children. In addition, rarely do
the leaders of preschool early intervention and school-age special education programs
pause and reflect with each other about what they believe are the priorities of parents as
their children transition into kindergarten.
Such a void of understanding about what is most important to parents of children
with complex special needs as enrollment in kindergarten approaches prevents early
intervention and school-age programs from tailoring practices and procedures that best
support students and their parents from a quality perspective. When parents feel uneasy
about the transition process, it could delay enrollment of the child in kindergarten, which
can have a negative effect on team planning, collaboration, and the overall success of the
child. Delayed kindergarten enrollment also has a detrimental fiscal impact on the
preschool early intervention program.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that parents be
included in special education processes and decision making for their children. Research
and practice inform us that cultivating and supporting close and collaborative
relationships between parents and special education leaders can lead to increased trustful
encounters and greater long-term educational benefits for the eligible child (Wellner,
2010). When parents and school entities trust one another, problems and challenges are
more likely to be solved earlier and more quickly, with a decreased likelihood of
litigation.
A major component of relationship building is for each member of a dyad to
understand the priorities of the other. Parents of children with complex special education
needs have a variety of priorities and worries (Spann et al., 2003). It is important and
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
3
relevant that school leaders are aware of such priorities and concerns as early as possible
in the transition to kindergarten process. School leaders should also pause to consider
what they believe is important to parents throughout the transition to kindergarten process
and compare those answers with the feedback received by parents. This exercise in
exploration, comparison, and reflection will examine long-held and commonplace beliefs
of special education leaders about what parents need and want for their children with
complex special education needs as they move from preschool early intervention to
school-age programming.
Research Questions
The following questions will examine the priorities of parents of children with
complex needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process:
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
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4
Expected Outcomes
Special education leaders in early intervention and school-age programs are
tasked with creating the transition to kindergarten processes that are compliant with
federal and state regulations, though little is known about what matters most to parents
throughout the process. Results obtained from this study can be used to create transition
practices specifically designed to address the reported priorities of parents and to
maximally support the complex special education needs of the eligible young child as
entry to kindergarten approaches. When parents feel more at ease with the process, it is
expected that a child’s transition from preschool early intervention and into school-age
programming will have a greater likelihood of success, which will set the child up for
success in the next educational environment and beyond.
Fiscal Implications
In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of electing for their child to remain in
early intervention for an additional year even when the child is age-eligible to attend
kindergarten in their school district of residence. When children remain in early
intervention for an additional year beyond the fall of the year that they are first eligible to
attend kindergarten, a financial burden is borne by the early intervention program. Before
children reach the age of eligibility to attend kindergarten in their home school district,
the WIU Early Intervention program receives a subsidy of $5133 per child from
Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), regardless of
the child’s level of need or educational placement in the early intervention program.
When students remain in early intervention for the additional year, they are formally
known as “Act 30” students and colloquially known as “K5” students. The WIU Early
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5
Intervention program does not receive any funding from OCDEL for the provision of
services to Act 30/K5 students, which creates financial hardship for the program.
In an attempt to recoup some of the monies not received by the state for the
provision of services to Act 30/K5 students, the WIU invoices the school districts for the
services to these children; however, it is not to the extent of what the early intervention
program would receive for the child from OCDEL in most cases. When billing districts
for services provided to Act 30/K5 students, two groups of students are considered: those
who attend an early childhood special education (ECSE) classroom and those who
receive only itinerant services. Students who attend ECSE classrooms exclusively are in
greater need of support and services than those who receive only itinerant services.
School districts are billed the entire $5133 for a student attending an ECSE classroom
across all four quarters of the school year. If a student attending an ECSE classroom
attends for fewer than all four school quarters, the district is billed on a per-quarter basis
($1283) for the Act 30/K5 student’s membership in the early intervention program. When
students receive itinerant services only, school districts are billed an hourly rate of $70,
which is the blended average of the early intervention program’s speech-language
pathologists’ salaries and benefits. If an Act 30/K5 student receives 30 minutes of
speech-language services per week, that child would accrue approximately 750 minutes,
or 12.5 hours, of service throughout an entire year (provided all sessions were attended).
The early intervention program would invoice that child’s school district for $875, which
is well below the OCDEL reimbursement rate of $5133. It should be noted that the early
intervention program does not invoice school districts for itinerant sessions not attended
by the child. In some cases, the itinerant teacher or therapist has prepared a lesson and
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
6
traveled to the child’s home or preschool, only to find the family unresponsive or the
child absent. In those cases, the district is not billed for the session. Delayed entry to
kindergarten for children with special needs has a negative fiscal impact on the early
intervention program. If the priorities of parents of children with complex special needs
were better understood, it is hypothesized that the WIU Early Intervention program
would experience a decrease in the number of Act 30/K5 students yearly.
Summary
Chapter I provided an overview of why studying the priorities of parents of
children with special needs is integral to developing transition to kindergarten practices
that are highly supportive to parents and children. Chapter II will contain a review of the
literature relevant to the topic and necessary to guide practice. Chapter III will explain the
methodology used to study the priorities and perceptions of parents of children with
complex needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process. Chapter IV will contain
a description of the results based on an analysis of the data. Chapter V will present the
conclusions and a description of how the findings of this study can be applied to practice.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
7
CHAPTER II
Literature Review
It has been said that life is a series of transitions. Transitions make up the human
experience and begin at the time we are born and end at the time of our deaths. Life’s
transitions take humans through paths of change and varied circumstances that are
sometimes planned and expected, yet also abrupt and unforeseen. Transitions are key
points in developmental trajectories across the human lifespan (Elder, 1998). Although
transitions present new opportunities for learning and growth, they are stressful and
challenging for many who experience them (Hanson et al., 2000; Rosenkoetter et al.,
1994).
Early Educational Transitions
Several of the most formative transitions occur within the first few years of a
person’s life and shape and influence future experiences and opportunities. When
children are born, they transition from the hospital to home. The move from the care and
nurture of one’s family in the home setting throughout infancy and toddlerhood and into
preschool marks one of the first significant educational transitions for a child. Later,
when the preschooler moves from an early childhood instructional setting and into formal
school-age programming, another crucial transition occurs.
In addition to these typical transitions, children with disabilities and their families
also experience moves into and out of early intervention programs (Wolery, 1989). Early
intervention transitions can occur between birth and age three when the child begins to
receive infant-toddler services, at age three when the child transitions into preschool early
intervention services, and at age five when the child leaves preschool early intervention
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
8
and enters kindergarten. Through practice and research, early interventionists know that
when parent concerns and priorities are honored and when parents contribute to the
creation of their child’s special education plan, the family is more involved in supporting
the child’s skill development across the day (Fox et al., 2002).
Early educational transitions present opportunities for programs to share
information about children as well as for families to express priorities, concerns, and
perspectives to teachers and administrative leaders. Throughout the last fifty years,
considerable research has been conducted to better understand these early educational
transitions for young children and their families, which is important since these types of
transitions involve the child and the family as well as the sending and receiving
programs. Educational transitions merit study to support families of children with special
needs and to promote collaboration between organizations (Flynn & McCollum, 1989) to
enhance a child’s ability to adjust to a new setting or placement (Rosenkoetter et al.,
1994), and to comply with legislative mandates related to the transition of children with
special needs from one program to another (Wolery, 1989). Educational transitions are
important to understand because they prepare the child for successful entry and
functioning into the next school setting, and they provide an opportunity for educational
programs to share information about the child and to gather input from the family.
The Importance of Kindergarten Transition
There are few transitions as important as the one that children and families
experience as a child moves from preschool into kindergarten. The transition from
preschool to kindergarten marks a pivotal point in a child’s life trajectory. Kindergarten is
remarkably important for many reasons. The success of a child’s entry into kindergarten
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
9
can impact later school achievement for some children (Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000)
and offers considerable opportunity for parents, teachers, and school leaders to shape a
child’s immediate and long-term success and well-being (Duncan et al., 2007; Entwisle &
Alexander, 1993). Hair et al. (2006) found that the fall of kindergarten student readiness
profiles were significantly associated with first-grade reading, math, and social-emotional
outcomes, which further highlights the importance of early school success for children.
Transition practices of preschool and school-age programs have the potential to
positively or negatively impact the child’s early and later school success.
If the primary goal of one educational setting is to prepare the child for successful
entry and functioning into the next, it is incumbent upon school leaders, practitioners, and
parents to understand how to transitions work and how to make them as successful as
possible for the benefit of the child. Educational transitions are impacted by the dynamic
relationships that are formed between the child, family, peers, teachers, school, and
community over time, which enable them to be conceptualized as a process rather than a
singular moment in time (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). When viewed through the
process lens, educational transitions possess enormous potential to influence the
trajectory of a child’s success in the next setting and in life, both positively and
negatively. The development of early childhood learning opportunities for young children
has evolved in the United States.
The History of Kindergarten
To fully understand early educational transitions for all children, including the
transition supports mandated for children with special needs, one must start by studying
the origins of early childhood education. Today in the United States, kindergarten is the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
10
entry point to formal schooling for the vast majority of young children, with thirty-nine
states and the District of Columbia requiring school districts to offer half or full-day
kindergarten (Education Commission of the States, 2020). Kindergarten was initially
established to help prepare children for successful participation in formal schooling. The
first kindergarten in the world was established in Germany in 1837 by Friedrich Froebel,
who believed in the importance of early learning opportunities for children that involved
play, songs, nature exploration, and stories (Curtis, 2022; MacKenzie, n.d.). Froebel’s
ideas about early learning were brought to the United States by Margarethe Schurz. Ms.
Schurz opened a German-speaking kindergarten in Watertown, Wisconsin in 1857, the
first of its kind in the United States and situated in a German immigrant community
(“Margarethe Schurz,” n.d.). Several years later, the first US English-speaking
kindergarten was established in Boston in 1860 by Elizabeth Peabody, who had been
influenced by the work of Margarethe Schurz (Eschner, 2017). In the years that followed,
kindergartens began to appear in most major American cities, largely the result of private
donations and charities. These early kindergartens enrolled children from working-class,
immigrant families and sought to teach the whole child without a specific focus on
academic skills like reading and mathematics. Susan Blow helped establish the first
public school kindergarten in 1873 in St. Louis, and after 1890, public schools began
including kindergarten, oftentimes taking over programs that had once been privately
funded. By 1900, roughly 6% of children of kindergarten age attended kindergarten. That
number continued to rise, and by 1920, about 11% of age-eligible children were attending
kindergarten, with public school kindergarten students outnumbering private ones by
nineteen to one.
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11
As kindergarten became more engrained into the American educational culture,
some educators like John Dewey and Maria Montessori began to emphasize the key role
of the teacher as a facilitator in children’s self-directed learning experiences (Lillard,
2016). Though kindergarten enrollment fell in the 1930s due to economic constraints, by
1940, enrollment again started to increase (Berg, 2008). By 1954, 1.5 million children
were enrolled in kindergarten in the United States (Berg, 2008). During this time, many
states passed laws to lower kindergarten class sizes (Berg, 2008).
The History of Early Childhood Special Education
Although opportunities for early childhood learning experiences continued to
expand since the establishment of the first kindergarten in the late 19th century in the
United States, educational opportunities for children with special needs did not receive
equal attention during the first half of the 20 th century. Instead, most public schools
denied enrollment of children with special needs, which left parents alone to care for their
child with a disability at home or, worse yet, to fight to keep their child out of an
institutional placement (Reichow et al., 2016). As parents assumed much of the
responsibility for the care, education, and well-being of their child with special needs,
advocacy groups began to grow in prominence, usually formed by the parents
themselves. In 1922, the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) was formed as a
meeting group for those interested in children with special needs and eventually
established professional teaching standards (Kode, 2017).
By 1965, over 2 million children in the United States were enrolled in
kindergarten. In that same year, President Johnson declared the War on Poverty, which
spawned the creation of Head Start (Berg, 2008; Reichow et al., 2016). The growing
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12
prevalence of kindergarten and the development of Head Start reflected a growing
interest in enriching children’s educational experiences by educators, policymakers, and
politicians. Greater focus was placed not only on improving the lives of impoverished
children but also those with disabilities through federal policy initiatives. In 1968, The
Handicapped Children's Early Education Assistance Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-538)
was passed, which established the Handicapped Children’s Early Education Program
(HCEEP). The HCEEP was the first federal initiative to focus on young children with
disabilities (Reichow et al., 2016). Passage of PL 90-538 heralded the formation of model
education programs aimed at providing services for children with disabilities. By 1975,
20,000 children and their families were served directly or through consultation by an
HCEEP, which could be found in all fifty states (Reichow et al., 2016). The HCEEP
projects produced notable results. Child advocacy groups were formed, better practices
aimed at educating young children with disabilities were realized, and certification
programs for early childhood special education teachers were established at colleges and
universities.
Though much progress was made through HCEEP initiatives, there was still much
work yet to be done. By the mid-1970s, it was estimated that out of 7 million children in
the United States with disabilities, one million were not receiving any educational
services, and only 40% of children with disabilities were receiving the services they
needed (Weintraub & Abeson, 1976). Compulsory attendance laws were used to keep
children with disabilities out of school when attendance was not recommended due to the
limitations and needs of the children. When viewed in light of the 1954 Supreme Court
case Brown v. Board of Education, which established that segregationist practices
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
13
violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States
Constitution, preventing children with disabilities from attending school seemed
inherently unlawful and immoral to many.
When the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (Public Law 94142) was passed, it was mandated that all children with disabilities from age three
through age twenty-one receive a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in the
least restrictive environment (LRE) through an individualized education plan (IEP). A
decade later, the Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1986 was passed
(Public Law 99-457), which established Parts B, Section 619 for preschool children with
disabilities and Part H (later Part C) for children in infancy through age two to receive
early intervention services. Previous to P. L. 99-457, services for children under three
years of age were not available. After years of exploration and study of how to best
educate children with disabilities, one key point emerged: intervening early improved
educational outcomes for children while also proving economically advantageous
(Silverstein, 1989).
The Role of the Family in Early Intervention
Robert Silverstein, a Congressional staff member who helped write P.L. 99-457,
gave a speech in 1989 that described how P. L. 99-457 came into existence. He explained
how lawmakers worked across the aisle to include language grounded in early childhood
and early childhood special education research within the law and to include families as
an integral component of the provision of early intervention services. Silverstein (1989)
asserted that “The word ‘family’ must appear ten or fifteen times throughout the
legislation; this was intentional. Congress was trying to say, ‘Do not have professionals
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
14
come into a family situation and assume that the mom and dad don't know anything.
Respect the family’” (Silverstein, 1989, p. 2). Honoring the family’s strengths, needs, and
priorities was evident in 1986 when the first federal law was enacted to mandate the
provision of early intervention services. Even today, the importance of the family’s
participation in the development of the child’s special education program is still
emphasized and promoted.
Act 212 in Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania General Assembly passed the Early Intervention Services
Systems Act, also known as Act 212, in 1990. Act 212 established a statewide system for
providing early intervention services to infants, toddlers, and young children in the
Commonwealth (Early Intervention Services Systems Act, 1990). The Pennsylvania
General Assembly, through Act 212, recognized the need to increase opportunities for
young children with special needs, decrease the possibility for developmental delays, and
minimize potential future special education services needed by the child by the time the
child would reach the “age of beginners.” The “age of beginners” is defined by
Pennsylvania law (22 Pa. Code 14 §14.101) as the “minimum age established by each
school district’s board of directors for admission to the school district’s first grade”
(Public School Code, 1949b). Act 212 was intended, in part, to minimize the need for
special education services when the child entered school-age programming.
Act 212 set forth requirements for the timely evaluation and identification of
children in need of early intervention services, the development of an individualized
education plan to meet the child's needs in the least restrictive environment (LRE)
possible, exit criteria for children who may no longer need early intervention services,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
15
and legislative guidance on the formation of a state and local interagency coordinating
councils to support early intervention mandates and initiatives (Early Intervention
Services Systems Act, 1990). With the passage of Act 212, a network of support and
services for children from birth up to the age of beginners was finally realized in
Pennsylvania.
The Academicization of Kindergarten
The passage of Act 212 in Pennsylvania and other laws like it across the United
States roughly coincided with a shift that was simultaneously occurring in kindergarten
programming. Up until the 1980s, the focus of kindergarten had been on a child-centered
approach to learning through play and opportunities to socialize with peers, reflecting the
contributions of Froebel, Dewey, and Montessori. Kindergarten became more universal
in the United States by the early 1980s, with about 30% of students attending a full-day
program and instruction becoming more academically focused (Sassower, 1982).
Kindergarten continued to maintain an academic focus into the latter part of the 20th
century, a noteworthy reality that manifested itself in the opinions and beliefs of teachers
several years later. According to Bassok et al. (2016), the percentage of kindergarten
teachers who reported that they agreed or strongly agreed that children should learn to
read in kindergarten increased sharply from 31% to 80% from 1998 to 2010. Bassok et al.
(2016) also noted striking increases in the percentage of teachers who rated other
academic skills (i.e., alphabet knowledge, color and shape identification, and counting
skills) as important for school readiness for the same periods. Despite increases in the
percentage of teachers who viewed academic skills as critical for school readiness, self-
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
16
regulation, and social interaction skills were still rated by teachers to be among the most
important for children to possess upon kindergarten entry (Bassok et al., 2016).
Due to the increased academicization of kindergarten and the importance of
children’s early learning experiences to future success, educational leaders and
practitioners began to realize the need for effective transition practices to support
successful school entry for all students. Several transition models have been developed
over many decades to support the successful entry of children into kindergarten.
The Child Effects Model of Transition
Just as the American educational system has evolved, so have the various models
of kindergarten transition emerged across the past several decades. The Child Effects
Model of Transition is a longstanding, maturational, and readiness model that considers a
child’s skills and characteristics when trying to determine how successful the child might
be throughout the transition into kindergarten. Proponents of the Child Effects Model of
Transition believe that without certain characteristics or skills, a child might not be
equipped, or “ready,” to meet the demands of the kindergarten learning environment. The
importance of a child being “ready” for kindergarten was amplified in 1990 when
President Bush and the Nation’s Governors adopted six National Education Goals to be
achieved by the year 2000. The first National Education Goal established in 1990
targeted school readiness: “All children in America will start school ready to learn.”
(National Education Goals, 1991; Stedman & Riddle, 1992). The use of school readiness
screenings and assessments continues to be commonplace in elementary schools as
children approach kindergarten entry, and these measures are often used to prepare
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
17
individualized instruction for a child and to identify children who might need additional
testing or support (Little et al., 2016).
In 1995, a few years after the announcement of the National Education Goals, the
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) pushed back on
the adoption of a child readiness-only model for kindergarten transition by stating that
“The traditional construct of readiness unduly places the burden of proof on the child”
and that “it is the responsibility of the schools to meet the needs of children as they enter
school” (National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC], 1995).
NAEYC advocated for consideration of each child’s diverse and unequal life
experiences, varied opportunities for learning and growth, and the extent to which
school expectations are reasonable, supportive, and appropriate (NAEYC, 1995).
Nevertheless, a child’s socioeconomic status, language abilities, and adaptive
skills may contribute to school entry success (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000), and
many parents worry about their child’s readiness to attend kindergarten if certain skills
are not yet developed in the child. Parent and teacher concerns about a child’s readiness
to attend kindergarten might contribute to efforts to delay kindergarten entry for some
children who are age-eligible to attend, including children with special needs. Each year,
up to 10% of children are “red-shirted”, with parents delaying entrance to kindergarten
until the child is socially mature and academically ready (Bassok & Reardon, 2013;
Greenburg & Winsler, 2020).
The Child Effects Model of Transition placed the child as the central and most
prominent player in the kindergarten transition process and overlooked the impact of
other components of a child’s social network (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000). The
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
18
Child Effects Model of Transition placed responsibility for successful kindergarten entry
solely on the child and what skills the child brought to the process rather than also
considering the impact that schools could have on the kindergarten transition process.
The “Ready Schools” Movement
About a decade after child maturational models for kindergarten transition had
soared in popularity and in practice, the “Ready Schools Movement” began, which
shifted more attention to the school’s ability to be ready for all children to enter its
classrooms (Pianta et al., 1999). It was the first time that consideration had been given to
making adaptations to the school environment to meet the special and unique needs of the
child and to promote successful entry into kindergarten. According to Pianta et al. (1999),
“ready schools” reach out to families before the start of kindergarten as well as build
connections between families, preschools, and the school community. The concept of
school readiness is reflected in the beliefs and attitudes of parents, especially those with
children who have special needs. Parents of children with special needs recognize the
importance of their children possessing a certain set of school readiness skills, though
they also feel the school must make adjustments and be ready to meet the individual
needs of the child. In a study by Larcombe et al. (2019), a majority of parents of children
with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) believed their child needed to be “ready” for school
but also felt that the school bore some responsibility in being ready to meet the needs of
their children. These parents believed that school readiness looked different due to their
child’s diagnosis of ASD and reported that their child’s level of social and
communication skills was the “most important indicator of school readiness” (Greenburg
& Winsler, 2020). Challenges in social communication, sensory demands, the time
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
19
required to adjust to a new setting or activity, difficulties in understanding the
expectations of the environment as well as in completing self-care tasks like toileting
were all noted by parents as contributing to their child’s readiness to start kindergarten
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents also identified the kindergarten teacher’s willingness and
open attitude to individualize support for their child’s needs in the classroom as a
significant marker of school readiness, which is a reflection of the belief that schools
need to be ready and willing to accommodate the needs of new students (Larcombe et al.,
2019).
The Direct Effects Model of Transition
Beyond child and school readiness frameworks for kindergarten entry, the Direct
Effects Model of Transition also acknowledges the direct effects of other contexts beyond
the child and the school (i.e., family, peers, school, and neighborhood, community) on the
child’s ability to adjust to kindergarten (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). The quality of
contexts surrounding a child impacts a child’s readiness for school. Through research,
proof of the impact of quality early childhood experiences (Howe, 1988), family
characteristics (Moore et al., 2020), caregiver interaction styles (Sheridan et al., 2010),
the volume of words spoken to the child (Hart & Risley, 1995), opportunities for the
child to interact with peers and make friends (Ladd, 1990), and neighborhood
characteristics on the child’s readiness for school (Lapointe et al., 2007; Moore et al.,
2020) has been firmly established. Though the Direct Effects Model of Transition
broadens the Child Readiness Model by taking into account the effects of the contexts
surrounding the child, each context is considered to have an individual, unidirectional
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
20
effect on the child’s competence (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000) and the interactions
between the contexts are not addressed.
The Indirect Effects Model of Transition
The Indirect Effects Model of transition considers a bidirectional relationship that
exists between the child and the various social networks and environments in which the
child lives and functions (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). The Indirect Effects Model of
Transition acknowledges the effect of family, peers, school, neighborhood, and
community on the child as well as the effects of the child on the same in return. The
impact of the interconnectedness of several factors on a child’s development and learning
competence has been well studied. Research on academic disparities among children
revealed that parents’ talkativeness toward their children and cultural beliefs about
communication styles were correlated to socioeconomic status and predictive of future
linguistic and academic success (Hart & Risley, 1995). Research has revealed that
positive family-school partnerships can improve student on-task classroom behavior
(Fefer et al., 2020); however, families of lower socioeconomic backgrounds face greater
challenges and barriers when it comes to participating in their children’s schooling
(Hornby & Lafaele, 2011; Sengonul, 2022). These studies and others like them affirm an
interconnectedness and indirect influence that factors like socioeconomic status, parent
involvement, vocabulary development, and communication styles can have on a child’s
capacity for learning. Though the Indirect Effects Model of Transition considers the more
elaborate and complex impact of various contexts, it still focuses on the static nature of
each and does not consider the dynamic effect of the relationships among them (RimmKaufman & Pianta, 2000).
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
21
The Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition
According to Rimm-Kaufman and Pianta (2000), the Ecological and Dynamic
Model of Transition takes into account the child, direct, indirect, and dynamic impacts of
contexts on a child’s transition into kindergarten. This model eliminates the notion that
only in-child variables are responsible for the success or failure of a child’s transition to
kindergarten (Welchons & McIntyre, 2017). Instead, the child interacts with family,
peers, school, neighborhood, and community over time, and as patterns develop,
relationships are formed that shape the development of the child and produce outcomes
related to the child’s school readiness and performance. The Ecological and Dynamic
Model of Transition elevates the notion that when children transition to school, they do
so in an environment in which several contextual interactions have formed patterns that
will ultimately impact the move from preschool into kindergarten. For example, a parent
may not provide opportunities for their child to interact with other children regularly due
to economic or time constraints. Over time, this pattern may limit the child’s ability to
form social bonds and make friends in kindergarten, which can hurt the child’s
perceptions about school as well as academic performance (Ladd, 1990). In another
example, a kindergarten teacher may have experienced success in working with children
who have special and unique learning needs. Over time, the cumulative effect of those
positive experiences will most likely contribute to the teacher’s high confidence level and
increased capacity for supporting students with disabilities and their families. Students
with special needs, who require modifications and accommodations to their learning plan,
may benefit more from that particular teacher’s instructional style than they might from
another instructor without the same set of experiences. The relationships between
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
22
contexts form patterns over time that either challenge or support the transition to
kindergarten for all children. It is important for school leaders, educators, and parents to
understand the inner workings of these contextual networks and to adopt transition
practices that will support the child’s success in kindergarten.
Kindergarten Transition as a Process
A unique feature of the Ecological and Dynamic Model of Transition includes the
establishment, over time, of unique and complex relationships between the child, family,
peers, school, neighborhood, and community. Since these relationships evolve gradually,
practitioners and parents should view transitions as dynamic processes and not merely as
static events (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). Hanson et al. (2000) identified several
factors that facilitated the transition process for parents of children with special needs and
their teachers, which included consideration of the child’s transition into kindergarten as
a process that should be started early as well as information exchange that occurs in
advance of the transition meeting. High-intensity practices, or strategies inclined to
optimize the transition process, should be adopted to maximize collaboration between
early childhood and special education programs and families (Rous et al., 2007). Despite
this conceptualization of transitions unfolding as a process, many parents of children with
special needs and their service providers still report experiencing the child’s educational
transitions as a singular event (Hanson et al., 2000). A potential cause for this reported
experience from parents and service providers may be found in examining the differences
that exist between preschool and kindergarten.
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23
The Move from Preschool to Kindergarten
When children move from preschool into kindergarten, there is typically a change
in location, staff, instructional focus, legislative mandates, program goals and mission,
and eligibility requirements for special education services. The shift from preschool to
kindergarten is particularly noteworthy due to distinct differences between the two
educational settings that may pose challenges for some children, especially those with
special needs. Lack of alignment between children’s preschool experiences and their
experiences in the kindergarten classroom could be a potential cause for the high
prevalence of transition difficulties (Jiang et al., 2021). Kindergarten classrooms are
typically replete of free choice play centers often found in preschool classrooms that
promote child-initiated, routines-based learning (Early et al., 2010). Students in
kindergarten spend considerably more time engaging in academic, teacher-structured
learning activities, particularly in the areas of literacy and mathematics, than they do in
preschool (Early et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000; Vitiello et al., 2020). Class
size is also larger in kindergarten than in preschool (Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000;
Vitiello et al., 2020), which impacts the time a teacher can spend in support of students
who need it. Class size differences could contribute to the quality of teacher-child
interactions when formal schooling begins. According to the Vitiello et al. (2020) study,
teacher-child interactions in the Emotional Support and Instructional Support domains
were rated lower in kindergarten as compared to preschool.
The transition from preschool to kindergarten also heralds changes in the ways
that parents and teachers communicate, which reflects the impact that transitions have on
families. Preschool communications are typically parent-initiated and focused on
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
24
supporting the family and child’s needs, whereas, in kindergarten, teachers typically
initiate communication with parents to discuss a problem that the child is having (RimmKaufmann & Pianta, 1998). Such differences between preschool and kindergarten can set
the stage for transition challenges for many children and families.
Aside from the differences between preschool and kindergarten, there are also
several key differences between early intervention and school-age support for students
with special needs. Early intervention service providers support and empower families
and preschool teachers to promote the child’s successful participation in everyday
routines and activities through the utilization of embedded instruction that is primarily
delivered through a practice-based coaching model (Inbar-Furst et al., 2020). The service
delivery and instructional approaches are appropriate since children of preschool age are
typically functioning in their homes or early childhood learning environments (Fox et al.,
2002). Early intervention service providers intentionally recognize the family’s priorities,
strengths, and concerns while coaching and teaching target skills in the settings and
during the routines in which the child needs them to function successfully (Inbar-Furst et
al., 2020). On the other hand, school-age special education services are typically
classroom-based and can be delivered in a regular classroom or a resource room setting.
Although home support and family engagement are still essential elements of a child’s
education plan in school-age programming, many parents feel frustrated by what they
perceive as a lack of communication about their child’s progress and behavioral
difficulties after kindergarten begins (Malsch et al., 2011). As children with special needs
transition into kindergarten, interventions shift from routines-based, naturalistic strategies
in preschool early intervention to more academically focused programs in kindergarten
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
25
where learning materials and content are modified to meet the child’s individual learning
needs in the least restrictive environment (LRE) to the greatest extent appropriate.
Incongruence between preschool early interventions and school-age special education
delivery can also be a source of challenge for children with special needs during the
transition into elementary school.
Transition Challenges for Children with Special Needs
A major goal of early childhood special education programs is to promote the
successful entry of the young child with disabilities into kindergarten and for the child to
be included in the least restrictive environment to the greatest extent possible once formal
schooling begins (Conn-Powers et al., 1990). While all children experience transitions
differently, many are at risk for transition difficulties, especially children with special
needs (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021; Justice et al., 2009; McIntyre et al., 2007;
McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000).
Jiang et al. (2021) studied kindergarten entry for 801 students during the 20172018 school year. Teachers reported that 688 of the 801 students (86%) experienced the
transition to kindergarten difficulty. Children with individualized education plans (IEPs)
receiving special education services were at “substantially increased odds of having some
or extensive transition difficulties.” A child’s gender (male) and home language were
also associated with a greater risk of kindergarten transition challenges. Jiang and
colleagues also determined that transition difficulties were “interrelated,” meaning that if
a child exhibited difficulty in one area, the child would likely exhibit difficulty across
several areas of performance.
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26
Perry and Weinstein (1998) suggested that successful school transitions span three
areas: academic, behavioral, and social functioning. Children with disabilities exhibit
difficulty in all three areas, which puts them at risk for transition difficulties. Jiang et al.
(2021) examined children’s ability to meet academic demands, make friends and work in
groups (social functioning) as well as follow schedules and organize (behavioral
functioning). Results indicated that 30% of all children exhibit difficulty in all five areas
and that 74% of all children experienced transition difficulty in at least one area of study,
with meeting academic demands and being organized as the two areas of greatest
difficulty for children upon kindergarten entry (Jiang et al., 2021). A child’s gender and
IEP status were consistent predictors of transition difficulty, with boys struggling more
than girls and children with IEPs experiencing more difficulty than those without (Hair et
al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021).
We know a great deal about the characteristics of children with special needs and
what puts them at risk for transition difficulties. Although having friends at school
positively impacts academic performance and perceptions about school (Ladd, 1990),
children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) oftentimes struggle with change, are less
centrally connected to the social structure of the classroom and spend less time with
friends while at school (Chamberlain et al., 2007; Larcombe et al., 2019). Children with
special needs typically have language learning deficits, which impact socialization and
academic performance (Jiang et al., 2021). The presence of receptive and expressive
language difficulties just before school entry is a significant predictor of kindergarten
outcomes, and the presence of receptive language abilities is strongly predictive of later
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
27
reading outcomes and the ability of the child to process language and follow directions
(Justice et al., 2009; Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2002).
Many children with disabilities tend to form smaller social networks than
typically developing peers and have difficulty regulating social-emotional responses to
situational demands (Chen et al., 2017). Social-emotional regulation is often challenging
for children with special needs, though it is essential for children’s success in adjusting to
kindergarten: Children who are better able to self-regulate their emotions and behaviors
at kindergarten entry are better able to engage in content-area learning (Blair & Razza,
2007). Children’s adaptive behavior upon kindergarten entry was directly related to
teacher reports of behavioral self-control, cognitive self-control, and work habits in the
spring of the kindergarten year (Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2009). The presence of competent
adaptive behaviors and few problem behaviors in preschool was a significant predictor of
positive kindergarten transition outcomes in children with and without disabilities,
strongly suggesting that adaptive behavior is a predictor of early school outcomes
(Welchons & McIntyre, 2017). The reason for a child’s behavioral difficulties can be
quite complex as reported by parents of children with autism spectrum disorder, who cite
that communication difficulties are often the source of the child’s frustration over not
being understood (Larcombe et al., 2019). Children’s needs are unique, varied, and
complex, yet they are generally very well understood by the child’s family. When schools
adopt transition practices that promote collaboration among parents, preschool special
education teachers, and kindergarten teachers to promote the successful transition of a
child with special needs into school, parents, and practitioners report a high degree of
satisfaction with the process (Conn-Powers et al., 1990). Research also suggests that
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
28
high-quality transition practices may mitigate the challenges that children with
disabilities face when entering kindergarten (LoCasale-Crouch et al., 2008). Early
intervention programs and school entities are legally mandated to support children with
disabilities through transitions, including the transition from preschool early intervention
into kindergarten programming. Special education law mandates transition supports for
children experiencing life changes, including the move from preschool early intervention
into kindergarten.
Federal and State Mandates
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004
was first established in 1975 as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. In 1983
amendments were added to the Act, and in 1990 the Act was reauthorized and renamed
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) by Congress. In 2004, the law
was again reauthorized and then renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Improvement Act (IDEIA). The IDEIA is a federal law that sets forth requirements for
educating students with disabilities in the United States. Though the law has undergone
several changes since its inception in 1975, the basic tenets of the law have remained.
Under this federal law, students with disabilities are guaranteed access to a free,
appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) to the
maximum extent appropriate to promote inclusion with non-disabled peers. An
individualized education program (IEP) is developed by a team of individuals (including
the child’s parents) to ensure access to FAPE for the child with special needs, and IEP
teams are mandated to monitor a child’s progress toward goals. Part B of the IDEIA sets
forth principles related to the education of children with disabilities from ages 3 through
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
29
21 inclusive, and states receive preschool formula grants in accordance with 20 U.S.C.
§1419 of the IDEIA to fund services for children ages 3-5 with special needs.
Furthermore, Chapter 14 of Pennsylvania’s Public School Code of 1949 outlines the
provisions for the education of students ages 3-21, inclusive, who are suspected or
identified as having exceptional needs and who require specially designed instruction to
access FAPE.
Early Intervention to School-Age Transition in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Special Education (BSE), in coordination with
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Early Intervention Services (BEIS), has set forth requirements
for a smooth transition for children with special needs as they move from preschool early
intervention services into school-age programming (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2003). In Pennsylvania, “for children who are within one year of transition to
a program for school-age students, the IEP must contain goals and objectives which
address the transition process” (Public School Code, 1949c). Furthermore, in February of
the calendar year in which the young child is eligible to attend kindergarten, the
Preschool Early Intervention program is obligated to convene a transition meeting with
the child’s parents and the child’s school district of residence and sends each family an
invitation to a meeting for their child (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022a).
During the meeting, the Preschool Early Intervention program must review with the
family and present an Intent to Register form, which enables parents to indicate whether
they intend to send the child to kindergarten in the fall (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2022b; Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022c). In Pennsylvania,
parents have the option of requesting that their child with special needs remain in the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
30
Preschool Early Intervention program for one additional year rather than transitioning
into school-age programming. At the conclusion of the additional year of preschool early
intervention, the child must transition out of the early intervention program.
Emphasis on the early establishment of kindergarten transition goals in the IEP
for a child with special needs, facilitation of a kindergarten transition meeting between
the Preschool Early Intervention program, parents, and the child’s school district several
months in advance of the start of school, reflects the importance of considering
kindergarten transition as a process (as opposed to a single event in time). Parents of
children with special needs in Pennsylvania have the option of requesting their child
remain in early intervention for an additional year, which reflects a commitment to
consider families integral and valued decision-makers for their children. Although federal
and state laws mandate a set of requirements for Preschool Early Intervention programs
and school districts to follow for a child’s transition into kindergarten, these laws do not
provide information to practitioners about how to execute the process from a quality
perspective. Kindergarten transition practices are important for educational leaders to
study and to understand so that children with special needs and their families can be
maximally supported throughout the process of a child’s entry into school.
Kindergarten Transition Practices
Kindergarten transition policies and practices have a modest positive effect on
students’ academic achievement and parent-initiated involvement during the kindergarten
year (Schulting et al., 2005). Pianta et al. (1999) surveyed 3,895 kindergarten teachers on
their use of and opinions about 21 transition practices and 15 possible barriers to
implementing them during the 1997-1998 school year. In the Pianta et al. (1999) study,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
31
48% of teachers felt that all of the transition practices held merit. The most commonly
used transition practices were of lower intensity, non-individualized, most often endorsed
by teachers, and included talking to the parent after school started and holding an open
house. Practices that were of higher intensity, more individualized to the child, and
included activities that occurred before school started, involved personal contact (e.g.,
home visit, letter to the family and child before school began, a visit by the kindergarten
teacher to the child’s preschool), yet were most often associated with barriers for
implementation (Pianta et al., 1999). Reported barriers to implementing high-intensity,
individualized practices were that class lists are generated too late in the summer to reach
out to incoming students and families, the requirement of summer work for no pay, the
lack of a transition plan in the school district, home visits take too much time and could
be dangerous, disinterest by parents and preschool teachers, lack of administrative
support (Pianta et al., 1999). Results of the Pianta et al. (1999) study revealed that the
most endorsed practices by teachers were those that least aligned to a “ready schools”
framework that focuses on what schools can do to be ready for the child.
LaParo et al. (2000) examined data from a national sampling of kindergarten
teachers to find out what kind of transition practices were being used for children with
special needs. The researchers studied two groups of kindergarten teachers: one group of
teachers had no children with special needs in their class, and the other group consisted of
teachers with at least one child with special needs in their class (LaParo et al., 2000).
Results indicated that although significantly more teachers with at least one child
receiving special education services reported using transition practices that reached back
before school began and consisted of activities like talking to parents or sending a letter
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
32
to parents before schools started, holding an open house before school started, and
participating in kindergarten registration, few differences existed in the reported use of
transition activities for teachers with and without students with special needs (LaParo et
al., 2000). Teachers of students with special needs reported reading records and talking
with the child’s kindergarten teacher as the two most commonly used transition practices
(LaParo et al., 2000). Results of the LaParo et al. (2000) study supported the findings of
Pianta et al. (1999), which indicated that kindergarten transition practices for children
consisted of non-individualized activities that occurred after the start of school. Although
children with disabilities were beginning to receive some transition practices that were
unique from those received by typically developing peers, there were still very minimal
differences between the two groups of students (LaParo et al., 2000).
The overall use of transition activities increased between the school year 19981989 and the school year 2000-2011with the most frequently used transition activities
becoming more customary and least frequently used transition activities becoming less
prevalent (Little et al., 2016). For example, between the two school years a decade apart
from each other, there was a significant increase (from 76% to 87%) in the reported usage
of visitation programs where children and families were supported in visiting the
elementary school in advance of the start of the school year (Little et al., 2016). Sending
information home about kindergarten also increased significantly (from 86% to 95%)
between the two school years as well (Little et al., 2016).
Daley et al. (2011) examined the supports children with special needs received as
they entered kindergarten under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA),
as well as how child, family, school, and district relationships predict the supports that
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
33
children with special needs receive upon kindergarten entry. Since LaParo et al. (2000),
there has been little research into the kinds of kindergarten transition practices offered to
children with disabilities and their families. Results of the Daley et al. (2011) study
indicated that the most frequently reported transition practices were of low intensity and
consisted of receiving the child’s preschool records, parents being encouraged to meet
with school staff, classroom visits by the child and family, and providing information to
the family about the transition. Aside from the implementation of one high-intensity
practice (i.e., developing preparatory strategies for the child’s kindergarten entry), the
severity of the child’s disability was not associated with the use of either low or highintensity practices, and in fact, the more severe the child’s disability, the less often
parents participated in the kindergarten transition process (Daley et al., 2011).
Parent Involvement in Kindergarten Transition
When parents participate in their children’s education, the children are more
likely to experience academic success, exhibit appropriate behaviors, and advance
socially, and the transition to kindergarten process is an opportune time to engage parents
in their child’s plan to assist the child in reaching their full potential in school and in life
(Epstein et al., 2019; Hoffman et al., 2020; Jeynes, 2012). In fact, parent participation
may help to partially moderate the effects of transition practices on a child’s academic
performance in kindergarten (Schulting et al., 2005).
Historically, parent involvement has been considered in terms of a parent or
caregiver’s attendance at school-sponsored events or meetings, yet the perception of what
it means for parents to be engaged in their child’s education is broadening to include
when parents establish home support for learning, communicate with the school about the
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34
child’s progress and needs, volunteer at school, participate in decision making for their
child, and collaborate with the community for the betterment of the school system
(Epstein et al., 2019; Hoffman et al., 2020).
Obtaining parent involvement in transition planning is challenging for some
school teams, yet it is a requirement under the federal Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA) for families of children with disabilities. The IDEA contains
provisions for the inclusion of parent’s active participation in the development of the
evaluation of the child by adding information regarding strengths, needs, and priorities as
well as actively participating in the development of the child’s Individualized Education
Plan (IEP) as well as requirements for parent participation during transition planning.
Although IDEA and other state laws require schools to get parents of children with
special needs involved in the special education process, including transition planning for
the child, those laws do not guide school teams on exactly how to do it. Research on
parent engagement indicates that when schools are intentional about getting parents
involved through the support of a key team member (e.g., a service coordinator, school
psychologist, or educational leader), results are greater than when schools merely ask
parents to volunteer time to become involved (Hanson et al., 2000; Jeynes, 2012).
Hoffman et al. (2020) examined the use of the Kids in Transition to School (KITS)
Program, which provides parents with support for learning at home, opportunities for
parents and schools to partner with one another, and gives families a voice in the
decision-making process for their child. Results indicated a significant difference
between the control and the experimental group of parents in the quality of teacher-parent
relationships, parents’ perceptions of the school, and the parent’s ability to support their
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
35
child’s learning at home with the KITS program producing positive results between
families and schools (Hoffman et al., 2020). Overall, the KITS program supported the
development of positive relationships between parents, teachers, and the school. Aside
from supportive strategies intended to engage families in the educational process,
administrative support for those functions is essential to increasing consequential and
impactful parent engagement, and school leadership can facilitate the establishment of a
school climate that is supportive of family-school partnerships built on trustful
relationships and inclusive viewpoints (Christenson et al., 2003).
Parent Concerns
Most parents of typically developing children report few concerns about their
child’s transition into kindergarten, aside from some worries about socio-behavioral skills
like following directions and separating from parents (Wildinger & McIntyre, 2011). In
the Wildinger and McIntyre (2011) study, a large majority of parents of typically
developing children had no concerns about toileting, their child’s ability to communicate
with others, or their child’s ability to form relationships with others. Conversely, parents
of children with special needs experience a range of emotions as their children move
from one educational setting to another. Parents of children with special needs report
feeling guilt and judgment around the time their child transitions to kindergarten (Fontil
et al., 2020). They also report to teachers concerns about safety issues, their child’s
acceptance by other children, their child’s ability to make friends, the educational
placement of the child, and overall feelings of grief over the loss of normalcy (Jewett et
al., 1998). Parents of children with special needs have a separate set of worries and
priorities compared to parents with typically developing children. Parents of special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
36
needs children rank toileting skills as the most important self-care skill upon entry to
kindergarten, and they rank pre-academic and motor skills as the least important for
school readiness (Larcombe et al., 2019). In contrast to parents of typically developing
children, parents of children with special needs worry about their child’s ability to
communicate effectively with others in school, their child’s ability to adjust to school,
behavior problems, following directions, the child being shy or timid, making friends,
being distracted and toileting concerns (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022; Larcombe et al., 2019).
A majority of parents in the Larcombe et al. (2019) study reported that kindergarten
transition was different for their child with special needs as compared to their typical,
same-age peers because of communication challenges, difficulty adjusting to a new
setting, challenges in understanding spoken language and verbal directions, and difficulty
understanding expectations. Parents of children with special needs also expressed
concerns about their child receiving the appropriate amount of support to overcome
sensory difficulties and their child’s need for explicit teaching of self-care skills, like
toileting, through social stories and other visual supports as kindergarten began
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report feeling
as though they must advocate for their children to break the stigma surrounding the
disorder and to always fight to have their child included, which are challenges that
parents of typically developing children rarely encounter (Larcombe et al., 2019).
The severity of a child’s disability is inversely related to the level of parent
participation in the kindergarten transition process (Daley et al., 2011). The greater the
severity of the child’s disability, the less involved parents are throughout the child’s
transition to kindergarten. One reason that parents may not be involved in the child’s
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
37
school transition is that many parents do not feel included in the placement decisions for
their child (Hanson et al., 2000). It is important for school leaders to acknowledge the
significant amount of anxiety, fear, and confusion that parents of children with special
needs often experience when their child moves from one known and familiar educational
environment where relationships have been formed with a set of early intervention
service providers and into an unknown environment with new teachers and staff in
kindergarten. The uncertainty about the process oftentimes contributes to a range of
feelings and emotions for parents, which can challenge the transition process. If schools
want to form collaborative partnerships with parents of children with special needs to
facilitate smooth and successful school transitions, schools need to convey a spirit of
commitment to the child and family as well as devote time and energy to open
conversations with the family about how to best support the child. Practitioners,
researchers, and school leaders should also endeavor to find out what parents of children
with disabilities want and need during the transition to kindergarten process.
Parent Needs and Preferences
Parents of children receiving special education want schools and teachers to
understand their child’s specific needs and be willing to modify the learning environment
as well as to provide individualized instructional supports to maximize the child’s school
experience (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents want schools to be open and welcoming to
their children with special needs, to see the child as capable, and to display a willingness
and a commitment to providing the child with inclusive learning and social experiences
(Larcombe et al., 2019). Still, parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report
feeling unsure whether the teacher is making accommodations for their child in the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
38
classroom as agreed upon during the child’s entry to kindergarten (Larcombe et al.,
2019).
Parents of children with special needs do not want schools to suggest delaying the
child’s entry to school, which parents find offensive (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of
children with special needs want schools to have high expectations for their children
despite how parents of children with autism spectrum disorder report lower academic
expectations from teachers toward their children (Larcombe et al., 2019). When parents
feel as though the school is meeting their child’s needs, they report feeling less pressure
to advocate for their child (Larcombe et al., 2019). Parents of children with autism
spectrum disorder report that high-intensity transition practices that extend back before
school starts (i.e., visiting the school before kindergarten starts, visualizing the learning
environment, and meeting the teacher before school begins) as being helpful in
supporting their child’s ability to adjust to the new school setting (Larcombe et al., 2019).
When the opinions of the parents of children with special needs were examined, the item
‘What caregiver can do to prepare for transition’ was the most requested kind of
information, which suggests that families are willing to do whatever is necessary to
support their child’s successful entry into kindergarten (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022). If
school systems are able to better understand the perspectives and concerns of parents of
children with complex special needs as the child’s entry to kindergarten approaches,
Preschool Early Intervention programs and school districts will be at a greater advantage
to engage parents in the process.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
39
Summary
Transitions are experienced by all people across their lifespans. Early educational
transitions, such as the move from preschool to kindergarten, are some of the most crucial
ones for young children and their families to navigate. A child’s success in kindergarten
is an incredibly important predictor of a child’s success in later school years, but many
children, including those with special needs, are at risk for transition to kindergarten
difficulty. School leaders are faced with the challenge of implementing transition to
kindergarten practices that are compliant with federal and state laws, supportive of
children with special needs, and considerate of parent concerns and perspectives. Though
parents of children with special needs believe that the child should possess some
readiness skills in advance of kindergarten entry, they also believe the school
environment should be ready to accommodate the child’s individual needs. Though
parents of children with complex special needs tend to be involved less in the
kindergarten transition process, they also report wanting to know how to best support
their child through transition. Understanding the perspectives and concerns of parents of
children with complex special needs as kindergarten entry approaches will enhance the
ability of school leaders to develop supportive transition practices to increase a child’s
likelihood of success in kindergarten and beyond.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
40
CHAPTER III
Methodology
A comprehensive literature review revealed the important role that kindergarten
plays in the future academic success of children (Rimm-Kaufmann et al., 2000). A child’s
transition into kindergarten marks an opportunity for parents, teachers, and school leaders
to work together to shape a child’s immediate and long-term school success (Duncan et
al., 2007; Entwisle & Alexander, 1993). Children with special needs are at particular risk
for kindergarten transition difficulties due to a variety of factors, including challenges
with academic, behavioral, and social functioning (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021;
Justice et al., 2009; McIntyre et al., 2007; McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann &
Pianta, 2000). Notable differences between preschool and kindergarten instructional
models may also contribute to the transition vulnerability that children with special needs
face when entering school-age programming. Preschool early interventionists use
embedded instruction and rely on practice-based coaching techniques to empower a
child’s caregivers to target skill development within the context of a child’s daily routines
and activities (Inbar-Furst et al., 2020). By comparison, academic achievement,
particularly in the areas of reading, writing, and mathematics, becomes a primary focus
when children reach kindergarten.
While some parents of children with special needs believe that their children
should have a certain set of school-readiness skills before entry into kindergarten, a
majority of parents want to be assured that the school will be ready to educate their child
through the provision of adaptations and accommodations designed specifically to meet
the individual and unique needs of their child (Larcombe et al., 2019). Including parents
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
41
in the transition process is crucial to building trust and collaboration between the family
and the school district.
Federal and state mandates like the IDEIA and Act 212 in Pennsylvania require
schools to involve parents of children with special needs at many crucial points across the
special education trajectory: during evaluation processes, throughout the development of
a child’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP), and at times of transition, including the
transition out of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten. Although these laws
outline “what” should happen at these crucial points, these laws do not provide specific
guidance on “how” to best execute these requirements from a quality perspective.
Understanding the concerns and priorities of families of children with complex special
needs throughout the transition from preschool to kindergarten will help school leaders
develop transition practices designed to maximally support the child and build trustful
and collaborative relationships with families. Educational transitions, like the one from
preschool early intervention to school-age special education programming, hold
enormous potential to shape a child’s future success in school and throughout life.
Purpose
This study examined the perceptions and priorities of parents of children with
complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention into
kindergarten, the level of understanding by special education leaders of parent concerns,
and the extent to which the transition to kindergarten practices of the early intervention
program and school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania align with what
parents need and want. This field of study is especially important since a child’s
successful entry into kindergarten can impact future school success and also because
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
42
children with complex special education needs are at risk for transition difficulties.
Understanding parent priorities is the first step in supporting special education leaders’
ability to design practices to promote collaboration and build trust. When parents feel as
though they are being understood and believe their child’s needs are being met, parents
feel less pressure to advocate for their children (Larcombe et al., 2019).
This study also has financial implications for the preschool early intervention
program as well as for school districts. In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of
electing their child to remain in early intervention for one additional year beyond the first
year of eligibility to attend kindergarten. Neither the preschool early intervention
program nor the child’s school district receives funding for these children, referred to
colloquially as “K5” or “Act 30” students by school leaders. Encouraging the timely
transition of children out of early intervention and into kindergarten not only benefits the
child by getting them into a program that offers more instructional days per year with a
longer daily schedule than a typical preschool schedule permits, but it also alleviates a
financial burden for the preschool early intervention program and school districts. The
timely transition of children out of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten also
aligns with the Office of Child Development and Early Learning’s (OCDEL) guidance:
While parents have the option of having their child remain in Early Intervention
when their child is eligible for kindergarten, it is incumbent on the IEP team to
fully inform the parents of the advantages of transitioning to school-age
programming with same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education,
2003).
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43
This study utilized a mixed-methods research design to explore the perceptions
and priorities of parents and special education leaders as well as to investigate the
alignment of parent needs and concerns with the transition practices of the preschool
early intervention program and the school districts across Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania. Participants included parents and special education leaders, who completed
a survey, which enabled the collection of quantitative data. Some survey participants
from both the parent and special education leader groups consented to complete a semistructured interview with the researcher, which provided qualitative data for the study.
Data collection and analysis addressed three research questions.
Research Questions:
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
The first research question specifically aimed to understand what is most
important to parents of children with complex special needs as their child transitions out
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
44
of preschool early intervention and into kindergarten. The second question enabled the
researcher to explore what school leaders perceive to be most important to the parents of
children with complex special needs as they prepare for their child’s move into leaders’
respective school districts. The third question enabled a comparison of parents’ reported
perceptions and priorities to the current transition to kindergarten practices of the early
intervention program and school districts to find out how well those practices aligned
with what parents reported to be important to them.
Setting
This study included parents of preschool children with special needs who were
receiving early intervention services through the WIU preschool early intervention
program and who were eligible to enter kindergarten in the fall of 2023. The second
participant group was comprised of special education leaders from school districts and
the intermediate unit in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Westmoreland County is
situated in southwestern Pennsylvania and is primarily comprised of suburban and rural
areas, with the City of Greensburg located roughly in the center of the county. The land
area in square mileage in Westmoreland County is 1071.71, and the population per
square mile is 345.1 (U.S. Census, n.d.). In 2020, the population of Westmoreland
County was 354,663, and the population in the City of Greensburg was 14,976 (U.S.
Census, n.d.). Age statistics from the U.S. Census indicate that 18.2% of the population
in Westmoreland County is comprised of children under the age of 18, with 4.3% of the
population being under the age of five. Residents of Westmoreland County over age 65
comprise 23.7% of the population, which indicates that approximately 58.1% of the
population in the county is between the ages of 19-64 (U.S. Census, n.d.). Statistics on
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
45
race indicate that 94.3% of the population of Westmoreland County are White, 2.8%
Black or African American, 1.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.0% Asian, and 0.2% American
Indian (U.S. Census, n.d.).
Housing, family, and living arrangement data from the U.S. Census Bureau
indicate that there were 168,321 housing units in Westmoreland County in 2021, with
77.9% of occupants owning the home in which they lived (U.S. Census, n.d.). The
median value of a home owned by its occupants during 2017-2021 was $162,300, and the
average number of occupants per household was 2.8 (U.S. Census, n.d.). During 20172021, 91.6% of the population had been living in the same home for at least one year.
These data indicate that over a majority of residents own their homes and that housing
permanence is relatively stable in Westmoreland County.
U.S Census data from 2020 also reveal that 94.4% of residents 25 years and older
had earned a high school diploma and that 30.8% of the population had earned a
bachelor’s degree or higher. Sixty-one percent of residents 16 years of age and older
comprise the civilian workforce in Westmoreland County, and the median household
income in 2021 was $64,708 (U.S. Census, n.d.). In 2021, persons living in poverty in
Westmoreland County comprised 11.2% of the population (U.S. Census, n.d.).
Westmoreland County is comprised of 17 school districts, which vary greatly in
size from one another. The Hempfield Area School District ranks as the largest school
district in Westmoreland County with 5,279, and the Norwin School District places
closely behind with 5,078 students as of December 1, 2021 (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2023). Mid-size districts in Westmoreland County are Belle Vernon, FranklinRegional, Greater Latrobe, Greensburg-Salem, Kiski Area, New Kensington-Arnold, and
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
46
Penn-Trafford have a student population range of 2,000-4,000 students (Pennsylvania
Department of Education, 2023). Smaller school districts with fewer than 2,000 students
are Burrell, Derry, Jeannette City, Ligonier, Monessen City, Mount Pleasant,
Southmoreland, and Yough (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023). As of
December 1, 2021, there were 43,693 students enrolled in Westmoreland County’s school
districts, and 7,467 of them, or 17%, were receiving special education services
(Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023).
The preschool early intervention program in Westmoreland County provides
special education services to children, ages three to five, who exhibit a 25% delay or
greater in one or more areas of development. The preschool early intervention program in
Westmoreland County is operated by the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit (WIU). The
WIU is one of 29 intermediate units across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that were
established in 1970 by the Pennsylvania General Assembly to function as regional
education service agencies (Public School Code, 1949a). During the 2021-2022 school
year, the WIU preschool early intervention program served an aggregate of 1,498
children, ages three to five, with identified special needs (Office of Child Development
and Early Learning [OCDEL], 2022). The WIU early intervention program coordinated
transition to kindergarten meetings for 472 preschool children and their families in
February 2023. Of those 472 children, 72 of them were considered “K5” or Act 80
students, which means that they were actually eligible to transition to kindergarten in the
fall of 2022, yet their parents elected for them to remain in early intervention for the
2022-2023 school year. The “K5” group represented 15.3% of all kindergarten transition
meetings in February 2023 in Westmoreland County.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
47
The 472 children for whom the WIU early intervention program facilitated a
kindergarten transition meeting in February 2023, represented a range of disability
categories: Autism (62), Developmental Delay (112), Hearing Impairment, including
Deafness (8), Multiple Disabilities (5), Orthopedic Impairment (2), Other Health
Impairment (4), Speech-Language Impairment (274), Visual Impairment, including
Blindness (4), and Traumatic Brain Injury (1). In Pennsylvania, the Developmental
Disability category is only applicable during the preschool years and is not a recognized
disability category once children transition into school-age programming. Hempfield
Area School District had the most transition to kindergarten meetings in February 2023,
with 57, and the Monessen City School District had the fewest with ten.
Participants
The participants in this study were comprised of two groups: parents of preschoolage children with complex special education needs and special education leaders from the
school districts in Westmoreland County as well as from the WIU preschool early
intervention program. For the purposes of this study, a child with “complex special
education needs” was operationally defined as any child, regardless of disability
category, who was receiving two or more early intervention services (i.e., specialized
instruction, speech-language, occupational therapy, physical therapy, vision support,
and/or hearing services). A review of early intervention records in October 2022 by the
researcher revealed that there were 167 children in the preschool early intervention
program receiving two or more services as outlined in their Individual Education Plans
(IEP) who were eligible to attend kindergarten in the fall of 2023. The researcher sent the
Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT (Modified) Survey to the parents of all
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
48
167 children (Appendix A). The Form contained a link to the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) Survey – Modified, which was used with written
permission from Dr. Laura Lee of the University of Oregon (Appendix B) and
administered through Google Forms (Appendix C). Parents who completed the survey
were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview with the researcher. All parent
participants who agreed to be interviewed completed the Parent Consent to Participate –
Semi-Structured Interview Form (Appendix D) and answered questions posed by the
researcher (Appendix E).
Leaders of special education programs in Pennsylvania public schools are
required to be appropriately credentialed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education awards Supervisory Certificates to
individuals who have completed at least five years of satisfactory certified experience in
the area in which the Supervisory Certificate is sought, have completed an approved
graduate program, and who have presented evidence of satisfactory achievement on
prescribed assessments (Public School Code, 1949d). An educator in Pennsylvania
possessing a Supervisor of Special Education certification is qualified to manage and
monitor special education systems and to serve as a liaison between school district
administration and the certified special education staff (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2023b). The Pennsylvania Department of Education (2023b) outlines that
Supervisors of Special Education should enhance the attainment of the district’s
expectations and goals by authorizing activities using judgment not equally shared by all
professionally special education certified staff and provide direct input to administrators,
which affects the employment, assignment, transfer, promotion, layoff, discharge, or
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
49
other similar personnel actions of other professional level employees certified in special
education.
Supervisors of Special Education in Pennsylvania are qualified to provide supervisory
duties only in the area of special education, though educators in Pennsylvania holding a
Principal PK-12 certificate are also qualified to direct and supervise special education
staff at a building or district level (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2023b).
The researcher sent the Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate
Form – Special Education Leader Transition Survey - Kindergarten (SELTS-K) to 22
special education leaders representing all 17 school districts as well as the preschool early
intervention program in Westmoreland County (Appendix F). All leaders were employed
by their respective school districts or intermediate unit to manage special education
programming. The Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate Form shared
with the special education leaders contained a link to the Special Education Leader
Transition Survey - Kindergarten (SELTS-K), which was administered through Google
Forms (Appendix G). The SELTS-K was developed by the researcher and designed to
mirror much of the content represented in the FEIT Survey-Modified, which was
administered to parents in the study. Special education leaders who completed the
SELTS-K were invited to participate in a semi-structured interview with the researcher.
All special education leader participants who volunteered to be interviewed completed
the Special Education Leader Consent to Participate Form - Semi-Structured Interview
(Appendix G) and answered questions administered by the researcher (Appendix I).
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
50
Research Plan
The research plan for this action research project is based on several noteworthy
findings that were presented throughout the literature review. Children with disabilities
experience more transitions than their non-disabled peers, including moves into and out
of early intervention and special education environments – oftentimes from birth - which
can be stressful for the child and family (Wolery, 1989). The move from preschool to
kindergarten can be challenging for any child, but children with disabilities are at
particular risk for transition difficulties (Hair et al., 2006; Jiang et al., 2021; Justice et al.,
2009; McIntyre et al., 2007; McIntyre et al., 2010; Rimm-Kaufmann & Pianta, 2000).
Parents are important decision-makers for their children. When the opinions of parents of
children with special needs are examined, they most request information related to what
they can do to prepare for their child’s transition, which suggests a willingness and desire
to support the process (Haciibrahimoglu, 2022).
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Special Education (BSE), in coordination with
Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Early Intervention Services (BEIS), has set forth requirements
for a smooth transition for children with special needs as they move from preschool early
intervention services into school-age programming (Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2003). Each February, early intervention programs in Pennsylvania schedule
and convene transition meetings with school districts and the parents of children with
special needs who are eligible to attend kindergarten later in the fall. In Pennsylvania,
parents have the option of electing their child to remain in the preschool early
intervention program for one additional year, thus delaying the transition into
kindergarten. However, early intervention programs are guided by OCDEL to inform
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
51
families of the advantages of transitioning their child to school-age programming on time
and with their same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2003). A review
of transition data from the WIU preschool early intervention program reveals that
approximately 15% of children eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of 2022 (i.e.,
roughly 70 students) remained in early intervention for the 2022-2023 school year.
Delaying kindergarten entry for children with special needs not only runs contrary to the
guidance from OCDEL, but it also has deleterious fiscal implications for school districts
as well as for the early intervention program, as neither the preschool early intervention
program nor the school district receives funding for these children.
Parents of children with special needs have a unique set of worries and priorities
compared to parents with typically developing children. Parents of children with special
needs report feeling guilt and judgment around the time their child transitions to
kindergarten (Fontil et al., 2020). They also report to teachers concerns about safety
issues, their child’s acceptance by other children, their child’s ability to make friends, the
educational placement of the child, and overall feelings of grief over the loss of normalcy
(Jewett et al., 1998). Understanding the priorities, needs, and concerns of this parent
group during their child’s transition out of preschool early intervention and into schoolage programming will enable special education leaders to shape practices and to develop
processes intended to maximally support the child’s special needs and to build
collaborative and trustful partnerships with families. If families feel well supported and
assured of their child’s well-being throughout the transition process, they might be more
likely to send their child to kindergarten with same-age peers. Parents of children with
complex special needs also might be more open to developing a collaborative and trustful
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
52
relationship with their child’s school district much earlier and with more success if school
leaders better understood what matters most to parents at this critical time.
The research plan for this action research project included the use of a
quantitative survey for parents (Appendix C) and special education leaders (Appendix G).
Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents (Appendix E) and
special education leaders (Appendix I). The combination of quantitative and qualitative
data collection approaches yielded a mixed-methods research design for this project. The
parent survey was modified by the researcher from its original version and used with
written permission obtained from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre on August 5, 2022, from the
University of Oregon (Appendix B).
The fiscal implications of this project are minimal as they relate to the resources
needed by the researcher to conduct the research plan. In a broader sense, however,
outcomes of this research could result in fiscal ramifications for school districts as well as
for the preschool early intervention program. When children remain in early intervention
for an additional year, they do so at the request of the child’s parents and with permission
from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, but without funding to the preschool
early intervention program. The WIU early intervention program bills school districts for
services provided to these students, but not usually to the level of $5133 it receives for
other non-Act 30 students. In turn, school districts also do not receive funding for the
education of these students, though they are obligated to reimburse the preschool early
intervention program. If special education leaders from school districts and the early
intervention program are able to gain deeper insight into the priorities, concerns, and
needs of parents of children with complex special needs, it strengthens a program’s
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
53
ability to maximally support the child and family while potentially lowering the
percentage of children who remain in early intervention beyond their eligibility to attend
kindergarten in their school district. When children receiving early intervention services
transition to kindergarten “on time” and with their same-age peers, it lessens the financial
obligations of school districts and the preschool early intervention program.
Research Design, Methods, and Data Collection
This action research project was approved by the Pennsylvania Western
University Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires
09/05/2023. The researcher also received permission from Dr. Jason Conway, Executive
Director of the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit, to proceed with the project before its
onset. Informed consent was obtained from all participants in this study by the researcher
for survey and interview participation.
A mixed methods research design was utilized to answer the three research
questions. Mixed methods is a group of approaches that combine quantitative and
qualitative data strands in a single study. According to Mertler (2022), interest in using a
mixed methods approach has increased over the past decade as researchers have
recognized the value that each data type brings to a study. Quantitative data provides a
broader, more generalized understanding of a topic, and qualitative data enables a deeper
understanding of a phenomenon with fewer participants. Quantitative studies can provide
vast amounts of numeric data that can be considered more representative of a sample,
while qualitative studies yield robust amounts of narrative and descriptive data.
Although both kinds of data were collected for this study, the researcher prioritized the
collection of quantitative data over that of qualitative, reflecting a type of mixed methods
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
54
approach that is known as an “explanatory-sequential research design” (Mertler, 2022).
Known also as “explanatory design,” this particular type of mixed-methods research
design includes the sequential collection of data in phases. Quantitative data is prioritized
over qualitative data: it is collected first and is then examined and analyzed. The decision
to prioritize quantitative data over qualitative is driven by the constructs of the research
question(s). Once collected and analyzed, results obtained from the quantitative data are
used to inform the collection of qualitative data. It is crucial to note that mixed methods
researchers must not only collect quantitative and qualitative data, but they must also
integrate them as well (Mertler, 2022).
Quantitative data was collected via surveys. A survey consent form and the
Family Experiences and Involvement in Transition (FEIT) Survey-Modified were sent to
167 families of children eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who
were receiving more than one special education service through the WIU Early
Intervention program. Participants were informed that if they elected to access the survey
link, they were granting informed consent to participate in the study as well as permitting
the use of data collected through the survey. The survey was administered via Google
Forms, and it contained 26 questions. Respondents remained anonymous, as email
addresses were not collected in the Google Form. Question types included short answer,
linear scale, check box, drop-down box, multiple choice, and multiple choice grid.
Question types were divided into four sections: Demographics and Background
Information, Priorities and Supports in Transition Planning, Next Steps – Interview
Opportunity, and Parting Thoughts.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
55
Survey consent forms and the Special Education Leader Transition Survey –
Kindergarten (SELTS-K) were sent to 22 special education leaders representing the 17
school districts and the preschool early intervention program in Westmoreland County.
Recipients of the consent/email were informed that if they chose to access the provided
survey link, they were granting informed consent to participate in the study as well as
permitting the use of data collected through the survey. The SELTS-K was administered
via Google Forms, and it contained 22 questions. Respondents remained anonymous, as
email addresses were not collected in the Google Form. Question types included short
answer, linear scale, multiple choice, and multiple choice grid, as well as drop-down
menu questions. Questions were divided into the following sections:
Background/Experience, Priorities and Supports in Transition Planning, Next Steps –
Interview Opportunity, and Parting Thoughts.
Qualitative data was collected via semi-structured interviews. Parents and special
education leaders who completed the survey were eligible to participate in an interview
with the examiner. Participants were informed that if they volunteered to submit to an
interview, anonymity with the researcher would be forfeited, as they would need to
provide an email address for the purpose of making contact to schedule the interview.
Once interest was indicated in participating in an interview, parent and school leader
participants were sent interview consent forms by the examiner. All interviews were held
in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office, and permission was sought by the researcher from
each interviewee to record the interview via the Zoom platform. Interview participants
were informed that consent was voluntary, they could stop the interview at any time
without question by the researcher, and they could choose not to answer a question.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
56
Participants were also informed by the researcher that their responses would remain
anonymous to others aside from the researcher, and interview participants were able to
obtain a copy of the interview if they requested one. Recorded interviews were saved on a
secure server and analyzed at a later date by the researcher. The semi-structured parent
interview (Appendix E) consisted of eight questions, and the semi-structured special
education leader interview (Appendix I) consisted of twelve questions. The research
questions, data sources, and the timeline for this action research project were well
aligned.
Research Question One
What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten? The 26-question Family Experiences and Involvement in Transition
(FEIT) Survey-Modified, which was modified from its original version and used with
permission from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre, was sent to the parents of children eligible to
transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and who were receiving more than one
special education service through the WIU Early Intervention program in November and
December 2022. Participants who completed the FEIT Survey-Modified and who agreed
to be interviewed by the researcher were asked eight questions in a semi-structured
interview format during January 2023. Interviews were recorded with participant consent
and were stored on a secure server.
Research Question Two
What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
57
needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten? The
22-question Special Education Leader Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K),
which was developed by the researcher to mirror data collected by the FEIT-Modified
Survey, was sent to special education leaders representing 17 school districts and the
preschool early intervention program in December 2022. A 12-question, semi-structured
interview was conducted by the researcher with special education leaders who completed
the SELTS-K and who provided informed consent to be interviewed. With participant
consent, interviews were recorded and stored on a secure server in January 2023.
Research Question Three
How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU Early
Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania?
Surveys sent to the parent and special education leader participant groups contained a
variety of question forms (linear scale, drop down, multiple choice, multiple choice-grid,
and short answer) to measure parent priorities (parent survey) and kindergarten transition
practices of school entities (special education leader survey). Surveys were sent to both
participant groups in December 2022. A small sample of participants from each group
agreed to submit to an interview conducted by the researcher. Results obtained from both
surveys and interview sets are used to examine the alignment of parent priorities with the
transition to kindergarten practices of school districts and the early intervention program.
Fiscal Information
When parents feel as though their priorities and concerns are not addressed during
their child’s transition out of preschool early intervention and into school-age special
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
58
education programming, they might be more likely to elect for their child to remain in
early intervention for an additional year and delay the child’s entry into kindergarten.
Neither the preschool early intervention program nor the child’s school district receives
funding for the provision of services to these children. The preschool early intervention
program invoices school districts for services rendered to these children, but not typically
to the level of the $5133 that the program receives for children not yet eligible to
transition to kindergarten. The number of students remaining in early intervention has
minimally fluctuated over the years, with a five-year average of 68 students, as shown in
Figure 1. The four-year average reimbursement received from school districts by the
early intervention program for school years 2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and
2021-2022 is $129,693. If the early intervention program had received monies for those
same children through OCDEL’s state allocation, the reimbursement for those children
would have averaged $347,760 for the same four-year period. The result is an average
negative cost differential of $218,067 for the early intervention program across the years
2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and 2021-2022 as depicted in Figure 2. School
district invoicing for the 2022-2023 school year has not been completed at the time of
this writing. However, during the 2022-2023 school year, there were 70 Act30/K5
students who remained in the early intervention program, which correlates to the trend
that has been observed since the 2018-2019 school year.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
59
Figure 1
Act 30/K5 Students in the WIU EI Program
A C T 3 0 / K5 ST UD E NT S IN T H E WIU E I P R O G R A M
Number of Students
80
76
70
70
70
68
21-22
22-23
5 year Average
70
55
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
18-19
19-20
20-21
School Year
Figure 2
Act 30/K5 Student Fiscal Impact on the WIU EI Program
Fiscal Impact of Act 30/K5 Students on the WIU EI Program
$400,000
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
$0
($100,000)
18-19
19-20
20-21
21-22
4-year Average
($200,000)
($300,000)
School District Reimbursement to the WIU EI program for Act 30/K5 Students
OCDEL Reimbursement Not Received by the WIU EI program for Act 30/K5 Students
Difference
Regardless of a child’s age or eligibility to transition to kindergarten, the
preschool early intervention program is legally, morally, and ethically bound to provide
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
60
the same level and quality of service needed by the child to access a free and appropriate
public education (FAPE). In the eyes of Pennsylvania’s OCDEL, the Westmoreland
Intermediate Unit should be able to accomplish that task for $5133 per child. However,
when Act 30/K5 students remain in early intervention for the additional year (beyond
when they are eligible to go to the school district), the early intervention program
receives an average of $1907 per student through invoicing the Act30/K5 students’
school districts, which is $3226 less per child than what the program would receive from
the state allocation to properly meet the needs of the child and to ensure access to FAPE.
When school leaders understand the priorities and perspectives of parents of
children transitioning from preschool early intervention services into school-age
programming, it is logical to assume that school leaders stand better equipped to support
those families and children throughout any transition process, especially the child’s
transition into kindergarten. If families feel optimally understood and supported, it is
hypothesized that the number of Act30/K5 students in the preschool early intervention
program would be reduced, which would alleviate a financial burden for the program.
Increasing the number of students transitioning into their school districts also has
benefits for school districts as well. A school district provides, in almost all cases, a full
day of educational programming to the child, whereas the preschool early intervention
program is structured to provide (at most) a half day of educational programming. The
longer time spent in a school day would undoubtedly benefit the child, who is ageeligible to attend kindergarten. In addition, when children transition to kindergarten with
their same-age peers, the school district team can begin to intervene more quickly to meet
the child’s needs as they relate to the district’s curriculum and expectations for learning
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
61
and being ready to learn. Intervening early in a focused and intentional manner would
likely lead to improved student outcomes and increased cost savings for a school district
in the long run. The overall cost of implementing this action research plan pales in
comparison to the potential cost savings to the early intervention program and the overall
and long-term educational benefits that could be realized for children with complex
special education needs.
Validity
Validity is a critical characteristic of research and is defined as the “degree to
which all the accumulated evidence supports the intended interpretation of test scores for
the proposed purpose” (Mertler, 2022). Validity refers to the extent to which a study’s
methods measure what they are intended to measure. Mertler (2022) describes several
actions that researchers can take to ensure the validity of the research. Qualitative
researchers should take precautions to ensure the factual accuracy of the information
being collected to promote the trustworthiness and credibility of the data. Quantitative
data, on the other hand, primarily pertains to numeric information. Numeric data might be
accurate, but quantitative researchers must take care to ensure that the numeric data
collected measures what the study intended to measure. In other words, does the data
collected answer the research questions posed in the study?
One strength of a mixed methods research design is found in the combination and
integration of qualitative and quantitative data sources. The strength of one approach can
bolster the weakness of the other. Qualitative data, though narrow in breadth, is more
robust in depth. For example, a qualitative study may include fewer participants from
whom to gather data, but the data collection methods (e.g., interviews, focus groups,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
62
observation, and note-taking) provide the researcher with a deeper understanding of the
phenomenon under investigation. Quantitative research sampling strategies vary greatly
from those used in qualitative research. Typically, quantitative studies involve more
people than qualitative ones, which makes the results more generalizable to a larger
population.
When researchers collect data from a variety of sources, a study’s validity is
strengthened. “Triangulation” refers to the “process of relating multiple sources of data to
verify their trustworthiness, accuracy, and consistency” (Mertler, 2022). The current
study utilizes data collected from surveys (quantitative) and interviews (qualitative) from
two different participant groups (i.e., parents and special education leaders). The
collection of data from multiple sources that comprise this study’s methodology adds to
the credibility and validity of its findings. Results obtained from one data collection
method that are also reflected in the other is an indication that the results are valid. This
study’s internal validity is also enhanced by the researcher’s utilization of a modified
version of the Family Experiences in Transition Survey, which was based on the original
version first utilized by Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre in her own investigations.
Integrating data from various sources and examining the relationships among
them can also provide evidence of a study’s validity. Accurate results from the
integration of data would not be credible without the creation of an audit trail. In this
study, participant answers to Google Form survey questions were collected and stored in
a Google Sheet on a secure server maintained by the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit.
Participant interviews were recorded with informed consent, which created an audit trail
for qualitative data collected. Data were collected during a finite period of time from two
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
63
participant groups, which decreased the likelihood that participant responses were
influenced by outside variables. Participant groups were defined and created, and
respondents represented a random sampling of each group, which additionally enhanced
this study’s internal validity.
External validity is the extent to which a study’s results are generalizable to other
groups or settings (Mertler, 2022). The sample used in this study represented two groups:
parents of children with complex special education needs who were eligible for
kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and special education leaders from school districts in the
same county. Results obtained can be generalized to the larger groups represented by
these samples since they represent fairly homogenous populations in a primarily ruralsuburban county in southwestern Pennsylvania. The in-depth description of the setting
and participants in this study by the researcher further enhances its external validity.
Summary
This research study aimed to determine the priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten as well as the perceptions of parent priorities by the
preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders. This study also
examined the extent to which the reported priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs were reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the
WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania. The participants in this study were comprised of two groups: parents of
preschool-age children with complex special education needs and special education
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
64
leaders from the school districts in Westmoreland County as well as from the WIU
preschool early intervention program.
A mixed methods research design was utilized to answer the three research
questions. Mixed methods is a group of approaches that combine quantitative and
qualitative data strands in a single study. The current study utilizes data collected from
surveys (quantitative) and interviews (qualitative) from the two different participant
groups (i.e., parents and special education leaders). The collection of data from multiple
sources that comprise this study’s methodology adds to the credibility and validity of its
findings.
The researcher sent the Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT
(Modified) Survey to the parents of all children receiving more than one early
intervention service and who were eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of 2023
(Appendix A). The Form contained a link to the Family Experiences and Involvement in
Transition (FEIT) Survey – Modified, which was used with written permission from Dr.
Laura Lee of the University of Oregon (Appendix B) and administered through Google
Forms (Appendix C). Parents who completed the survey were invited to participate in a
semi-structured interview with the researcher. All parent participants who agreed to be
interviewed completed the Parent Consent to Participate – Semi-Structured Interview
Form (Appendix D) and answered questions posed by the researcher (Appendix E). The
fiscal implications of this project are minimal as they relate to the resources needed by
the researcher to conduct the research plan. In a broader sense, however, outcomes of this
research could result in fiscal ramifications for school districts as well as for the
preschool early intervention program. When children remain in early intervention for an
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
65
additional year, they do so at the request of the child’s parents and with permission from
the Pennsylvania Department of Education, but without funding for the preschool early
intervention program or the child’s school district. Understanding the priorities of the
parents of these children could potentially encourage the timely transition of these
children to kindergarten, where they could receive a longer instructional day alongside
their same-age, non-disabled peers.
Chapters I and II provided an overview of the overall problem being addressed by
this action research project and a comprehensive review of the literature, respectively.
Chapter III offered an overview of the study’s methodology, which included a description
of the participants, setting, research plan, research design, data collection methods, and
the fiscal implications of the project. Chapter IV will provide an in-depth description of
the data analysis process, including the results obtained from a variety of data sources
and the interpretation of the data as well as a summary of findings.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
66
CHAPTER IV
Data Analysis and Results
Participants in this capstone research project were the parents of preschool-age
children with complex special education needs eligible to transition to kindergarten in the
fall of 2023 and special education leaders from school districts and the early intervention
program. Data were obtained from both participant groups through Google Form surveys
and semi-structured interviews. The parent survey and interview questions captured
information about the priorities of parents during their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten. Survey and interview questions that were
administered to the school district and early intervention special education leaders probed
their perceptions of parent priorities and concerns during the kindergarten transition.
Results obtained from the survey and interview questions were used to determine to what
extent, if any, parent priorities are reflected in the kindergarten transition practices of
school districts and the early intervention program. The process utilized to analyze the
data for this action research project is presented in this chapter, along with a summary of
the results that will answer each of the research questions.
Research Questions
1. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special education
needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
2. What do preschool early intervention and school district special education leaders
consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex
special needs as their children transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten?
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67
3. How are the reported priorities of parents of children with complex special
education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of the WIU
Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
The parent survey, Family Experiences in Transition (FEIT), was modified from
its original version and used with permission from Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre, a researcher
who had used the instrument and reported findings in a peer-reviewed journal publication
(McIntyre et al., 2010). The resulting FEIT-Modified survey was sent electronically to
167 parents of children who were receiving more than one early intervention service from
the WIU Early Intervention program and who were age-eligible to attend kindergarten in
their school district of residence in the fall of 2023. The parent survey was disseminated,
and data were received from 27 respondents in November-December 2022. The FEITModified collected an assortment of demographic data, and survey questions consisted of
Likert scale questions, multiple choice, one required open-ended question, and one
optional open-ended question. The first and required open-ended question asked parents
to describe in their own words what it means for a child to be “ready for kindergarten.”
The second open-ended question asked parents who indicated they were not “not likely”
to send their child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, to share the reasoning for their
decision in the form of a short answer.
Of the 27 FEIT-Modified survey respondents, five parents agreed to participate in
a semi-structured interview with the researcher, which was conducted in December 2022January 2023. All five parents consented for the interviews to be recorded, which were
conducted via the Zoom platform. Interviews were recorded and stored on a secure server
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
68
at the WIU and were used to supplement the written notes collected in real-time by the
researcher.
The Special Education Leader Transition-Kindergarten (SELTS-K) survey was
developed by the researcher and designed to parallel many questions from the FEITModified. The SELTS-K survey was sent electronically to 22 special education leaders
from school districts and the WIU Early Intervention program in November 2022, and
data from the SELTS-K were received in November-December 2022 by 12 respondents.
The SELTS-K collected demographic data and included Likert scale questions, multiple
choice, and two open-ended questions. Of the 12 special education leaders who
completed the SELTS-K, eight consented to participate in a semi-structured interview
with the researcher, which were conducted in December 2022-January 2023 via Zoom.
All eight participants consented to recorded interviews, which were stored on a secure
server at the WIU.
Triangulation
Triangulation is “a process of relating multiple sources of data to verify their
trustworthiness, accuracy, and consistency” (Mertler, 2022, p. 20). Descriptive and
inferential statistical analyses were performed on the quantitative survey data and the
qualitative interview data to assist in the triangulation process. Descriptive statistical
analysis permits the summarization and simplification of data, while inferential statistical
analysis enables the researcher to determine whether “the findings of a given study (e.g.,
the size of the difference between two groups or the strength of the relationship between
two variables) are large enough in the sample studied to represent a meaningful
difference or relationship in the population from which the sample was drawn” (Mertler,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
69
2022, p. 14). The FEIT-Modified survey and the SELTS-K were comprised of various
question types, which resulted in the integration and comparison of responses from
diverse queries that ultimately contributed to a more extensive understanding of the
phenomena under study.
Data Analysis
Frequency counts were used to tabulate the demographic data from both the
FEIT-Modified survey and the SELTS-K measure. Surveys were administered through
Google Forms, and data gathered from Likert scale questions on both surveys were
collected into a Google Sheet. Those numbers were copied and pasted into an Excel
spreadsheet for calculation of the mode and the median values for each potential area of
parental concern and each potential area of transition to kindergarten support in order to
best describe the distribution of responses. The interquartile range (IQR) was derived and
used to determine the response variance for each item. When the IQR was smaller in
value, it meant that there was more similarity (and less variance) between respondent
answers. Conversely, a larger IQR was indicative of less similarity (and more variance)
between respondent answers. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed several times to
determine the existence of a statistically significant relationship between variables in this
study. The null hypothesis, which proposed that no relationship existed between
variables, was accepted in some cases and rejected in others.
Semi-structured interviews recorded via Zoom were uploaded to the transcription
software Scribbr where the audio file was translated into text. Interview transcripts were
compared to the notes taken by the researcher in real-time during the live interview.
Those responses were color-coded according to themes that emerged in the answers of
participants from the parent as well as from the special education leader group.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
70
Research Question One: What are the priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The results for research question one were collected via a parent survey and
interview questions and were intended to capture information about the priorities of
parents during their child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
FEIT-Modified Survey Data
The output results of these survey questions show the total survey responses
between all parents of preschool-age children with complex special education needs
eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023 and were used to establish a
median, mode, or no mode. The first section of questions on the Family Experiences and
Involvement in Transition (FEIT) – Modified survey asked a series of demographic and
background questions to better understand who was being surveyed. Of the 27 parents
who responded to the FEIT-Modified survey, 70.37% of parents had a male preschoolage child with complex special education needs, and 29.63% of parent respondents had a
female preschool-aged child with complex special education needs. Results indicated that
92.59% of parents responded to the survey about a White preschool-aged child, and
7.41% responded to the survey about a Black or African American preschool-aged child.
None of the surveyed parents had a preschool-aged child of American Indian or Alaskan
Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian, or Other Pacific Islander descent. Additionally, 92.59%
of parents classified their child’s ethnic background as Non-Hispanic/Non-Latino and
7.41% of parents classified their child’s ethnic background as Hispanic/Latino, which
closely aligned to the most recent statistics on race in Westmoreland County,
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
71
Pennsylvania. Statistics on race indicate that 94.3% of the population of Westmoreland
County are White, 2.8% Black or African American, 1.4% Hispanic or Latino, 1.0%
Asian, and 0.2% American Indian (U.S. Census, n.d.). No respondents declined to answer
questions about race or ethnicity on the FEIT-Modified survey.
One hundred percent of respondents to the FEIT-Modified survey reported that
English is the primary language spoken in the home of the preschool-aged child with
complex special education needs. Of the parents who were surveyed, nearly 60% rated
themselves as “very likely” or “extremely likely” to send their child to kindergarten in the
fall of 2023.
Following the demographic section of questions, parents were then asked to
respond to a set of questions on the survey asking to describe the level of their concern in
different areas as their child transitions to kindergarten. The question design gave those
surveyed four options and required a “pick one” option. The four options used to
describe the level of concern were “No concern,” “A few concerns,” “Some concerns,”
and “Many concerns.” Parents were asked to answer questions about eleven different
areas in which they may have some level of concern during the transition to kindergarten
process for their child. Figure 3 shows a data table illustrating the eleven areas in which
parents were asked to rate their concerns and illustrates the parent responses, in counts,
based on their selection when completing the survey.
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72
Figure 3
Levels of Parent Concern in Different Areas, Numeric Breakdown
Areas of
Concern
Academics (e.g.,
knowing the
alphabet)
Behavior (e.g.,
tantrums)
Following
directions
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the teacher
Getting used to a
new school
Child being
ready for
kindergarten
Separating from
the family
Toilet training
Level of Concern
No Concerns
A few concerns
Ability to
communicate
needs
Riding a school
bus
Some concerns
Many concerns
8
3
10
6
4
10
9
4
3
8
10
6
10
9
5
3
14
6
4
3
3
8
7
12
2
3
10
12
12
7
4
4
5
4
6
12
1
5
8
13
7
6
5
9
Figure 4 illustrates the same data as Figure 3 and is represented as five side-byside bar graphs, which show the distributions of responses from parents about the first
five areas of concern.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Figure 4
Levels of Parent Concern, Comparison of Areas 1-5
Counts
LEVELS OF C ONC ERN IN DIFFERENT AREAS AS P ERC EIVED
BY P ARE NTS DURING TRANSITION TO KINDE RGARTE N
No concerns
A few concerns
Academics
Behavior
Some concerns
Many concerns
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Following
directions
Area of Concern
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the teacher
73
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74
Figure 5 illustrates the same data as Figure 3 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs, which show the distributions of responses from parents of the final six areas
of concern.
Figure 5
Levels of parent concern, comparison of areas 6-11
LEVELS OF C ONC ERN IN DIFFERENT AREAS AS PERC EIVED
BY P ARE NTS DURING TRANSITION TO KINDE RGARTE N
No concerns
A few concerns
Some concerns
Many concerns
14
Counts
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Getting used Child being
Separating Toilet training Ability to
to a new
ready for
from family
communicate
school
kindergarten
needs
Riding a
school bus
Area of Concern
In order to perform statistical analysis on the data in Figures 3, 4, and 5, a
numerical value was given to represent each response category with 1 being given to the
response “No concern” and 4 being given to the response “Many concerns.” The data in
row 1 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about their
preschool-age child’s academic abilities as they prepare to transition to kindergarten.
Results indicated 29.62% of parents described their level of concern as “No concerns”
and 11.11% described their level of concern as “A few concerns.” Additionally, 37.04%
responded with “Some concerns” and 22.22% had “Many concerns” about their child’s
academic abilities in the transition to kindergarten. The data in row 1 of Figure 3 is also
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
75
pictured as the first distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine the
distribution of responses is asymmetrical with a center of 3, given by the mode, which
represents a response of “Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical
units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
represented was 3, which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 2 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s behavior as they prepare to transition to kindergarten.
14.81% of parents described their level of concern to be “No concerns” and 37.04%
described their level of concern as “A few concerns.” In addition, 33.33% responded with
“Some concerns” and 14.81% had “Many concerns” about their child’s behavior in the
transition to kindergarten. The data in row 2 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the second
distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is symmetrical with a center of 2, given by the mode, which represents a response of “A
few concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 2,
the same as the mode, and which represents a response value of “A few concerns.”
The third area of concern is shown in row 3 of Figure 3 and regards parent
concern about the preschool-aged special education student’s ability to follow directions.
Results indicated that 11.11% of parents had “No concerns” and 29.62% had “A few
concerns” about their child’s ability to follow directions. Additionally, 37.04% of parents
had “Some concerns” and 22.22% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to
follow directions. The data in row 3 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the third distribution in
Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine that the distribution of responses is slightly
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
76
skewed to the left with a center of 3, given by the mode, which represents a response of
“Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 3,
the same as the mode, which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 4 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s ability to get along with other children as they prepare
to transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 37.04% of parents described their
level of concern to be “No concerns” and 33.33% described their level of concern as “A
few concerns.” In addition, 18.51% responded with “Some concerns” and 11.11% had
“Many concerns” about their child’s ability to get along with other children. The data in
row 4 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the fourth distribution in Figure 4. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the right with a
center of 1, given by the mode, which represents a response of “No concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR).
The median response to the survey question represented was 2, which is slightly higher
than the mode, and which represents a response value of “A few concerns.”
Data in row 5 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about
their preschool-age child’s ability to get along with the teacher as they prepare to
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 51.85% of parents described their level
of concern to be “No concerns” about their child’s ability to get along with the teacher,
22.22% described their level of concern as “A few concerns”, 14.81% responded with
“Some concerns”, and 11.11% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to get
along with the teacher. The data in row 5 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the final
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
77
distribution in Figure 4. The data was analyzed to determine that the distribution of
responses is strongly skewed to the right with a center of 1, given by the mode, which
represents a response of “No concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1.5 categorical
units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
represented was 1, the same as the mode, and which represents a response value of “No
concerns.”
The sixth area of concern is shown in row 6 of Figure 3 and regards the parent’s
concern about the preschool-aged special education student’s ability to get used to a new
school. Results indicated that 11.11% of parents had “No concerns”, and 29.62% had “A
few concerns” about their child’s ability to get used to a new school. Furthermore,
14.81% of parents had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% had “Many concerns” about their
child’s ability to get used to a new school. The data in row 6 of Figure 3 is also pictured
as the first distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine that the
distribution of responses is skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode,
which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2
categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question represented was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the
distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 7 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child being ready for kindergarten. Results indicated that
7.41% of parents had “No concerns”, 11.11% had “A few concerns” about their child’s
preparedness for kindergarten, 37.04% of parents had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% had
“Many concerns” about their child’s level of preparedness for kindergarten. The data in
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
78
row 7 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the second distribution in Figure 5. The data was
analyzed to determine that the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the left with
a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question represented was 3, which is slightly lower than
the mode of the distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
Data in row 8 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern about
their preschool-age child’s readiness to be separated from the family. Results indicated
that 44.44% of parents had “No concerns”, 25.93% had “A few concerns”, 14.81% had
“Some concerns”, and 14.81% had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to be
separated from the family. The data in row 8 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the third
distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is skewed to the right with a center of 1, given by the mode, which represents a response
of “No concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was 2,
which was slightly higher than the center of the distribution, and which represents a
response value of “A few concerns.”
Shown in row 9 of Figure 3 is parent perception of concern about their child’s
preparedness in toilet training as they prepare to transition to kindergarten. Results
indicated that 18.52% of parents had “No concerns”, 14.81% had “A few concerns”,
22.22% had “Some concerns”, and 44.44% of parents had “Many concerns” about their
child’s preparedness in toilet training. The data in row 9 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the
fourth distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
79
responses is skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a
response of “Many concerns”. The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, given
by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the distribution, and which represents
a response value of “Some concerns.”
The data in row 10 of Figure 3 shows how parents perceive their level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s ability to communicate their needs. Results indicated
that 3.7% of parents had “No concerns”, 18.52% had “A few concerns”, 29.63% had
“Some concerns”, and 48.15 had “Many concerns” about their child’s ability to
communicate needs. The data in row 10 of Figure 3 is also pictured as the fifth
distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses
is strongly skewed to the left with a center of 4, given by the mode, which represents a
response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given
by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the distribution, and which represents
a response value of “Some concerns.”
The final row shows the data for parent level of concern about their child riding a
school bus to kindergarten. Results indicated that 25.93% of parents had “No concerns”,
22.22% had “A few concerns”, 18.52% had “Some concerns”, and 33.33% of parents had
“Many concerns” about their child’s ability to ride the bus. The data in the final row of
Figure 3 is also pictured as the final distribution in Figure 5. The data was analyzed to
determine the distribution of responses is asymmetrical with a center of 4, given by the
mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the distribution is
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
80
2.5 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question represented was 3, which was slightly lower than the center of the
distribution, and which represents a response value of “Some concerns.”
Upon further analysis of question 7 of the FEIT-Modified survey, there are five
categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 4, which represents the highest
categorical level of concern. The five areas of concern are the preschool-age child’s
ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the
child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. More than 80 percent
of parents reported that they have either “Some concern” or “Many concerns” about their
child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, making this the parent’s highest area of
overall concern. The second highest area of overall parental concern regarding the
preschool-age special education child’s transition to kindergarten was concern about the
child’s ability to communicate their needs. More than 75% of parents rated their level of
concern about their child’s ability to communicate their needs to be in the “Some
concern” or “Many concerns” levels of the scale. The third overall highest area of
concern was toilet training, and approximately 67% of parents rated their level of concern
to be either “Some concern” or “Many concerns” with regard to their own child’s ability
to transition to kindergarten with toilet training skills. Almost 60% or 3 out of 5 parents
who responded to the FEIT-Modified survey rated their level of concern about their
child’s ability to get used to a new school to be in one of the two highest levels of
concern, either “Some concern” or “Many concerns”, and more than half, approximately
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
81
52% of parents, rated their level of concern for their child’s ability to ride the bus to be
either “Some concern” or “Many concerns.” These results are illustrated in Figure 6.
Figure 6
Areas of greatest parent concern
Areas of Greatest Concern to Parents
Areas of Conern
Getting used to a new school
A child being ready for kindergarten
Toilet training
Ability to communicate needs
Riding a school bus
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Percent of Parents with "Some" or "Many" Concerns
There are three categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 1,
which represents the lowest categorical level of concern. These three areas of concern are
getting along with other children, getting along with the teacher, and separating from the
family. Results indicated that 70.37% of parents who responded to the FEIT-Modified
survey rated their level of concern about the child’s ability to get along with other
children as either “No concerns” or “A few concerns”, the two lowest ratings of concern.
Of those parents who responded, 74.07% rated their level of concern about the child’s
ability to get along with the teacher as “No concerns” or “A few concerns.” Additionally,
70.37% of parents responded “No concerns” or “A few concerns” as their level of
concern about their child being separated from the family. These three areas of concern
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
82
can be considered the lowest areas of concern to parents of children with complex special
education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early intervention to
kindergarten.
In section 2 of the FEIT-Modified survey, parents were asked to respond to a set
of questions about the importance of twelve supports that could potentially be offered
during the transition to kindergarten process. The question design gave those surveyed
five options and required a “pick one” option. The five options used to describe the level
of concern were numbered 1-5, where 1 represented a response of “Not important”, 2
represented a response of “Slightly important”, 3 of “Neutral”, 4 of “Very important”,
and 5 represented a response of “Extremely important”. Figure 7 shows a data table
illustrating the twelve areas in which parents were asked to give their rating of
importance.
Figure 7
Parent importance ratings of twelve supports, numeric breakdown
Supports
Early intervention
program hosts a
meeting about what to
expect
Receive monthly contact
from your child's early
intervention teacher
Parents to attend the
transition to
kindergarten planning
meeting
Early intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Not
important
Rating of Importance
Slightly
Neutral
important
Very
important
Extremely
important
1
2
4
7
13
1
3
4
7
12
1
0
1
4
21
1
0
4
0
22
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Potential kindergarten
teacher to attend the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Visit child’s kindergarten
classroom before
kindergarten starts
Member of child's
school district transition
team to observe child
Receive correspondence
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Receive a home visit
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Attend kindergarten
orientation activities
with other incoming
kindergarten students
School district transition
planning team to
conduct a full evaluation
of child
Receive information
about how to register
your child for
kindergarten
1
1
3
5
17
0
0
2
3
22
2
0
3
7
15
0
0
4
6
17
8
5
9
1
4
0
0
3
7
17
0
1
3
5
18
1
2
5
4
15
83
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
84
Figure 8 illustrates the same data as Figure 7 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from parents of the first six areas of
supports.
Figure 8
Parent support importance ratings, comparison of supports 1-6
P ARE NT IMP ORTANC E RATINGS OF SUP P ORTS IN
TRANSITION P LANNING
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
25
Counts
20
15
10
5
0
Early
Receive monthly
intervention
contact from
program hosts a your child's early
meeting about intervention
what to expect
teacher
Parents to
attend the
transition to
kindergarten
planning
meeting
Early
intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at
the transition to
kindergarten
meeting
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
Potential
kindergarten
teacher to
attend the
transition to
kindergarten
meeting
Visit your child’s
kindergarten
classroom
and/or
elementary
school before
kindergarten
starts
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
85
Figure 9 illustrates the same data as Figure 7 and is represented as six side-by-side
bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from parents of the final six areas of
supports.
Figure 9
Parent supports importance ratings, comparison of supports 7-12
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
TR A NSITION PLA NNING
Counts
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Member of
Receive
Receive a home
Attend
School district
Receive
child's school correspondence visit from your kindergarten
transition
information
district
from your child's
child's
orientation
planning team about how to
transition team kindergarten
kindergarten activities with to conduct a full register your
to observe child
teacher
teacher
other incoming evaluation of
child for
kindergarten
child
kindergarten
students
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
To perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 7, 8, and 9, a numerical value
was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the response “Not
important” and 5 being given to the response “Extremely important.” The data in row 1
of Figure 7 shows how parents perceive their rating of the importance of the early
intervention program hosting a meeting for parents to learn about what to expect in the
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 74.07% or nearly three out of four
parents responded that having a meeting about what to expect during the transition
process was either “Very important” or “Extremely important,” and only 3.70% thought
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
86
that the meeting was “Not important.”. This data is also pictured in the first distribution
of Figure 8 and was analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is strongly
skewed to the left with a center of 5, given by the mode, which represents a response of
“Extremely important.” The spread of the distribution is 1.5 categorical units, given by
the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented
was 4, which represents a response value of “Very important” and is slightly below the
mode value.
The information presented in row 2 of Figure 7 illustrates the perceptions of
parents regarding the importance they attribute to receiving monthly contact from their
child's early intervention teacher. Only 14.81% of parents considered this as “Not
important” or “Slightly important,” whereas a significant majority (70.37% of
respondents) expressed that such monthly contact was “Very important” or “Extremely
important.” This data is also depicted in the second distribution of Figure 8 and was
analyzed to reveal a strong left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode,
representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the center point with a value
of 5. The spread of the distribution, measured by the interquartile range (IQR), is 2
categorical units. The median response to the survey question was 4, indicating a value of
“Very important,” which slightly deviates from the mode value.
The data shown in row 3 of Figure 7 highlights how parents perceive the
importance of attending a transition to kindergarten planning meeting with
representatives from the early intervention program and the child’s school district. An
overwhelming majority, 92.59% of parents, indicated that attending such a meeting was
either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the first
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87
distribution of Figure 8, and an analysis of the responses revealed a pronounced left
skewness in the distribution. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the center point with a value of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 0
categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to
the survey question was 5, which aligns with the mode value and signifies a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 4 of Figure 7 illustrates how parents perceive
the importance of having the early intervention teacher present at the transition to
kindergarten meeting. Among the parents who responded, 81.48% expressed that it was
“Extremely important” for the early intervention teacher to attend. This data is also
visualized in the fourth distribution of Figure 8, which was analyzed to reveal a strong
left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely
important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution
exhibits a spread of 0 categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and
indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The data presented in row 5 of Figure 7 reveals the perceptions of parents
regarding the importance of having the potential kindergarten teacher attend the transition
to kindergarten meeting. Among the parents who participated, 81.48% emphasized that it
was either “Very important” or “Extremely important” for the potential kindergarten
teacher to be present at the meeting. This data is also depicted in the fifth distribution of
Figure 8, and an analysis of the responses indicates a strong left skewness in the
distribution. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
88
central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1 categorical unit, as
denoted by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was
5, matching the mode value and reflecting a response of “Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 6 of Figure 7 showcases how parents perceive
the importance of visiting their child's kindergarten classroom before the start of
kindergarten. A significant majority (92.59% of parents) indicated that visiting the
kindergarten classroom was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.”
Remarkably, no parents considered the visit as “Not important” or “Slightly important.”
This data is also illustrated in the final distribution of Figure 8, which was analyzed to
reveal a strong left skewness in the distribution of responses. The mode, representing an
“Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The
distribution demonstrates a spread of 0 categorical units, as determined by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning
with the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 7 of Figure 7 depicts how parents perceive the
importance of having a member of the child's school district transition team observe their
child. Of the parents surveyed, 81.48% expressed that this was either “Very important” or
“Extremely important.” This data is also visualized in the first distribution of Figure 9,
and an analysis of the responses indicates a strong left skewness in the distribution. The
mode, representing an “Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a
rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, matching
the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
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89
The data presented in row 8 of Figure 7 demonstrates how parents perceive the
importance of receiving correspondence from their child's kindergarten teacher. An
overwhelming majority (85.19% of parents) indicated that this was either “Very
important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also illustrated in the second
distribution of Figure 9 and was analyzed, revealing a strong left skewness in the
distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1
categorical unit, as determined by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to
the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and indicating a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 9 of Figure 7 illustrates how parents perceive
the importance of receiving a home visit from their child's kindergarten teacher. Results
indicated that 48.15% of parents considered this as either “Not important” or “Slightly
important,” whereas only 18.52% of parents who responded felt that it was either “Very
important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the third distribution
of Figure 9 and was analyzed to reveal an asymmetrical distribution of responses. The
mode, representing a “Neutral” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 3.
The distribution exhibits a spread of 2 categorical units, as indicated by the interquartile
range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 3, aligning with the mode
value and indicating a response of “Neutral.”
The data presented in row 10 of Figure 7 provides insights into how parents
perceive the importance of having their child attend kindergarten orientation activities
alongside other incoming kindergarten students. An overwhelming majority (88.89% of
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
90
parents) expressed that this was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This
data is also depicted in the fourth distribution of Figure 9, and upon analysis, it was found
that the distribution of responses is strongly skewed to the left. The mode, representing an
“Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The
distribution demonstrates a spread of 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile
range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning with the mode
value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
The data presented in row 11 of Figure 7 showcases how parents perceive the
importance of having the school district transition planning team conduct a full
evaluation of their child. A significant majority (85.19% of parents) indicated that this
was either “Very important” or “Extremely important.” This data is also depicted in the
fifth distribution of Figure 9, which was analyzed to reveal a strong left skewness in the
distribution of responses. The mode, representing an “Extremely important” response,
serves as the central value with a rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 1
categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the
survey question was 5, aligning with the mode value and indicating a response of
“Extremely important.”
The information presented in row 12 of Figure 7 reflects how parents perceive the
importance of receiving information about how to register their child for kindergarten. A
notable 70.37% of parents considered this as either “Very important” or “Extremely
important.” This data is also represented in the final distribution of Figure 9, and an
analysis of the responses reveals a strong left skewness in the distribution. The mode,
which signifies an “Extremely important” response, serves as the central value with a
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
91
rating of 5. The distribution exhibits a spread of 2 categorical units, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 5, aligning
with the mode value and indicating a response of “Extremely important.”
Upon further analysis of Section 2 of the FEIT-Modified survey, there are nine
categories that have a distribution of responses centered at 5, given by the mode, as well
as a median value of 5, which represents the highest rating of importance. These nine
areas of support include: attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting in
February, having an early intervention teacher in attendance at the meeting, having a
potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s
kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s school district transition team
observe the child, receiving correspondence from the child’s kindergarten teacher,
attending kindergarten orientation activities with other incoming kindergarten students,
having the school district transition planning team to conduct a full evaluation of the
child, and receiving information about how to register the child for kindergarten. Of these
nine areas of support, more than 80 percent of parents responded with “Very important”
or “Extremely important” for eight of the support areas. The ninth area, receiving
information about how to register the child for kindergarten, had 70.37% of responses as
“Very important” or “Extremely important.” Most significantly, two areas of support had
92.59% of responses in either the “Very important” or the “Extremely important”
category. These two areas of support were attending the transition to kindergarten
planning meeting and visiting the child’s classroom before kindergarten starts. Transition
to kindergarten supports of highest importance to parents are shown in Figure 10.
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92
There were two free-form questions (one required and one that was optional) on
the FEIT-Modified survey, which permitted respondents to answer in short answer, opentext format and yielded the collection of qualitative data. In an attempt to better
understand the perceptions of parents of preschool children with special needs about the
transition to kindergarten process, parents were prompted to share their ideas on the
following: “In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be ‘ready’ for
kindergarten.” Figure 10 represents the parent responses to this item. Of the 27 parents
who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, 18 respondents (67%) cited a child’s ability to
follow directions, nine respondents (33%) referenced the child’s ability to interact
socially with others, nine respondents (33%) referenced a child’s ability to communicate
effectively, five respondents (19%) referenced being toilet-trained, four respondents
(15%) referenced a child’s ability to appropriately regulate their emotions, four
respondents (15%) referenced a child’s academic as being integral to a child’s
kindergarten readiness.
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93
Figure 10
Parent perspectives on kindergarten readiness
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF PARENT RESPONSES
The second open-ended question on the FEIT-Modified survey was optional and
asked, “If you are ‘not likely’ to send your child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023,
please share why in the space provided below.” Out of four respondents, three (75%)
referenced concerns about their child’s communication skills, one respondent (25%)
referenced concern about their child’s lack of independence with dressing and toilet
training, and one respondent (25%) cited the child’s late summer birthday and the fact
that the child would be the “youngest in his class” as being the reason for not enrolling
the child in kindergarten.
Semi-Structured Parent Interview Data
Out of the 27 respondents who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, five parents
consented to complete a semi-structured interview with the researcher. The first semistructured interview question that pertained to parent perceptions regarding kindergarten
transition asked parents, “In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
94
‘ready’ for kindergarten.” Two out of the five respondents (40%) referenced a child’s
ability to communicate effectively, socialize appropriately with peers, appropriately
regulate emotions, and maintain an appropriate attention span. Most remarkably, each of
the five respondents (100%) explicitly expressed that a child’s academic knowledge was
not relevant to a child being “ready” for kindergarten.
The second semi-structured parent interview question asked participants to
describe how the WIU Early Intervention (EI) program could support the family before,
during, and after the legally required transition meeting that would take place for their
child in February 2023. Four out of the five respondents (80%) referenced how they
would appreciate the WIU EI program preparing the families about what to expect during
the February transition meeting, and one respondent (20%) indicated that she would like
for the WIU EI program to give her an “honest appraisal” of her child’s skills in advance
of the February meeting.
Three out of five respondents (60%) indicated that they would be best supported
during the February transition meeting by the WIU EI program by being given time to
ask questions and contribute to a collaborative and holistic information-sharing
discussion about their child. Two respondents (40%) referenced being introduced to
everyone at the meeting and having their roles explained as a way that the WIU EI
program could be supportive. Two respondents (40%) referenced having the child’s
preschool teacher present at the meeting, and one respondent (20%) indicated that having
the child’s potential kindergarten teacher at the February transition meeting would be
supportive measures.
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In terms of supportive measures that the WIU EI program could take to support
the family after the February transition meeting, one respondent (20%) referenced having
the WIU EI program invite the school district personnel to an IEP meeting for the child.
Two respondents (40%) referenced finding out who their child’s kindergarten teacher
would be before school started, and two respondents (40%) referenced being given a tour
of the elementary school. One respondent (20%) was not sure what supports would be
helpful after the February transition meeting and stated, “My child is very anxious. Any
way that that could be supported would be great.”
The next set of questions on the semi-structured parent interview pertained to the
ways in which the child’s school district could support the parent during and after the
February transition meeting. Four of the respondents (80%) referenced having
representatives from the school district clearly “laying out” the transition process and
explaining what to expect. One of those four respondents actually described that having a
“visual map of what the process is going to be” would be incredibly helpful to her. Two
of the respondents (40%) indicated that the school district could be supportive by
answering parents’ questions and by fostering a collaborative discussion about their child
and the child’s needs.
In terms of the ways in which the school district could be supportive of the parent
in the months following the February transition meeting, three of the five respondents
(60%) indicated that touring the school or kindergarten classroom as well as meeting the
teacher before the start of school would be supportive measures for the school district to
provide. One respondent (20%) indicated that receiving a follow-up call from the school
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
96
district after the February transition meeting to keep the parent informed about “where
things stand with my child’s evaluation.”
Parents were then asked, “What is your greatest concern when you think about
your child going to kindergarten and why?” Responses to this question were varied. Two
respondents (40%) referenced their child’s ability to communicate with others as being
their greatest concern: “If she can communicate with the people around her and the other
kids is a concern of mine because she is nonverbal, and she uses a device.” Another
respondent (20%) referenced her child’s happiness and ability to make continued
progress as her greatest concern: “Her enjoying school and her liking where she goes to
school, and of course making progress.” Another parent shared that having her child “get
the services he needs” as being her greatest concern when she thinks about her child
going to kindergarten. The final respondent (20%) cited her child’s behavior and his
tendency toward aggression to be her greatest concern: “Behavior. His aggression and
how the teachers are going to manage him. The way you interact with him will either
make him or break him.”
When asked if they would send their child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, each
of the five respondents (100%) answered in the affirmative. When asked “why” they
intended to send their child to kindergarten (as opposed to electing for the child to remain
in early intervention for an additional year), the responses were varied. Two of the
respondents (40%) referenced the risk of their child being “bored” if they did not go to
kindergarten “on time.” One parent explained that “the risk of him being bored would be
worse than him struggling a little bit.” Two other respondents (40%) indicated age to be a
factor in sending their child to kindergarten with same-age peers. One respondent (20%)
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97
indicated that she wanted her child to “perhaps be around kids that are more verbal” and
also that she had seen her child “evolve” and “make progress” since being in early
intervention. That same respondent further shared, “I just know she’s ready.”
One of the last questions on the semi-structured parent interview asked, “What is
your greatest priority when you think about your child transitioning out of early
intervention and into kindergarten?” All five respondents (100%) provided answers that
pertained to the overall well-being of the child. Reported priorities of parents included
seeing the child socialize and make friends, making sure the child will like the new
school, making sure the child is “happy,” and watching the child being “emotionally
ready” to be part of a bigger building. One parent even explained that “I’m not worried
about the academic side as long as he is engaged, making friends, and develops social
relationships.” Parent rejection of academics as being important to them during the
kindergarten transition process through either the exclusion of it from their answer to this
question on the semi-structured interview or the explicit verbal rejection of it aligned
with the data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey Question 7. On Question 7, when
parents were asked to share how concerned they were about “Academics,” the median
response to the survey question represented was 3, which represented a response value of
“Some concerns.” This resulting concern level paled in comparison to the concern
parents reported in other areas (e.g., communicating effectively, getting used to a new
school, and riding a school bus).
Quantitative and qualitative data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey as
well as the qualitative data collected during the semi-structured parent interview, revealed
that the priorities of parents of preschool children with complex special needs during the
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98
transition to kindergarten process include areas of potential concern and ideas about the
importance of specific support measures that could be provided by the early intervention
program or the school district. Parents in this study reported the highest level of concern
in the following areas as these areas pertain to their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten on the FEIT-Modified survey: the preschool-age
child’s ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten, the child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their
needs in the kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. Aside
from being one of the five areas of greatest concern for parents on the parent survey, the
child’s ability to communicate needs was also reflected in the answers of two of the
respondents (40%) during the semi-structured parent interview, making it a highly
concerning area for parents of children with complex special needs as they prepare to
have their child transition into kindergarten. Concerns about their child’s ability to
communicate with others was the reason given by 3 out of the 4 respondents (75%) when
asked why they were “Not likely” to send their child to kindergarten “on time” and with
their same age peers in the fall of 2023.
Potential supportive measures that could be provided by the early intervention
program or school districts were another area of inquiry explored to find out more about
what is important to parents during this time of transition for their child. Out of twelve
items presented to parents on the FEIT-Modified survey, nine of them received the
highest overall rating of importance from parents: attending the transition to kindergarten
planning meeting in February, having the child’s early intervention teacher in attendance
at the meeting, having the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
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99
meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s
school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence from the
child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with other
incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team to
conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register the
child for kindergarten. Nearly 93% of respondents on the FEIT-Modified survey rated
attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s
classroom before kindergarten starts to be either “Very important” or “Extremely
important.”
During the semi-structured interview, parents were questioned about the ways in
which the early intervention program and the school district could support them through
their child’s transition to kindergarten experience. Supports mentioned during the
interview that were also revealed in the survey data included: having the child’s early
intervention teacher and potential kindergarten teacher attend the transition meeting in
February and visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom before the start of school. It is
noteworthy that visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom before the start of school was
mentioned prominently in the survey data as well as in the semi-structured interview. It
was one of two areas of support in which nearly 93% of respondents rated it as either
“Very important” or “Extremely important,” making it one of the most important
supports to parents of children with complex special needs as their child transitions from
preschool early intervention to kindergarten.
Parent participants in this study were asked questions about what it meant for a
child to be “ready” for kindergarten to gain additional insight into parents’ perceptions
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
100
surrounding the transition to school-age programming. Qualitative data obtained from the
administration of one open-ended, short-answer question on the FEIT-Modified survey
revealed the answer to that question. Child functioning and performance across the
following areas were listed as being present when a child is “ready” to go to
kindergarten: following directions, socializing appropriately, being able to communicate
needs, attention span, toilet training, academics, and emotional regulation. It is interesting
to note that when the five respondents to the semi-structured parent interview were asked
that question, child functioning in the areas of communication skills, attention span,
socialization skills, and emotional regulation were mentioned. Academics was rejected by
all parent interview participants as an area to be considered to determine if a child is
“ready” for kindergarten.
Triangulation of the data for this study and to answer research question one
included analysis and consideration of data from a variety of sources. The results
obtained were compared using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results revealed
through the analysis of survey and interview data of this mixed methods research design
are considered highly valid since they were derived from multiple data sources, which
adds to the overall strength of the study.
Research Question Two: What do preschool early intervention and school district
special education leaders consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of
children with complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The results for research question two were collected via a survey of special
education leaders and interview questions that intended to capture information about
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101
what special educators perceive the priorities of parents to be during their child’s
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
SELTS-K Results
The output results of these survey questions show the total survey responses
between all special education leaders who responded and were used to establish a
median, mode, or no mode. The first section of questions on the Special Education
Leader Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K) asked a series of demographic
questions to better understand the background of leaders who were being surveyed. Of
the 12 education leaders who responded to the SELTS-K, 25% had 1-4 years of
experience as a special education leader, 33.33% had 5-9 years of experience, 25% had
10-14 years of experience, and 16.67% of special education leaders had 15-19 years of
experience. Of those special education leaders who responded to the survey, job titles
included seven Special Education Directors, two Student Services Directors, one Early
Intervention Supervisor, one Early Intervention Service Coordinator, and one Assistant to
the Superintendent of Student Services.
Special education leaders were next asked to respond to a set of questions on the
survey asking to describe what they perceive the parent of a special education child’s
level of concern is in different areas as their child transitions to kindergarten. The
question design gave those surveyed four options and required a “pick one” option. The
four options used to describe the level of concern were “No concern,” “A few concerns,”
“Some concerns,” and “Many concerns.” Special education leaders were asked to answer
questions about eleven different areas in which parents may have some level of concern
during the transition to kindergarten process. These eleven areas corresponded to the
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102
potential areas of concern represented in the FEIT-Modified survey. Figure 11 shows a
data table illustrating the eleven areas in which special education leaders were asked to
rate their perceived level of parent concerns and shows the educator responses, in counts,
based on their selection when completing the survey.
Figure 11
Special education leader (SEL) perceptions of parent concerns, numeric breakdown
Areas of
Concern
Academics (e.g.,
knowing the
alphabet)
Behavior (e.g.,
tantrums)
Following
directions
Getting along
with other
children
Getting along
with the
teacher
Getting used to
a new school
Child being
ready for
kindergarten
Separating from
the family
Toilet training
Ability to
communicate
needs
Riding a school
bus
No Concerns
Level of Concern
A few concerns Some concerns
Many concerns
0
6
5
2
0
1
2
9
0
4
7
1
0
4
6
2
2
7
3
0
0
0
7
5
0
2
4
6
1
6
4
1
1
3
4
4
0
1
5
6
0
2
5
5
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103
Figure 12 illustrates the same data as Figure 11 and is represented as five side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
in the first five areas of concern.
Figure 12
SEL perceptions of parent concerns, areas 1-5
Count
PA R E N T L E V E L O F C O N C E R N I N D I F F E R E N T A R E A S A S
P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
No concerns
A few concerns
Academics
Behavior
Some concerns
Many concerns
10
8
6
4
2
0
Following
directions
Getting along Getting along
with other with the teacher
children
Areas of Concern
Figure 13 illustrates the same data as Figure 11 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
about the final six areas of concern.
Figure 13
SEL Perceptions of Parent Concerns, Areas 6-11
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104
PA R E N T L E V E L O F C O N C E R N I N D I F F E R E N T A R E A S A S
P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Count
No concerns
A few concerns
Some concerns
Many concerns
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Getting used Child being
to a new
ready for
school
kindergarten
Separating
from family
Toilet training
Ability to Riding a school
communicate
bus
needs
Areas of Concern
In order to perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 11, 12, and 13, a
numerical value was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the
response “No concern” and 4 being given to the response “Many concerns.” The data in
row 1 of Figure 11 shows how special education leaders perceive parent level of concern
about their preschool-age child’s academic abilities as they prepare to transition to
kindergarten. There were no special educators who described the parent level of concern
to be “No concerns” for their child’s academic abilities, and 50% described the parent
level of concern as “A few concerns” for this area. Results further indicated that 41.67%
responded with “Some concerns,” and 8.33% perceived that parents had “Many
concerns” about their child’s academic abilities in the transition to kindergarten. The data
in row 1 of Figure 11 is also pictured as the first distribution in Figure 12. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is slightly skewed to the right with a
center of 2, given by the mode, which represents a response of “A few concerns.” The
spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
105
median response to the survey question represented was 2.5, which represents a response
value somewhere between “A few concerns” and “Some concerns.”
The data in row 2 of Figure 11 shows how special education leaders perceive
parent level of concern about their preschool-age child’s behavior as they prepare to
transition to kindergarten. Results indicated that 8.33% of special educators described the
parent level of concern to be either “No concerns” or “A few concerns,” 16.67%
responded with “Some concerns,” while 75% perceived that parents had “Many
concerns” about their child’s behavior in the transition to kindergarten. The data in row 2
of Figure 11 is also pictured as the second distribution in Figure 12. The data was
analyzed to determine the distribution of responses is skewed to the left with a center of
4, given by the mode, which represents a response of “Many concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 0.25 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR). The median
response to the survey question represented was 4, which represents a response value of
“Many concerns” and is the same as the value for the mode.
The information presented in row 3 of Figure 11 pertains to how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's
ability to follow directions during the transition to kindergarten. Notably, no special
educators reported “No concerns” from parents. Instead, 91.67% indicated that parents
would have “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to follow
directions in this transition. Additionally, 8.33% of special education leaders believed
that parents would have “Many concerns.” The data in row 3 of Figure 11 is also depicted
as the third distribution in Figure 12. Upon analysis, it was determined that the
distribution of responses exhibits asymmetry, with a central value of 3 representing the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
106
mode, indicating “Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as
denoted by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was
3, which aligns with the mode value and represents a response of “Some concerns.”
The information provided in row 4 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of
special education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents concerning their
preschool-age child's ability to get along with other children during the transition to
kindergarten. It is noteworthy that no special educators reported “No concerns” from
parents in this regard. Instead, 83.33% indicated that parents would have “A few
concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to socialize with other children
during the transition. Additionally, 16.67% of special education leaders believed that
parents would have “Many concerns.” The data in row 4 of Figure 11 is also represented
as the fourth distribution in Figure 12. Upon analysis, it was determined that the
distribution of responses exhibits relatively symmetrical characteristics, with a central
value of 3 representing the mode, signifying “Some concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3, which aligns with the mode value and
represents a response of “Some concerns.”
The data presented in row 5 of Figure 11 depicts the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents regarding their preschoolage child's ability to establish a positive relationship with the teacher during the transition
to kindergarten. Results indicated that 16.67% of special educators reported “No
concerns” from parents in this aspect, and 83.33% indicated that parents would have “A
few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's ability to get along with the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
107
teacher. No special education leaders expressed the belief that parents would have “Many
concerns.” The data in row 5 of Figure 11 is also represented as the final distribution in
Figure 12. Data analysis revealed that the distribution of responses exhibits a relatively
symmetrical pattern, with a central value of 2 representing the mode, indicating “A few
concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 0.25 categorical units, as indicated by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question was 2, aligning
with the mode value and representing a response of “A few concerns.”
The data presented in row 6 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents about their preschool-age
child's ability to adapt to a new school environment. Notably, no special educators
reported “No concerns” or “A few concerns” from parents in this regard. However, all
respondents, totaling 100%, indicated that parents would have “Some concerns” or
“Many concerns” about their child's ability to adjust to a new school. The data in row 6
of Figure 11 is also represented as the first distribution in Figure 13. Analysis of the data
revealed that the distribution of responses demonstrates a slight right skew, with a central
value of 3 representing the mode, indicating “Some concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as determined by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3, aligning with the mode value and
representing a response of “Some concerns.”
The data presented in row 7 of Figure 11 depicts how special education leaders
perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's overall
readiness for kindergarten. Notably, there were no special educators who reported 'No
concerns' from parents in this aspect. Approximately 50% of respondents indicated that
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
108
parents would have “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their child's overall
readiness for kindergarten. The remaining 50% of special education leaders perceived a
higher level of concern, categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in row 7 of Figure
11 is also represented as the second distribution in Figure 13. Upon analysis, it was
determined that the distribution of responses skews to the left, with a central value of 4
representing the mode, which corresponds to “Many concerns.” The spread of the
distribution is 1 categorical unit, as indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The
median response to the survey question was 3.5, which falls between “Some concerns”
and “Many concerns” and slightly below the value associated with the mode.
The data shown in row 8 of Figure 11 illustrates the perception of special
education leaders regarding the level of concern among parents about their preschool-age
child separating from the family. Among the special education leaders, 8.33% reported
“No concerns” in this area, and 83.33% of respondents indicated that parents would have
“A few concerns” or “Some concerns”' about their child's separation from the family. The
remaining 8.33% of special education leaders perceived a higher level of concern,
categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in row 8 of Figure 11 is also depicted as the
third distribution in Figure 13. Analysis of the data revealed a slight right skew in the
distribution of responses, with a central value of 2 representing the mode, which
corresponds to “A few concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as
indicated by the interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question
was 2, reflecting a response value of “A few concerns,” which aligns with the value for
the mode.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
109
The data presented in row 9 of Figure 11 provides insights into how special
education leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschoolage child's toilet training abilities. Among the special education leaders surveyed, 8.33%
indicated that parents would have “No concerns” in this area. Approximately 58.33% of
respondents believed that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns”
about their child's toilet training abilities. The remaining 33.33% of special education
leaders perceived a higher level of concern, labeling it as “Many concerns.” The data in
row 9 of Figure 11 is also represented as the fourth distribution in Figure 13. Upon
analysis, it was observed that the distribution of responses is bimodal and skewed to the
left, with a central value of 3 indicated by the median, which represents a response of
“Some concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 2 categorical units, as determined by
the interquartile range (IQR). The survey question responses exhibited two modes, both
at 3 and 4, representing values of “Some concerns” and “Many concerns,” respectively.
The data presented in row 10 of Figure 11 sheds light on how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child's
ability to communicate their needs. None of the special education leaders surveyed
indicated that parents would have “No concerns” in this regard. Approximately 50% of
respondents believed that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns”
about their child's ability to communicate their needs. The remaining 50% of special
education leaders perceived a higher level of concern, labeling it as “Many concerns.”
The data in row 10 of Figure 11 is also represented as the fifth distribution in Figure 13.
Upon analysis, it was observed that the distribution of responses is skewed to the left,
with a central value of 4 indicated by the mode, which represents a response of “Many
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
110
concerns.” The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as determined by the
interquartile range (IQR). The median response to the survey question represented was
3.5, representing a response value between “Some concerns” and “Many concerns” and
slightly below the value for the mode.
The data presented in the last row of Figure 11 illustrates how special education
leaders perceive the level of concern among parents regarding their preschool-age child
riding a school bus. None of the special education leaders surveyed reported that parents
would have “No concerns” in this regard. Approximately 58.33% of respondents
indicated that parents would express “A few concerns” or “Some concerns” about their
child riding a school bus. The remaining 41.66% of special education leaders perceived a
higher level of concern, categorizing it as “Many concerns.” The data in the final row of
Figure 11 is also depicted as the last distribution in Figure 13. Through analysis, it was
determined that the distribution of responses is bimodal and skewed to the left, with a
central value of 3 indicated by the median, representing a response of “Some concerns.”
The spread of the distribution is 1 categorical unit, as measured by the interquartile range
(IQR). Notably, the survey question yielded two modes with response values of 3 and 4,
corresponding to “Some concerns” and “Many concerns,” respectively.
Additional analysis of this section of questions on the SELTS-K revealed three
categories with a distribution of responses centered at 4, which represents the highest
categorical level of concern. The three areas of concern are the child’s behavior, the
child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, and the child’s ability to communicate their
needs in the kindergarten setting. Results indicated that 91.67% of special education
leaders reported that they perceived parents would have either “Some concern” or “Many
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
111
concerns” about their child’s behavior during the transition to kindergarten. Additionally,
91.67% of special education leaders perceived parent level of concern about their child’s
ability to communicate their needs as either “Some concern” or “Many concerns.” Thus,
behavior and ability to communicate needs were the two areas over which special
education leaders perceived parents would have the highest level of concern. The third
area of concern that special education leaders felt parents would be highly concerned
about was the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten. Results indicated that
83.33% of special education leaders felt that parents would have either “Some concerns”
or “Many concerns” about their child’s level of preparedness for kindergarten.
For research question one, parents responded to the FEIT-Modified survey that
revealed five areas of the highest level of concern: the preschool-age child’s ability to get
used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the child’s toilet
training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten
setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. Of the three areas that special
education leaders felt were the highest area of concern for parents, two of the areas
corresponded to the actual highest level of concern ratings from parents. The two areas in
which special education leaders felt parents would have a high level of concern, and
according to the responses from parents in the FEIT-Modified survey, did, in fact, have a
high level of concern were the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten and the
child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting.
The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified survey, and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the level of concern that parents had or were
perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about their child’s overall
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
112
preparedness for kindergarten. The null hypothesis was established to test whether there
was a difference between how special education leaders and parents perceived their level
of concern about the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten. After performing the
test, the data was found to have a U-value of 151, which allows for the use of the z-score.
The z-score is -0.3195, and the p-value was reported as .74896. At the 5% significance
level, the result is not significant, and we fail to reject the null hypothesis. There is no
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the parent level of concern about their child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten.
Following this result, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEITModified survey and SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the level of concern that
parents had or were perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about
their child’s ability to communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting. The null
hypothesis was established to test whether there was a difference between how special
education leaders and parents perceived their level of concern about the child’s ability to
communicate their needs in the kindergarten setting. After performing the test, the data
was found to have a U-value of 147.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The zscore is -0.42601, and the p-value was reported as .6672. At the 5% significance level,
the result is not significant, and we fail to reject the null hypothesis. There is no
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the parent level of concern about their child’s ability to communicate
their needs.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
113
Finally, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified and the
SELTS-K survey results about the overall rating of the level of concern that parents had
or were perceived to have during the transition to kindergarten process about their child’s
overall behavior. It was found in previous analysis that special education leaders
perceived this to be one of the highest areas of concern for parents, whereas this was not
found in the FEIT-Modified survey results. The null hypothesis was established to test
whether there was a difference between how special education leaders and parents
perceived their level of concern about the child’s overall behavior. After performing the
test, the data was found to have a U-value of 53, which allows for the use of the z-score.
The z-score is -3.30155, and the p-value was reported as .00096. At the 5% significance
level, the result is significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing
evidence that there is a difference between parents’ reported level of concern and the
degree to which special education leaders perceive the parent level of concern about their
child’s overall behavior.
In section 2 of the SELTS-K, special education leaders were then asked to
respond to a set of questions asking to give their perception of a parent’s rating on the
importance of a series of priorities and supports in place during the transition to
kindergarten process. The question design gave those surveyed five options and required
a “pick one” option. The five options used to describe the level of concern were
numbered 1-5, where 1 represented a response of “Not important,” 2 represented a
response of “Slightly important,” 3 of “Neutral,” 4 of “Very important,” and 5
represented a response of “Extremely important.” Special education leaders were asked to
answer questions about twelve different supports which parents may experience during
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
114
the transition to kindergarten process. Figure 14 shows a data table illustrating the twelve
areas in which special education leaders were asked to give their perception of parent
ratings of support importance.
Figure 14
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, numeric breakdown
Supports
Early intervention
program hosts a
meeting about what to
expect
Receive monthly contact
from your child's early
intervention teacher
Parents to attend the
transition to
kindergarten planning
meeting
Early intervention
teacher to be in
attendance at the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Potential kindergarten
teacher to attend the
transition to
kindergarten meeting
Visit child’s kindergarten
classroom before
kindergarten starts
Member of child's
school district transition
team to observe child
Receive correspondence
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Receive a home visit
from your child's
kindergarten teacher
Not
important
Rating of Importance
Slightly
Neutral
important
Very
important
Extremely
important
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
Attend kindergarten
orientation activities
with other incoming
kindergarten students
School district transition
planning team to
conduct a full evaluation
of child
Receive information
about how to register
your child for
kindergarten
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
0
1
0
0
11
115
Figure 15 illustrates the same data as Figure 14 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
for the first six areas of support.
Figure 15
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, supports 1-6
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
T R A N S I T I O N P L A N N I N G A S P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L
E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Counts
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Early intervention Receive monthly Parents to attend Early intervention
Potential
program hosts a contact from your the transition to teacher to be in
kindergarten
meeting about
child's early
kindergarten
attendance at the teacher to attend
what to expect
intervention
planning meeting
transition to
the transition to
teacher
kindergarten
kindergarten
meeting
meeting
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
Visit your child’s
kindergarten
classroom and/or
elementary school
before
kindergarten starts
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
116
Figure 16 illustrates the same data as Figure 14 and is represented as six side-byside bar graphs which show the distributions of responses from special education leaders
for the final six areas of support.
Figure 16
SEL perceptions of parent support ratings, supports 7-12
PA R E N T I M P O R TA N C E R AT I N G S O F S U P P O R T S I N
T R A N S I T I O N P L A N N I N G A S P E R C E I V E D BY S P E C I A L
E D U C AT I O N L E A D E R S
Not important
Slightly important
Neutral
Very important
Extremely important
12
Counts
10
8
6
4
2
0
Member of child's
Receive
school district
correspondence
transition team to from your child's
observe child
kindergarten
teacher
Receive a home
visit from your
child's
kindergarten
teacher
Attend
School district
Receive
kindergarten transition planning information about
orientation
team to conduct a how to register
activities with
full evaluation of
your child for
other incoming
child
kindergarten
kindergarten
students
Transition to Kindergarten Supports
To perform statistical analysis of the data in Figures 14, 15, and 16, a numerical
value was given to represent each response category, with 1 being given to the response
“Not important” and 5 being given to the response “Extremely important.” It is
significant and worth noting that of the 12 priorities and supports that special education
leaders were asked to give their perception of a parent’s rating on the importance of each
support, each distribution of responses was exactly the same. Each of the 12 distributions
was unimodal. Of the 12 survey respondents, 11 special education leaders rated each
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
117
support a ‘5’ which corresponds to an “Extremely important” rating. Just one respondent
had different responses to each survey question in this section, and that individual
responded with a rating of ‘2’ or “Slightly important” for all twelve supports. Responses
from this respondent were a possible outlier, and a larger sample size would have helped
to identify this as such. Each of the 12 distributions was unimodal with a center of 5,
given by the mode and representing a response of “Extremely important.” The spread of
each of the 12 distributions is 0 categorical units, given by the interquartile range (IQR).
The median response to each of the 12 survey questions was 5, which represents a
response value of “Extremely important” and is the same as the mode value for each
question.
In analyzing research question one and responses to the FEIT-Modified survey, it
was found that there were nine parent response distributions centered at 5, representing
the highest rating of importance. These nine areas of support are: attending the transition
to kindergarten planning meeting, having an early intervention teacher in attendance at
the meeting, having the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member of the child’s
school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence from the
child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with other
incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team to
conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register the
child for kindergarten. Upon analysis of the responses to the SELTS-K and in order to
answer research question two, it was found that all 12 special education leader response
distributions were centered at 5, representing the highest rating of importance. These
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
118
twelve areas of support include the nine areas of support that parents found to be most
important, as well as three additional areas. The additional areas of support are the early
intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on these three areas to
determine if there was a statistical difference in how parents perceived their level of
importance and how special education leaders perceived parent ratings of support
importance.
The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified survey and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance parents felt or were perceived
to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about having the early intervention
program host a meeting about what to expect as the child nears the entry to kindergarten.
The null hypothesis was established to test whether there was a difference between how
special education leaders and parents perceived their rating of the importance of having
the early intervention program host the meeting. After performing the test, the data was
found to have a U-value of 96.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The z-score is 1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the 5% significance level, the result is
significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing evidence that there is a
difference between how parents and special education leaders perceived the rating of the
importance of having the early intervention program host a meeting.
Following this result, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEITModified survey and the SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance
parents felt or were perceived to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
119
receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher. The null hypothesis
was established to test whether there was a difference between how special education
leaders and parents perceived their rating of importance for receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher. After performing the test, the data was found
to have a U-value of 90.5, which allows for the use of the z-score. The z-score is 1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the 5% significance level, the result is
significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is convincing evidence that there is a
difference between how parents and special education leaders perceived the rating of the
importance of receiving monthly contact from the child’s early intervention teacher.
Finally, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the FEIT-Modified and the
SELTS-K results about the overall rating of the importance parents felt or were perceived
to feel during the transition to kindergarten process about receiving a home visit from the
child’s kindergarten teacher. The null hypothesis was established to test whether there
was a difference between how special education leaders and parents perceived their rating
of the importance of receiving a home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher. After
performing the test, the data was found to have a U-value of 38.5, which allows for the
use of the z-score. The z-score is -1.97789, and the p-value was reported as .0477. At the
5% significance level, the result is significant, and we reject the null hypothesis. There is
convincing evidence that there is a difference between how parents and special education
leaders perceived the rating of the importance of receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher.
Of the twelve areas of support, special education leaders correctly perceived the
level of importance that parents felt towards nine support areas. These nine areas
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
120
included: attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting, the early intervention
teacher being in attendance at the meeting, potential kindergarten teacher being in
attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member
of the child’s school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence
from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with
other incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team
to conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register
the child for kindergarten. Upon analysis, it was determined that in the remaining three
areas of support, special education leaders may have misunderstood the perceptions of
parents. These three areas of support included the early intervention program hosting a
meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact from the child’s early
intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher.
There was one open-ended question included on the SELTS-K, which provided
the researcher an opportunity to collect qualitative data from special education leaders
respective to the question, “Describe what you think people mean when they say that a
child is ‘ready’ for kindergarten.” Figure 17 represents the special education leader
responses to this item. Of the 12 respondents, parents who completed the SELTS-K, nine
respondents (75%) cited academics, six respondents (50%) referenced toilet training, five
respondents (42%) referenced following directions, three respondents (25%) referenced a
child’s communication skills, three respondents (25%) referenced emotional regulation,
one respondent (17%) referenced attention span, and one respondent (17%) referenced
getting along socially with others.
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121
Figure 17
SEL perspectives on kindergarten readiness
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION LEADER RESPONSES
Figure 18 represents a comparison of parent and special education leader
responses to what it means for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten. Notable differences
were observed most prominently in the areas of academics, toilet training, and following
directions.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
122
Figure 18
A comparison of responses about kindergarten readiness in children
CHILD CHARACTERISTICS
What Makes a Child "Ready" for Kindergarten?
Academics
Attention Span
Communication Skills
Emotional Regulation
Following Directions
Social Skills
Toilet Training
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
PERCENT OF RESPONDENTS
Parent
Special Education Leader
Semi-structured Special Education Leader Interview Data
There were two questions on the special education leader semi-structured
interview that questioned respondents about what they considered to be the most
concerning to parents and also the most important to parents of children with special
needs through the transition out of early intervention and into school-age programming.
Of the 12 respondents to the SELTS-K, six special education leaders consented to be
interviewed by the researcher. Four of the 6 respondents (67%) mentioned that parents
are most concerned about their child’s safety, and 2 respondents (33%) reported that a
child’s communication skills are the most concerning area for parents. One respondent
(17%) reported that she believed parents to be most concerned about their child riding the
school bus, and another respondent (17%) reported that she believed parents to be most
concerned about toilet training.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
123
In terms of what special education leaders perceive as most important to parents
of incoming kindergarten students from early intervention with special needs, two
respondents (33%) reported having their child be socially accepted, “included and not
forgotten.” Two respondents (33%) mentioned that making sure their child gets the
needed supports in kindergarten to be the most important thing to parents of preschoolers
with special needs during the kindergarten transition process. One respondent (17%)
reported that knowing who the child’s kindergarten teacher will be is of the highest
importance to parents.
Quantitative and qualitative data collected from the SELTS-K as well as the
qualitative data collected during the semi-structured parent interview revealed what
special education leaders perceive to be the priorities of parents of preschool children
with complex special needs during the transition to kindergarten process. Inferential
statistical analysis was used to determine a statistically significant difference between
how special education leaders perceive the importance of certain supports to parents and
how parents actually report how important those supports would be to them during this
time of transition for their child. Those three areas of significant difference include the
early intervention program hosting a meeting to prepare parents for what to expect during
the transition meeting, receiving monthly contact from the preschool early intervention
teacher to answer questions about kindergarten transition, and receiving a home visit
from the child’s kindergarten teacher before school starts. Another area of discrepancy
between what special education leaders perceive and what parents report was found in the
question about what it means for a child to be “ready” to go to kindergarten. Notable
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
124
discrepancies were found in the areas of academics, toilet training, and following
directions.
Data triangulation occurred through the collection of data from multiple sources
during a finite period of time. Statistical analysis enabled the comparison of data sets to
determine if significant differences existed between them. Demographic data revealed
that the racial/ethnic representation in the sample of parent participants very closely
aligned with the most recent U.S. Census data for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania,
which adds another layer of validity to this study.
Research Question Three: How are the reported priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of
the WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
To better understand how the reported priorities of parents of preschool-age
children with complex special needs are reflected in the transition to kindergarten
practices of the WIU preschool EI program and the school districts in Westmoreland
County, one must first understand the lawful requirements of each educational entity as
they relate to a child’s move out of early intervention and into school-age programming.
One major legal responsibility of preschool early intervention programs and school
districts in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is to support the transition of preschoolage children with disabilities from early intervention services into school-age
programming. Act 212 of 1990, the Early Intervention Systems Act, establishes the legal
requirements involved with the provision of early intervention services to children in
Pennsylvania, including the services required to facilitate a smooth transition of the child
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
125
from preschool early intervention and into school-age programming. Planning for the
move into kindergarten must begin when the child is within one year of transition to a
school-age program. Within that time frame, preschool early intervention Individualized
Education Plan (IEP) teams are required to develop transition plans intended to support
the child and the family through the child’s move out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. Act 212 of 1990 further requires that preschool early intervention programs
in Pennsylvania convene transition meetings each February for children eligible to attend
preschool or first grade in the fall. During the transition meeting, the Preschool Early
Intervention program must review with the family and present an Intent to Register form,
which enables parents to indicate whether they intend to send the child to kindergarten in
the fall (Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022b; Pennsylvania Department of
Education, 2022c). In Pennsylvania, parents have the option of requesting that their child
with special needs remain in the Preschool Early Intervention program for one additional
year rather than transitioning into school-age programming. At the conclusion of the
additional year of preschool early intervention, the child must transition out of the early
intervention program.
Parental choice about whether the child will be enrolled in the school district or
charter school is recorded on the Intent form. Once the Intent form is received by the
child’s school district of residence and the parents indicate the intent to enroll the child in
kindergarten or first grade with the school district, school districts are then legally
required by Act 212 of 1990 to inform the family about the Notice of Options for the
child’s transition out of early intervention and into school-age programming
(Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2022d). Such options include the agreement
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between the parents and school district to adopt and implement the preschool early
intervention IEP in its entirety or with revisions upon the child’s entry into kindergarten
or agreement between the parents and the school district or charter school to conduct a reevaluation of the child in preparation for the child’s transition into school-age
programming. Aside from these legal requirements for preschool early intervention and
school districts, the law does not offer guidance about how to conduct the kindergarten
transition process from a quality perspective to maximally support parent priorities and
the child’s needs.
Only one of the 12 supports (8%) presented to parents in the FEIT-Modified
survey (attending a transition to kindergarten meeting with representatives from the WIU
early intervention program and your child’s school district that will take place in
February 2023) happens with regularity due to the fact that holding the February
transition meeting is required by Act 212 of 1990 in Pennsylvania. In the fall of 2022,
representatives from the WIU EI program and from a few school districts participated in
a virtual meeting to explain to families what to expect during the February transition
meeting. That virtual kindergarten transition preparation meeting was attended by
approximately 30 families. In addition, when possible, the WIU EI program attempts,
when possible, to have the child’s early intervention teacher attend the February
transition meeting; however, the lack of substitute teacher coverage oftentimes prevents
the EI teacher from attending. Although some of the other supports may happen on
occasion throughout the transition to kindergarten process, they are not occurring in each
school district in Westmoreland County with sustained regularity. Results of this study
revealed that there is a vast difference between the priorities reported by parents in terms
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of supports needed are only minimally evident with regularity across all school districts
and the early intervention program.
Discussion
The responses obtained through the administration of the FEIT-Modified survey
revealed that parents of preschool children with complex special needs have many
concerns when they think about their child transitioning out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. The five areas of reported highest concern for parents, listed in order from
most concerning to least, were: worry about their child’s overall preparedness for
kindergarten, concerns about the child’s ability to communicate their needs, toilet
training, the child’s ability to get used to a new school, and the child’s ability to ride the
school bus. Parents reported the least amount of concern about their child’s ability to get
along with other children, their child’s ability to get along with the teacher, and their
child being separated from the family when the child made the transition from early
intervention to kindergarten.
Parents of children with special needs are most concerned about their child’s
overall preparedness for kindergarten. Data was collected via the FEIT-Modified survey
and during the semi-structured parent interview to find out what parents think it means
for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten. On the FEIT-Modified survey, parents
identified several child characteristics that should be observed for a child to be
considered “ready” for kindergarten. A majority of parents (67%) identified a child’s
ability to follow directions as being associated with a child’s readiness to attend
kindergarten. Thirty-three percent of parents identified a child’s ability to socialize
appropriately and to possess an adequate attention span for learning as being integral to a
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child’s readiness for kindergarten. Twenty-five percent of parents identified a child’s
communication skills, 19% of parents referenced toilet training, and 15% of parents listed
emotional regulation as well as academics as being integral to a child being “ready” to go
to kindergarten. Some of these same child characteristics were mentioned during the
semi-structured parent interviews. Two out of five parent interview participants (40%)
identified a child’s communication skills, social skills, emotional regulation, and
attention span. Since these same child characteristics were reported on the FEITModified survey as well as during the parent interviews, one could interpret them as
being quite concerning to parents during the transition to kindergarten process. One
hundred percent of parents who were interviewed rejected academics as being integral to
a child’s kindergarten readiness. Rejection of academics as being associated with a
child’s kindergarten readiness was determined by the researcher based on its exclusion
from the answers of four respondents and the explicit verbal rejection of it from one
respondent: “It’s not super important how many letters or numbers or colors they know.”
Parents of preschool children with special needs are exceptionally concerned
about their child’s ability to communicate with others when they think about their child’s
transition into kindergarten. When parents, who identified as ‘Not likely’ to send their
children to kindergarten in the fall of 2023, reported the reasoning for their decision on
the FEIT-Modified survey, three out of the four respondents (75%) only cited concerns
about their child’s difficulty with communication skills. Communication skills were not
only mentioned on the survey as well as during parent interviews, but it was also reported
as the main reason for parents not to send their children to kindergarten “on time” with
their same-age peers, making it an extremely high concern area for parents.
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The FEIT-Modified survey also collected data from parents about the types of
kindergarten transition supports and their perceived importance of each. Analysis of
parental responses revealed that there were nine supports that received the highest
possible ranking of importance from parents. Those nine areas were: attending the
transition to kindergarten planning meeting in February, having an early intervention
teacher in attendance at the meeting, having a potential kindergarten teacher in
attendance at the meeting, visiting the child’s kindergarten classroom, having a member
of the child’s school district transition team observe the child, receiving correspondence
from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending kindergarten orientation activities with
other incoming kindergarten students, having the school district transition planning team
to conduct a full evaluation of the child, and receiving information about how to register
the child for kindergarten. Of these nine areas of support, more than 80 percent of parents
responded with “Very important” or “Extremely important” for eight of the support areas.
The ninth area, receiving information about how to register the child for kindergarten,
had 70.37% of responses as “Very important” or “Extremely important.” Most
significantly, two areas of support had 92.59% of responses in either the “Very
important” or the “Extremely important” category. These two areas of support were
attending the transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s
classroom before kindergarten starts. Statistical analysis helped the researcher to
determine these two areas to be of the highest priority to parents as they consider their
child’s transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten.
Data collected during parent interviews revealed that parents would feel most
supported by the WIU EI program and the school district in the following ways:
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preparing the families about what to expect during the February transition meeting, being
given time to ask questions and contribute to a collaborative and holistic information
sharing discussion about their child during the transition meeting, having the child’s
preschool teacher and the child’s potential kindergarten teacher in attendance at the
February transition meeting. Being permitted to tour the child’s elementary school and
visit the kindergarten classroom before school starts were reported as important supports
by parents during the interviews.
During the semi-structured parent interviews, parents were asked to comment on
what they considered to be their highest priority when they thought about their child’s
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten. All five respondents (100%)
provided answers that pertained to the overall well-being of the child. Reported priorities
of parents included seeing the child socialize and make friends, making sure the child
will like the new school, making sure the child is “happy,” and watching the child being
“emotionally ready” to be part of a bigger building. Once again, parents rejected
academics as being relevant during the kindergarten transition process, which aligned
with the parent data collected from the FEIT-Modified Survey.
After data was collected from the SELTS-K, analyzed, and compared to the
results obtained from the FEIT-Modified survey, it was determined that special education
leaders’ perceptions of parent priorities and concerns are not always accurate. Significant
differences were determined to exist between special education leader perceptions of
parent importance rankings for the following transition to kindergarten supports: having
the WIU EI program hold a kindergarten transition preparation meeting in advance of the
February transition meeting, having monthly contact from the child’s early intervention
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program to answer questions about the kindergarten transition process, and having a
home visit from the child’s kindergarten teacher before school starts. In these three areas,
special education leaders reported that parents perceived these supports as being
somewhat or extremely important when in reality, parents do not place much importance
on these supports.
A comparison of special education leader and parent responses to potential
concern areas for parents revealed more alignment than what was observed for the
potential supports question. The three areas of concern that special education leaders
reported were of the highest concern for parents: the child’s behavior, the child’s overall
preparedness for kindergarten, and the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting. Of the three areas that special education leaders felt were the highest
area of concern for parents, only the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten and the
child’s ability to communicate needs in the kindergarten setting corresponded to the
actual highest level of concern ratings from parents. Statistical analysis revealed that a
significant difference exists between the importance that special educators reported that
parents place on their child’s behavior and actual parental concern about that variable.
A high degree of variance was noted on the topic of a child’s readiness for
kindergarten between parent and special education leader responses to the question,
“What does it mean for a child to be ready for kindergarten?” A child’s overall
preparedness for kindergarten was rated as a high concern area for parents by both the
parent and special education leader group. However, these groups differed noticeably,
especially in the areas of academics, following directions, and toilet training as being
relevant to a child’s readiness to attend kindergarten, as illustrated in Figure 15. A
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majority of special education leaders (75%) referenced academics as being related to a
child’s readiness to attend kindergarten, whereas only 15% of parents surveyed felt the
same about academics. Half (50%) of special education leaders reported toilet training as
being part of the kindergarten readiness discussion, whereas only 19% of parent survey
respondents reported the same. Finally, only 42% of special education leaders mentioned
a child’s ability to follow directions as being related to a child’s readiness for
kindergarten, whereas 67% of parent respondents reported the same.
The phrase “ready for kindergarten” is often used when discussing whether a
parent will or will not send their child, with or without disabilities, to kindergarten “on
time” and with their same-age peers. For parents of children with disabilities, the
elements identified as relating to a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten varied from those
identified by special education leaders in some instances. It seems as though special
education leaders place more emphasis on academics and toilet training when they
describe what others are talking about when they refer to a child being “ready” for
kindergarten than parents of children with special needs.
There is only one requirement for a child to attend kindergarten in the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania, a child must meet their school
district’s “minimum entry age for kindergarten, which may not be less than a
chronological age of 4 years 7 months before the first day of the school term” in order to
be eligible to attend kindergarten (Public School Code, 1949d). Compulsory education
begins at age six in Pennsylvania, and although a child’s attendance in kindergarten is not
mandatory, there are no skill-based requirements for a child to attend. Quite interestingly,
no one from either survey participant group referenced a child’s age as being a relevant
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factor associated with a child’s readiness to attend kindergarten. It is possible that the age
requirement, as being the only factor necessary to be established before a child can attend
kindergarten, is still being overshadowed by child readiness-only models of kindergarten
transition and influenced by the academicization of kindergarten. Basing the
determination of “kindergarten readiness” for a child, with or without special needs, on
the presence or absence of a particular skill or skill set “places the burden of proof on the
child” (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1995). If we regard a
child’s transition into kindergarten as a process, as opposed to a single event in time, we
may wish to contemplate the adoption of a more dynamic approach to supporting parents
and their children, which includes consideration of the impact of family, peers, school,
teachers, neighborhood, and community on the child as well as the effects of the child on
the same in return. The impact of the interconnectedness of several factors on a child’s
development and learning competence is what may be the best predictor of success
during the child’s transition into kindergarten and beyond.
Summary
The desired outcome of this study was to gather, analyze, and summarize the data
collected from various sources to better understand the perceptions and priorities of
parents of preschool-age children with special needs throughout their child’s transition
from early intervention into school-age programming. The research design enabled the
investigator to study the phenomena within a framework of scientific inquiry that enabled
the establishment of valid results. The results obtained provide a deeper understanding of
the perspectives of parents and practitioners and will support the development of better
practices to support families and children.
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Chapter IV described the collection of quantitative and qualitative data from two
participant groups through the use of surveys and semi-structured. Descriptive and
inferential statistics were used to describe relationships among variables and to
triangulate the data to enhance the validity of findings. Chapter V will present the
conclusions of this study, derived from the results, along with limitations of the study and
recommendations for future research.
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CHAPTER V
Conclusions and Recommendations
Special education leaders in early intervention programs and in school districts
across Pennsylvania are required, by law, to support the transition of preschoolers with
disabilities out of early intervention services and into school-age programming. Though
Act 212 of 1990 in Pennsylvania outlines the legal requirements for early intervention
programs and school districts to follow from a compliance perspective, such laws do not
inform practitioners about how to support parents and children from a quality standpoint.
One goal in wanting to find out more about what parents are thinking and feeling during
this time of change for their child is to support the timely move out of children out of
early intervention and into kindergarten. Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development
and Early Learning (OCDEL) provides the following guidance:
While parents have the option of having their child remain in Early Intervention
when their child is eligible for kindergarten, it is incumbent on the IEP team to
fully inform the parents of the advantages of transitioning to school-age
programming with same-age peers (Pennsylvania Department of Education,
2003).
The timely transition of preschoolers with special needs into school-age programming
supports the exposure of the child to, in most instances, a longer instructional day with
same-age peers while also avoiding a negative fiscal impact on the early intervention
program.
Chapter III outlined the mixed methods research design, which was used to set the
framework for the collection and analysis of data that ultimately answered three research
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questions in this study. Chapter IV provided a detailed explanation of the data analysis
methods used to analyze the data collected to arrive at a set of results. Twenty-seven
parents of children with complex special needs eligible to go to kindergarten in the fall of
2023 completed a parent survey, and five parent participants agreed to be interviewed by
the researcher. Twelve special education leaders from the WIU EI program and several
school districts in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, completed the special education
survey, and six agreed to be interviewed by the researcher. Data were collected during a
finite period of time during the 2022-2022 school year. Statistical analyses and the
collection of data from multiple sources through various question types supported the
triangulation of data, which bolstered the validity of the study. Chapter V will present a
discussion of the conclusions derived from the analyzed results, the limitations of the
study, and recommendations for future research.
Conclusions
Each research question will be examined individually in this chapter to explore
the findings that led to each conclusion related to the perceptions and priorities of
parents, the viewpoints of special education leaders as they relate to what parents think
are concerning and important, and the identification of those reported outcomes in the
transition to kindergarten practices of the early intervention program and school districts.
Research Question One: What are the priorities of parents of children with complex
special education needs throughout their child’s transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
The first research question aimed to determine what is most important to the
parents of children with complex education needs throughout their child’s transition out
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of the WIU EI program and into kindergarten at one of the 17 school districts in
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. This question was answered through the collection
of survey and interview data from the parent participant group. Likert scale survey
questions were divided into two sections: a section that asked parents to describe their
level of concern about 11 potential variables as well as a section that asked parents to
rank the importance of 12 potential supports for kindergarten transition. The concept of
what it means for a child to be “ready” for kindergarten was explored through the
inclusion of a short answer question on the parent survey as well as through a question
asked during the parent interview. The parent interview protocol also included questions
about what concerns parents have and about what is most important during this time of
change for their child with special needs.
Results of this study indicated that parents have many concerns about their child
transitioning out of preschool early intervention and into school-age programming, which
is consistent with previous research on the topic (Fontil et al., 2020; Haciibrahimoglu,
2022; Jewett et al., 1998; Larcombe et al., 2019). In this study, the five areas of highest
concern to parents of children with complex special needs when they consider their
child’s move out of early intervention and into kindergarten are: the preschool-age child’s
ability to get used to a new school, the child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, the
child’s toilet training abilities, the child’s ability to communicate their needs in the
kindergarten setting, and the child’s ability to ride the school bus. More than 80% of
parents, who were surveyed, reported that they have either “Some concern” or “Many
concerns” about their child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten, making this the
parent’s highest area of overall concern. The second highest area of overall parental
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concern regarding the preschool-age special education child’s transition to kindergarten
was concern about the child’s ability to communicate their needs, followed closely by
concerns about the child’s toilet training skills. When parents were interviewed, the
concern areas expressed by nearly half of the respondents included the child’s ability to
communicate. Other parents who were interviewed indicated they were most worried
about their child’s behavior as well as their child getting the necessary services to make
continued progress.
This concept of parent concern was explored through a question on the survey
that pertained to the reasoning behind a parent’s decision to hold their child back from
kindergarten and elect for the child to remain in early intervention for an additional year.
Of the four parent survey respondents who indicated they were “Not likely” to send their
child to kindergarten “on time” and with their same-age peers, three of them (75%) listed
concerns with their child’s communication skills as being the reason for their decision.
The report of concern about a child’s communication skills on the parent survey and
during the parent interviews as well as its emergence as a reason for not sending a child
to kindergarten “on time” and with same-age peers, clearly establishes it as one of the
highest priorities and considerations for parents of preschoolers with complex special
needs.
Data gathered pertaining to the importance of 12 potential kindergarten transition
supports gave deeper insight into the perspectives of parents of preschoolers with
complex special needs as these parents considered their child’s transition out of early
intervention and into school-age programming. Nearly all parents ranked attending the
transition to kindergarten planning meeting and visiting the child’s classroom before
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kindergarten starts as being either “very” or “extremely” important. The importance of
these two supports also emerged during the parent interviews. Over half of the
respondents (60%) indicated that touring the school or kindergarten classroom would be a
supportive measure for the school district to provide, positioning this variable as one of
the most important supports that parents of children with complex special needs could be
provided during their child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
One respondent to the parent survey referenced her child’s anxiety level as being an area
in which she would welcome support. It is highly plausible that facilitating a tour of the
elementary school or the kindergarten classroom for the parent and even the child in
advance of school starting would help to decrease the anxiety level for her child and
potentially others as well.
The importance of the February transition to kindergarten meeting to parents
cannot be overstated, as evidenced by the results of this study. Aside from being ranked
by nearly all respondents in the parent survey as being “very” or “extremely” important,
80% of parents interviewed mentioned the importance of being provided a clear overview
of the transition process by the school district as well as being supported by the WIU EI
program and the school district in contributing to a collaborative discussion about their
child during the transition meeting.
Besides the substance of information discussed and the establishment of a
collaborative climate at the February transition meetings, parents are also very interested
in who is invited to attend the February transition meeting for their child. Over 80% of
survey respondents ranked having the early intervention and the child’s potential
kindergarten teacher in attendance at the February transition meeting as being either
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“very” or “extremely” important, and some parents referenced the importance of having
the child’s preschool early intervention teacher and kindergarten teacher there as well.
Since the presence of these teachers was identified in both the survey and the interview
data, they should be considered highly important supports for parents during this time of
change for their children.
Though having a member of the child’s school district transition team observe the
child, receiving correspondence from the child’s kindergarten teacher, attending
kindergarten orientation activities with other incoming kindergarten students, and having
the school district transition planning team conduct a full evaluation of the child were
ranked by over 80% of parent survey respondents as either “very” or “extremely”
important, they were not identified by parents during interviews conducted by the
researcher. Their importance as supports to families, however, should not be overlooked.
When given the chance to answer the question about their greatest priorities
during their child’s transition to kindergarten using an open-ended question format during
the semi-structured interview, parents overwhelmingly provided answers that pertained to
their child’s overall well-being and happiness. Interestingly, no parents reported
academics as being a priority for them as they considered their child’s transition out of
preschool early intervention and into school-age programming.
Research Question Two: What do preschool early intervention and school district
special education leaders consider to be the concerns and priorities of parents of
children with complex special needs as their children transition from preschool early
intervention to kindergarten?
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The second research question aimed to determine the perceptions of special
education leaders from the early intervention program and school districts about the
concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special needs as their children
transition from preschool early intervention to kindergarten. Survey and interview data
were collected and statistically analyzed to determine the existence of a statistical
significance in areas of concern and in areas of potential transitional supports.
Results indicated some overlap in reported concern areas for parents and those
identified by special education leaders as also being concerning to parents. Over 90% of
respondents to the special education leader survey perceived parents would have the
highest level of concern about their child’s ability to communicate, and over 80% of
respondents referenced a child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten as being highly
concerning to parents. These results coincided with those reported by parents on the
survey and interview instruments, which indicated a high degree of accuracy in the
understanding of parent concerns by special education leaders for these two areas.
The third area of concern considered by over 90% of respondents on the special
education survey to be highly concerning to parents of children with complex special
needs on the cusp of their child’s transition into kindergarten pertained to concern
regarding the child’s behavior, which was not identified on the parent survey as an area
of high concern. Statistical analysis determined the existence of a significant relationship
between the way in which special education leaders perceive the concern of parents about
their child’s behavior and the actual level of concern parents have about that variable.
In terms of special education leader understanding of the potential transitional
supports that parents find important, statistically significant results were obtained for a
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few of the areas listed on the survey. An explanation of the results in this area must begin
with reference to a significant and noteworthy outcome from the special education leader
survey. Of the 12 potential transitional supports that special education leaders were asked
to give their perception of a parent’s rating of importance, each distribution of responses
was exactly the same. Of the 12 special education leader survey respondents, 11 of them
rated each of the 12 supports a ‘5’ which corresponds to an “Extremely important” rating.
These twelve areas of support include the nine areas of support that parents found to be
most important, as well as three additional areas. The additional areas of support are the
early intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly
contact from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the
child’s kindergarten teacher. Inferential statistical analyses were performed on these three
areas to determine if there was a statistical and significant difference in how parents
reported the level of importance of each support and how special education leaders
perceived parent ratings of importance. There was convincing evidence that there is a
statistical and significant difference between how parents and special education leaders
perceived the rating of importance in all three of the following areas: the early
intervention program hosting a meeting about what to expect, receiving monthly contact
from the child’s early intervention teacher, and receiving a home visit from the child’s
kindergarten teacher.
The notion of a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten was also explored in this
study through survey and interview data collection of both participant groups. Parents
were asked, through a short answer survey question, to share their ideas on the following:
“In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be ‘ready’ for kindergarten.”
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Of the 27 parents who completed the FEIT-Modified survey, 18 respondents (67%) cited
a child’s ability to follow directions, nine respondents (33%) referenced the child’s
ability to interact socially with others, nine respondents (33%) referenced a child’s ability
to communicate effectively, five respondents (19%) referenced being toilet-trained, four
respondents (15%) referenced a child’s ability to appropriately regulate their emotions,
four respondents (15%) referenced a child’s academic as being integral to a child’s
kindergarten readiness. Interestingly, academics was rejected by all parent interview
participants as an area to be associated with a child being “ready” for kindergarten, which
stands in stark contrast to the answers provided by special education leader survey
participants.
When posed the question: “Describe what people mean when they say a child is
“ready” for kindergarten,” 75% of special education leaders cited academics, which is
highly discrepant from the 15% of parents who responded the same. In addition to the
area of academics, notable discrepancies between what parents and special education
leaders report about kindergarten readiness in children were also observed prominently in
the areas of toilet training and following directions. For toilet training, a higher
percentage of special education leaders associated the variable with kindergarten
readiness (50%) than parents (19%), whereas a higher percentage of parents (67%)
associated a child’s ability to follow directions as being related to a child’s readiness for
kindergarten as opposed to a lower percentage of special education leaders (42%). When
presented with a question that assumed the application of a child-centered model of
kindergarten transition, parents of children with complex special needs and special
education leaders appear to have differing perspectives about the conditions associated
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with a child’s readiness to go to kindergarten. Aside from one parent who listed their
child’s late summer birthday as being the reason for “not likely” sending the child to
kindergarten “on time” and with same-aged peers, which was actually in response to a
different question on the parent survey, no other participant from either group identified a
child’s age as being a factor related to a child’s “readiness” to go to kindergarten. In
Pennsylvania, a child’s ability to meet the age requirement set by the school district is the
only kindergarten “readiness” factor that needs to be met in order for a child to be eligible
to attend kindergarten (Public School Code, 1949d). Although the wording of the
questions pertaining to kindergarten “readiness” on the parent and the special education
leader surveys may have contributed to answers that placed the responsibility for a
successful kindergarten transition squarely on the shoulders of the child without any
regard for action or planning on the part of the school teams, it would be fairly reasonable
to conclude that elements inherent in the Child Effects Model of Transition, which was
described in Chapter II, are still prevalent in the minds and in the perceptions of parents
of children with special needs and special education leaders, who participated in this
study.
Research Question Three: How are the reported priorities of parents of children with
complex special education needs reflected in the transition to kindergarten practices of
the WIU Early Intervention program and school districts in Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania?
In this study, parents reported that attending the February transition to
kindergarten meeting to discuss their child in a collaborative atmosphere and to receive
information about the transition process from the school district is one of the two most
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important supports. The other support, rated by nearly 100% of parent survey
respondents, was touring the elementary school or the child’s kindergarten classroom in
advance of the start of school. The February transition meeting and an explanation of the
Notice of Options by the school district are two of the three legally required transitional
supports required by Act 212 of 1990 (Public School Code, 1949d; Pennsylvania
Department of Education, 2022d). In this regard, the WIU EI program, which is
responsible for coordinating the transition to kindergarten meeting, and all 17 school
districts in Westmoreland County are clearly reflecting the reported priorities of parents
of children with complex special needs throughout the transition to kindergarten process.
Fiscal Implications
While other potential transitional supports reported by parents as being “very” or
“extremely” important may be provided by the WIU EI program or school districts on an
occasional basis, they are not provided consistently in all instances. In some cases, the
reason for failure to implement might be based on a resource or fiscal restraint. For
example, over the past two years, the WIU EI program has made a strong effort to
include the child’s preschool early intervention teacher as a participant in the February
transition meeting. Priority for attendance at a February transition meeting is given for
the cases of children with the most complex and involved needs. However, staffing
challenges and the lack of substitute teachers have made the provision of this support for
all cases difficult to provide. Certainly, the advent of virtual meetings has alleviated this
burden somewhat by permitting the early intervention teacher to attend the February
transition meeting remotely, yet there are still scheduling and lingering staffing
challenges in implementing this support program-wide at this time. Attendance of the
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146
child’s potential kindergarten meeting at the February transition meeting presents similar
challenges for a school district. Without a substitute teacher to “cover” that teacher’s
class, it would be a challenge for that teacher to attend the February meeting. Even if a
substitute teacher could be secured, the added expense of such a support may create a
fiscal challenge for some districts. Even if special education leaders better understood
that more is needed to maximally support parents of children with special needs upon the
transition into kindergarten and out of early intervention, staffing, and fiscal challenges
may impose a barrier to their implementation. For the WIU EI program, it is fiscally
advantageous for children to transition to kindergarten “on time” and with same-age
peers. Any cost associated with securing additional staff to provide coverage during the
February transition meetings should be weighed against the unrealized subsidies for the
provision of special education supports and services to these children.
Recommendations
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do
better” (Angelou, 2023). It is likely the fervent hope of all researchers that the findings
revealed through scientific study and inquiry will serve to positively inform practice
within one’s field of study. This research project is no different in that regard, as potential
recommendations for future practice on this topic are discussed.
While some supports may be more challenging and costly to implement, there
may be others that are more feasible, especially in the short term. One strategy for the
consideration of changes to the transition to kindergarten process for either the WIU EI
program or school districts might be to examine the relationships that exist between
concerns and supports that were revealed through this study. Connecting reported areas
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147
of highest concern for parents and the supports that parents rated as most important could
be one immediate and highly effective way that schools could support parents of children
with complex needs through this time of change. For example, the variable “getting used
to a new school” was one of the five areas of highest reported concern by parents in this
study when they considered their child’s transition out of early intervention and into
kindergarten. Touring the elementary school and seeing the child’s kindergarten
classroom in advance of school starting was ranked by almost all of the parent survey
respondents as being “very” or “extremely” important. If school districts decided to offer
a tour of the school and of the child’s kindergarten room before school starts, the concern
could be alleviated, and the support provided. Before this study, it is possible that the
special education leaders in Westmoreland County working in both the WIU EI program
and in school districts may not have fully understood the deep importance of touring the
elementary school and seeing the child’s kindergarten classroom before school starts is
for parents of children with complex special needs. It is just one example of how the
insights gained from this study could shape the transition to kindergarten practices for the
benefit of children and their families.
On the topic of concerns, it is extremely important that special education leaders
understand how deeply concerned parents are concerned about their child’s ability to
communicate and their child’s overall preparedness for kindergarten as consideration is
given to future practices. It is vitally important that the WIU EI program continues to
support the communication needs of its students from the time of the child’s entry into
the program until the child’s transition to kindergarten. Already, the WIU EI program
places the establishment of a functional system of communication for each child with
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148
special needs as one of its highest priorities. Results of this study emphasize the need for
a continued commitment in this area from early interventionists, early childhood teachers,
parents, and early intervention leaders as well as the continued partnership with school
district special education leaders to share information about the child’s system of
communication to maximize support to parents in this area and to promote the success of
the child in kindergarten.
The deep concern expressed by parents about their child’s overall preparedness
for kindergarten in this study cannot be overlooked as current practices are examined, and
future ones are developed. A more comprehensive understanding of what it means for a
child to be “ready,” or prepared, for kindergarten was gained by asking parents what that
concept meant to them. Overwhelmingly, parents rejected academics as being important
to a child being “ready” for kindergarten on the survey as well as during the interviews,
which stood in stark contrast to the answers provided by special education leaders.
Similarly, while half of the special education leaders surveyed associated toilet training
with a child’s “readiness” for kindergarten, a minority of parents reported the same. It
should be noted, however, that toilet training was ranked as one of the top five concerns
by parents in the survey, which should not be overlooked. Even though it appears as
though parents are concerned about this variable as their child approaches the transition
to kindergarten, the parents in this study did not associate toilet training with contributing
to a child’s “readiness” to go to kindergarten. As special education leaders participate in
discussions with parents during the February transition meetings, they may wish to
consider the inclusion of information about how the child would be supported in this
regard and avoid any perception of conveying to parents that a child’s ability to use the
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
149
restroom independently would prevent, or make undesirable, a child’s transition into
kindergarten.
Limitations
Although mixed methods research designs draw strength from the integration of
quantitative as well as qualitative data, there are limitations to any research study, and
this one is no different. In this study, a parent survey was sent to 167 parents of children
receiving two or more special education services from the WIU EI program; however,
only 27 parents completed it. This limited sample, which represented a 6% return rate,
was well below what was hoped for by the researcher. Of the 27 who completed the
survey, only five parents consented to and completed an interview with the researcher.
Although the participation rates for the special education leader survey and the interview
were more robust, the representation of leaders from all 17 school districts was not
reached. Small sample sizes in research studies can prevent the generalization of the
results to the larger population and can negatively impact the detection of statistical
differences between variables.
Another limitation of this study is found in the phrasing of some of the survey and
interview questions. Although the FEIT-Modified survey was based on an instrument
used in research by Dr. Laura Lee McIntyre and colleagues, the SELTS-K had been
developed by the researcher and used for the first time in this study. In addition, the
wording of the question pertaining to kindergarten readiness in children was worded
slightly differently on the parent survey than it was on the special education survey,
which could have skewed the results when the two sets of responses were compared. In
addition, the wording of the kindergarten readiness question on both surveys could have
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
150
predisposed participants to provide answers reflective of the Child Effects Model of
Transition, which may or may not form the basis of ideas about kindergarten readiness
for children with complex special needs in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Recommendations for Future Research
The topic of study under investigation in this mixed methods research study
should be examined further with a larger sample to verify the validity of the results.
Beyond replication of the findings contained within this study, this inquiry has prompted
ideas about future study in this area. Perspectives about kindergarten readiness in
children were explored with parents of children with complex special needs and special
education leaders in this study. Although many child characteristics were identified by
both groups, parents in this study also identified areas of concern and categories of
important supports for the kindergarten transition process, which suggests
acknowledgment of the Indirect Effects Model for Transition, a more dynamic approach
to conceptualizing the process of kindergarten transition. Future study could include the
interaction of several components and the influence of each on the other. This study was
designed to collect data from two participant groups before the February kindergarten
transition meetings were held. Much information was gained about the supports that
parents conjectured would be important to them before any were actually provided.
Future studies could survey parents about the helpfulness of the list of supports provided
by the WIU EI program or the child’s school district. The transition of a child with
special needs “on time” and alongside same-age peers was another aspect of this study.
When students remain in the WIU EI program, a negative fiscal impact is borne by the
program. It may be of interest to conduct research with the parents of the children who
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
151
remain in the WIU EI program beyond the year in which the child is eligible to attend
kindergarten to find out more about the perspectives and priorities of this group. By
design, these parents were excluded from participation in this study so that the results
obtained would represent the priorities and perspectives of parents of children with
complex special needs who were never before eligible to attend kindergarten.
Summary
Special education leaders from early intervention programs and school districts
are legally required to support the transition to kindergarten process for preschoolers with
disabilities. Families of children with special needs experience many educational
transitions, and children with special needs are at risk for experiencing challenges during
the transition from early intervention into school-age programming. In Pennsylvania,
parents can elect for their child with special needs to remain in early intervention for an
additional year, despite the child being age-eligible to attend kindergarten in their school
district. OCDEL encourages members of IEP teams to inform families of the benefits of
having children with special needs transition to kindergarten alongside same-age peers,
which includes equitable access to a longer instructional day in most cases and
membership in an educational environment with more opportunities for learning. Early
intervention programs do not receive subsidies for the provision of legally mandated
special education services for children of eligible kindergarten age; therefore, the timely
transition of children to kindergarten is fiscally important to programs. Parents of
children with special needs report a specific set of worries than parents of typically
developing children when the topic of kindergarten transition is studied. If special
education leaders better understood the specific concerns and priorities of parents and
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152
could design practices and procedures to maximally support families and children, the
critical transition from early intervention into kindergarten could be enhanced, and the
educational success of the child supported, potentially, for years to come.
Chapter I of this study provided an overview of why studying the priorities of
parents of children with special needs is integral to developing transition to kindergarten
practices that are highly supportive to parents and children. Chapter II presented a
comprehensive review of the literature related to the topic under investigation and
necessary to guide practice. Chapter III offered an overview of the study’s methodology,
which included a description of the participants, setting, research plan, research design,
data collection methods, and the fiscal implications of the project. Chapter IV included an
in-depth description of the data analysis process, including the results obtained from a
variety of data sources and the interpretation of the data as well as a summary of findings.
Chapter V presented the conclusions, a description of how the findings of this study can
be applied to practice, the limitations of this study, and suggestions for future research
into the topic of transition to kindergarten for preschoolers with complex special needs.
In summary, this research revealed significant and factual information about the
perceptions and priorities of parents of children with complex special needs throughout
the transition from early intervention programming into kindergarten. Rather than relying
on one’s own speculation about what might be important to the parents of preschool
children with complex special needs as they prepare for their child’s entry into schoolage programming, special education leaders can now be more assured of how parents
really feel about the process and use the results to potentially design new or to revise
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
153
existing kindergarten transition practices that are specifically tailored to meet the
identified needs of parents during this very important transition in the life of their child.
THE TRANSITION FROM EARLY INTERVENTION TO KINDERGARTEN
154
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Stedman, J. B., & Riddle, W. C. (1992). National education goals and federal policy issues:
Action by the 102d congress (ED355626). ERIC.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED355626.pdf
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). Quick facts Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. U.S.
Department of Commerce. Retrieved February 1, 2023, from
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/westmorelandcountypennsylvania,gr
eensburgcitypennsylvania/EDU635219
Vitiello, V. E., Pianta, R. C., Whittacre, J. E., & Ruzek, E. A. (2020). Alignment and
misalignment of classroom experiences from pre-k to kindergarten. Early
Childhood Research Quarterly, 52, 44-56.
Weintraub, F., & Abeson, A. (1976). Public policy and the education of exceptional
children. Council for Exceptional Children.
https://mn.gov/mnddc/parallels2/pdf/70s/76/76-PEC-CEC.pdf
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Welchons, L. W., & McIntyre, L. L. (2017). The transition to kindergarten: Predicting
socio-behavioral outcomes for children with and without disabilities. Early
Childhood Education Journal, 45(1), 83-93.
Wellner, L. L. (2010). The existence of trust in the relationship of parents and district
administration in the placement process of 3- to 8-year-old students with autism
(Publication No. 3415675) [Doctoral dissertation, University of La Verne].
ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.
Wildinger, L. K., & McIntyre, L. L. (2011). Family concerns and involvement during
kindergarten transition. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 20(4), 387-396.
Wolery, M. (1989). Transitions in early childhood special education: Issues and
procedures. Focus on Exceptional Children, 22(2), 1-16.
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APPENDIX A
Institutional Review Board
250 University Avenue
California, PA 15419
instreviewboard@calu.edu
Melissa Sovak, Ph.D.
Dear Denise,
Please consider this email as official notification that your proposal titled “The Priorities and
Perceptions of Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs Throughout the
Transition to Kindergarten Process” (Proposal #PW22-018) has been approved by the
Pennsylvania Western University Institutional Review Board as submitted.
The effective date of approval is 09/06/2022 and the expiration date is 09/05/2023. These dates
must appear on the consent form.
Please note that Federal Policy requires that you notify the IRB promptly regarding any of the
following:
(1) Any additions or changes in procedures you might wish for your study (additions or changes
must be approved by the IRB before they are implemented)
(2) Any events that affect the safety or well-being of subjects
(3) Any modifications of your study or other responses that are necessitated by any events
reported in (2).
(4) To continue your research beyond the approval expiration date of 09/05/2023, you must file
additional information to be considered for continuing review. Please contact
instreviewboard@calu.edu
Please notify the Board when data collection is complete.
Regards,
Melissa Sovak, PhD.
Chair, Institutional Review Board
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APPENDIX C
Parent Email/Consent to Participate Form – FEIT (Modified) Survey
Dear Parent,
You know me as the administrator for your child’s early intervention program at the Westmoreland
Intermediate Unit. I am also a doctoral student at Pennsylvania Western University (formerly California
University of Pennsylvania) and am conducting a research study titled “The Priorities and Perceptions of
Families of Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Needs Throughout the Transition to
Kindergarten Process.” Outcomes of this research will potentially assist special education leaders in
early intervention programs and in school districts in developing a more comprehensive understanding of
how to best support parents of children receiving early intervention services as the transition to
kindergarten process approaches and unfolds.
You are being contacted because your child is eligible to transition to kindergarten in the fall of 2023. I am
interested in finding out more about your priorities and perceptions surrounding your child’s upcoming
transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten, which will unfold as the 2022-2023 school year
progresses. Even if you are unsure about whether you will send your child to kindergarten next fall,
you are still welcome and eligible to participate in this survey.
Within this study, you will be asked to participate in a survey that is collected via Google Forms and will
take approximately 15 minutes to complete. You will be asked basic demographic questions along with
several multiple-choice, rank order, and Likert Scale questions in which you will rate answers along a scale
of 1 to 5 related to your priorities and perceptions of the transition to kindergarten process for your child.
If you are willing to share your perspective and insight, please follow the link below to answer the survey
questions. Your contribution is a critical part of the data collection. While you will not benefit directly from
participating in the study, information that is gathered may be of value to the Westmoreland Intermediate
Unit and to the school districts in our county. The risks associated with participating are minimal. There are
no physical or mental risks from participating in this study and every attempt will be made to protect your
privacy. While I may present the results of the research as a published study and potentially in journals or
periodicals, your name and other identifying information will remain confidential. The study will not cost
you anything to participate in and there will not be direct compensation for participating. You should feel
empowered to make an informed decision and are able to discuss and ask the researcher any questions you
may have.
Remember, consent to participate is voluntary. If you do not wish to participate, you are not obligated to
complete the survey and you are able to stop participating at any time without explanation or penalty.
If you have any questions about this research study, please contact Denise Lohr at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or 724-219-2312 or Pennsylvania Western University Professor, Dr. Keruskin at
keruskin@pennwest.edu. This research has been approved by the Pennsylvania Western University
Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires 09/05/2023. By clicking on
this link, you are indicating your agreement to participate and permit the use of data collected through the
survey: https://forms.gle/n4ch2M87qncy2XEH7
Sincerely,
Denise Lohr, M.A., CCC-SLP
Early Childhood Services Administrator
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit
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APPENDIX E
Parent Consent to Participate Form – Semi-Structured Interview
Dear Parent,
You indicated interest in participating in a virtual interview regarding the transition to kindergarten
process. Your participation in this study will help the researcher learn more about how parents of
preschool age children with complex special education needs perceive the transition out of early
intervention and into kindergarten for their child as well as their priorities throughout the process.
If you agree to participate in this interview, you will be asked to join a virtual Zoom meeting with the
researcher. The researcher will ask you detailed questions about your priorities and perceptions
surrounding your child’s transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten.
All interviews will be conducted in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office. Participants will be asked
permission to record the virtual interview to support the researcher’s ability to review collected
information at a later time and to ease the burden of transcribing answers “in the moment.”
Participants may decline recording of the interview or request that the recording end at any time
during the interview with the researcher. All recordings will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
Interviews are expected to last approximately 30-60 minutes each.
Your participation is voluntary. You may withdraw from the study at any time by notifying the
researcher. There will be no penalty if you choose not to participate. The researcher will not ask you
why you opted to withdraw. There are minimal risks to this study. You will not be asked questions of
a sensitive nature. The interview questions may make you feel uncomfortable as some people do not
like to volunteer information/feedback that could be perceived as negative or complaining. However,
participants are reminded that they are not required to answer any questions of which they choose.
Participants can also stop their participation at any time without question. Interview responses
collected will be kept confidential, which means only the researcher will see or have access to the
data. Your responses are anonymous. No names or other identifying information will be reported in
the report of the findings. Data will be stored on a secure server and will be password-protected.
If you decide to participate in this study, you will assist the researcher in better understanding the
priorities and perceptions of parents of early intervention students with complex special education
needs as the transition to kindergarten process approaches and unfolds.
If you have questions about this study, please contact the researcher, Denise Lohr, at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or at 724-219-2312. If you would like to speak with someone other than the
researcher, please contact Dr. Todd Keruskin, who is a professor at Pennsylvania Western University
at keruskin@pennwest.edu.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I give consent for the researcher to record the interview. I
understand that the recording will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I do not give consent for the researcher to record the
interview.
______ I do not agree to participate in the interview.
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APPENDIX F
Semi-Structured Interview Questions - Parent
Thank you for agreeing to participate in this interview. The answers you provide will
help special education leaders to better understand parents’ perceptions, needs and
concerns as their children with complex special education needs transition out of
preschool early intervention services and into kindergarten. Your anonymity will be
preserved, and you will be able to obtain a copy of this interview record if you choose.
You may stop this interview at any time without question by the researcher. The risks
assumed by participating in this study are minimal. You may decline to answer any
question(s) that you so choose.
1. Your child has been receiving preschool early intervention services with the
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit’s Early Intervention program. Tell me about your child
and his/her needs.
2. Your child is eligible to go to kindergarten next fall. How do you feel about that?
3. In your own words, describe what it means for a child to be “ready for kindergarten.”
4. You will be invited to a transition meeting in February between the early intervention
program and your child’s school district. Talk about how the early intervention program
could support you in the months leading up to your child’s transition to kindergarten
meeting in February. How could the early intervention program support you and your
child during the transition meeting? After the transition meeting (March-August)?
5. Talk about how your child’s school district could support you during the transition
meeting in February. How could your child’s school district support you and your child
after the transition meeting (March-August)?
6. What is your greatest concern when you think about your child going to kindergarten?
Why?
7. Will you send your child to kindergarten in the fall of 2023? Why or why not?
8. What is your greatest priority when you think about your child transitioning out of
early intervention services and into kindergarten? How could the early intervention
program support you in this regard? How could your child’s school district support you in
this regard?
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APPENDIX G
Special Education Leader Email/Consent to Participate Form – Special Education Leader
Transition Survey-Kindergarten (SELTS-K)
Dear Special Education Leader,
I am a doctoral student at Pennsylvania Western University (formerly California University of
Pennsylvania) and am conducting a research study titled “The Priorities and Perceptions of Families of
Preschool Age Children with Complex Special Education Needs Throughout the Transition to
Kindergarten Process.” For my research, a child with “complex special education needs” is a child who
is receiving more than one service in the early intervention program. Outcomes of this research will
potentially assist special education leaders in developing a more comprehensive understanding of how to
best support parents of children receiving early intervention services as the transition to kindergarten
process approaches and unfolds.
You are being contacted because part of my research involves comparing what parents think and feel about
the transition to kindergarten process to the perceptions and opinions of special education leaders, such as
yourself. I will also compare what parents feel is important during kindergarten transition with the practices
in place in many of our school districts in the county to find out how much of what parents need is actually
reflected in our practices as special education leaders. Therefore, I am very interested in finding out more
about your insights surrounding the transition of students out of early intervention and into your school
district.
Within this portion of the study, you will be asked to participate in a survey that is collected via Google
Forms and will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. You will be asked basic professional questions
along with several multiple-choice, rank order, and Likert Scale questions in which you will rate answers
along a scale of 1 to 5 related to your perceptions and insights about what parents of children with complex
special education needs feel is most important during their child’s transition out of early intervention and
into kindergarten.
If you are willing to share your perspective and insight, please follow the link below to answer the survey
questions. Your contribution is a critical part of the data collection. While you will not benefit directly from
participating in the study, information that is gathered may be of value to the Westmoreland Intermediate
Unit and to the school districts in our county. The risks associated with participating are minimal. There are
no physical or mental risks from participating in this study and every attempt will be made to protect your
privacy. While I may present the results of the research as a published study and potentially in journals or
periodicals, your name and other identifying information will remain confidential. The study will not cost
you anything to participate in and there will not be direct compensation for participating. You should feel
empowered to make an informed decision and are able to discuss and ask the researcher any questions you
may have.
Remember, consent to participate is voluntary. If you do not wish to participate, you are not obligated to
complete the survey and you are able to stop participating at any time without explanation or penalty. If
you have any questions about this research study, please contact Denise Lohr at KNE1153@pennwest.edu
or 724-219-2312 or Pennsylvania Western University Professor, Dr. Keruskin at
keruskin@pennwest.edu. This research has been approved by the Pennsylvania Western University
Institutional Review Board. This approval is effective 09/06/2022 and expires 09/05/2023.
By clicking on this link, you are indicating your agreement to participate and permit the use of data
collected through the survey: https://forms.gle/g8htt2nDWcaefjyP9
Sincerely,
Denise Lohr, M.A., CCC-SLP
Early Childhood Services Administrator
Westmoreland Intermediate Unit
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APPENDIX H
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APPENDIX I
Special Education Leader Consent to Participate Form – Semi-Structured Interview
Dear Special Education Leader,
You indicated interest in participating in a virtual interview regarding the transition to kindergarten process
in your school district or early intervention program. Your participation in this study will help the
researcher learn more about how parents of preschool age children with complex special education needs
perceive the transition out of early intervention and into kindergarten for their child as well as to learn more
about their priorities throughout the process. This study will also explore how accurately special education
leaders understand the concerns and priorities of parents of preschool age children with complex special
education needs as those parents consider their child’s entry into kindergarten.
If you agree to participate in this interview, you will be asked to join a virtual Zoom meeting with the
researcher. The researcher will ask you detailed questions about your insights into the transition to
kindergarten process.
All interviews will be conducted in the researcher’s virtual Zoom office. Participants will be asked
permission to record the virtual interview to support the researcher’s ability to review collected information
at a later time and to ease the burden of transcribing answers “in the moment.” Participants may decline
recording of the interview or request that the recording end at any time during the interview with the
researcher. All recordings will be deleted at the conclusion of the study. Interviews are expected to last
approximately 30-60 minutes each.
Your participation is voluntary. You may withdraw from the study at any time by notifying the researcher.
There will be no penalty if you choose not to participate. The researcher will not ask you why you opted to
withdraw. There are minimal risks to this study. You will not be asked questions of a sensitive nature. The
interview questions may make you feel uncomfortable as some people do not like to volunteer
information/feedback that could be perceived as negative or complaining. However, participants are
reminded that they are not required to answer any questions of which they choose.
Participants can also stop their participation at any time without question. Interview responses collected
will be kept confidential, which means only the researcher will see or have access to the data. Your
responses are anonymous. No names or other identifying information will be reported in the report of the
findings. Data will be stored on a secure server and will be password-protected.
If you decide to participate in this study, you will assist the researcher in better understanding the how
special education leaders view the transition to kindergarten process and how well they understand the
concerns and priorities of parents of children with complex special education needs.
If you have questions about this study, please contact the researcher, Denise Lohr, at
KNE1153@pennwest.edu or at 724-219-2312. If you would like to speak with someone other than the
researcher, please contact Dr. Todd Keruskin, who is a professor at Pennsylvania Western University at
keruskin@pennwest.edu.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I give consent for the researcher to record the interview. I
understand that the recording will be deleted at the conclusion of the study.
______ I agree to participate in the interview. I do not give consent for the researcher to record the interview.
______ I do not agree to participate in the interview.
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APPENDIX J
Semi-Structured Interview Questions - Special Education Leader
Thank you for agreeing to participate in this interview. Your participation in this study
will help the researcher learn more about how parents of preschool age children with
complex special education needs perceive the transition out of early intervention and into
kindergarten for their child as well as to learn more about their priorities throughout the
process. This study will also explore how accurately special education leaders understand
the concerns and priorities of those same parents when those consider their child’s
departure from early intervention services and prepare for entry into kindergarten. Your
anonymity will be preserved, and you will be able to obtain a copy of this interview
record if you choose.
1. What led you to pursue a career in special education leadership? For how long have
you worked in special education leadership? For how long have you served in your
current role?
2. What is the most rewarding part of your job? The least?
3. Tell me about the relationships that you already have with parents of children with
complex special education needs in grades kindergarten through grade 3 (K-3) in
your district. So in other words, with the families of children who have recently (in
the past 3 years) transitioned from early intervention and into kindergarten. Describe
how you built those relationships? What were the challenges?
4. What do you feel concerns parents the most when they think about their child with
special needs going to kindergarten?
5. What are the priorities of parents of children with complex special needs during the
transition to kindergarten process? In other words, what are the things that are most
important to these parents?
6. What is the most important thing for parents to know as their child with complex
special needs approaches that point of transitioning out of early intervention services
and into your school district?
7. What is the most important thing for parents to do as their child with complex
special needs approaches that point of transitioning out of early intervention services
and into your school district?
8. How do you think your district’s process for transition to kindergarten aligns with
what you feel families need? What would you change (if anything) about the
process?
9. Talk about the challenges that you encounter with parents of incoming kindergarten
students with complex special education needs? What are your ideas about ways to
overcome those challenges? How can the intermediate unit assist you in this regard?
10. Describe the rewards you gain as a result of working with parents of incoming
kindergarten students with complex special needs? What about the process, if
anything, makes you feel as though you have made a positive difference for children
and their families?
11. How could the early intervention program further assist you and your school district
during the transition to kindergarten process?
12. Please add any additional information that you would like to share.