Personnel Standards for Early Education and Early Intervention. A Position Statement of ATE, DEC, NAEYC.

Overview & Synopsis

This brief (two page) official combined position statement of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), the Division of Early Childhood (DEC) of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), addresses issues in personnel standards for early education and intervention with young children having disabilities. These groups recommend the development of personnel standards for: (1) regular early childhood educators; (2) early childhood special educators; and (3) related services professionals. Specific philosophical assumptions are recommended to serve as the foundation for development of such personnel standards. Development of a structure for certification standards is also urged. Such development should be based on the inclusion of early childhood specialists on state agencies responsible for credentialling and certification, that standards be developed which are separate from existing general education or special education certifications, and that these standards apply to personnel serving children in the birth-to-eight range. Principles for developing certification standards should include the importance of graduate level training, and the value of outcome-based, not course-based, credentialling standards. (DB)