Community-viable Family-school Partnership Intervention for Children With Social-communication Deficits in Early Childhood Education
Overview
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Intervention
- Family-school Partnership Intervention (FSPI)
- Conditions
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Sponsor
- University of North Texas, Denton, TX
- Enrollment
- 70
- Locations
- 2
- Primary Endpoint
- Feasibility benchmark - FSPI Completion
- Status
- Recruiting
- Last Updated
- 2 months ago
Overview
Brief Summary
Strategies for creating and maintaining reciprocal partnerships between teachers and parents are considered essential elements of developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood education (ECE). Particularly for children who are high-risk for behavioral, developmental, or mental health problems, effective partnerships between family and preschool are essential for promoting optimal classroom participation and learning outcomes. The current study is an uncontrolled (pre-post) feasibility trial of Family-School Partnership Intervention (FPSI). FSPI was developed using stakeholder input, is delivered by existing preschool staff, and aims to promote development and reduce barriers to learning among children with pre-clinical social-communication delays. FSPI integrates evidence-based practices (EBPs) from education (7 EBPs; National Association for the Education of Young Children) with clinical interventions for toddlers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (12 EBPs at the educator-parent level and 8 EBPs at the parent-child level; Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions). Data will be collected across 10 ECE programs. At each participating ECE program, research procedures will be completed during a single school year. Selected ECE programs will include public school, Head Start, and private preschool programs. Participants include 20 non-teaching support staff (1-2 per program; e.g., director, principal, education-coordinator), 30 lead teachers (2-4 per program), and 60 children with social-communication deficits (two per teacher). Data collection will focus on feasibility data (enrollment, attendance, attrition, data completion), observational measures of implementation fidelity (at the educator-parent and parent-child level), and mixed methods to evaluate educator and parent acceptability and satisfaction and identify implementation drivers/barriers. This research will prepare a large, multi-site hybrid trial to evaluate the effectiveness of FSPI for promoting social-communication skills and kindergarten readiness, in addition to factors that mediate the relation between FSPI delivery and fidelity (implementation drivers/barriers).
Investigators
Michael Siller
Associate Professor
University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria
- •currently attending classroom of participating preschool teacher.
- •nominated by teacher as child with elevated levels of social-communication challenges
Exclusion Criteria
- Not provided
Arms & Interventions
Family-school Partnership Intervention (FSPI)
Participants include 20 non-teaching support staff (1-2 per program), 30 lead teachers (2-4 per program), and 60 children with social-communication deficits (two per teacher). FSPI creates new opportunities for teachers to partner with families, particularly parents of children with social-communication vulnerabilities. Specifically, teachers will be provided with a curriculum, training, and resources to engage two families from their classroom in three FSPI Playgroup meetings, scheduled over the course of the current school year. During each playgroup, teaches will help parents practice simple strategies for promoting communication during familiar routines such as play, book reading, preparing a snack, or completing a simple chore.
Intervention: Family-school Partnership Intervention (FSPI)
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Feasibility benchmark - FSPI Completion
Time Frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year
Throughout we will collect administrative data on attrition. Data will be judged against pre-specified feasibility criteria: % of parents completing the intervention. Benchmarks: \>80% for FSPI completion, \>75% for session attendance (parents), and \>80% for measure completion (staff, parents).
Feasibility benchmark - Measure Completion
Time Frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year
Throughout we will collect administrative data on data collection components. Data will be judged against pre-specified feasibility criteria: % of measures completed by preschool staff and parents: Benchmarks: \>80%.
Feasibility benchmark - Enrollment
Time Frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year
Throughout we will collect administrative data on enrollment. Data will be judged against pre-specified feasibility criteria: Enrollment (20 non-teaching staff, 30 teachers, 60 parents) will meet 100% of target.
Feasibility benchmark - Session Attendance
Time Frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year
Throughout we will collect administrative data on session attendance. Data will be judged against pre-specified feasibility criteria: % of sessions completed by preschool staff and parents. Benchmarks: \>75% for session attendance.
Secondary Outcomes
- Student-Teacher Relationship Scale(baseline, exit)
- Child-Parent Relationship Scale(baseline, exit)
- Parent-Teacher Relationship Scale(baseline, exit)
- Social Skills Improvement System-Social Emotional Learning Edition-Rating Form(baseline, exit)
- Acceptability of Intervention Measure, Intervention Appropriateness Measure, Feasibility of Intervention Measure(exit only)
- Observational coding of child active engagement and parent/teacher implementation fidelity(throughout the intervention period (at each intervention session))