The role of the Early Childhood Special Educator (ECSE) and Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) in supporting children with Speech or Language Impairment (SLI) in Early Childhood Education.

Background - Speech or Language Impairment (SLI) is highly prevalent in the preschool years. 5-12% of children aged 2-5 years have an identified SLI. Considering the pivotal role of Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) and Early Childhood Special Educators (ECSE) in diagnostic and interventions procedures, having confidence and a clear understanding how to support young children with SLI is of critical importance. Aims – The present study examines the confidence and knowledge of early childhood professionals by exploring what role these providers play in supporting children with SLI, and how they perceive their pre- and post - training experiences. Design and Method- A mixed methods two-phase design was used. Quantitative data was collected during the first phase using online questionnaires (n=22). In the second phase, qualitative data was obtained through semi-structured interviews (n=9). Results- Many children on ECSEs and SLPs caseloads receive service for both Developmental Delays (DD) and SLI. In general, ECSEs receive little to no training in SLI, during their pre-service programs and SLPs receive little to no training in early childhood DD during their pre-service program. SLPs and ECSEs are offered post-qualification trainings from various sources, covering various topics, suggesting a need for targeted professional development programs. The number of Pre- and Post- training hours did not have an impact on early childhood professional’s knowledge in relation to the case studies provided within the present study. Conclusion- Early Childhood professionals consistently report feeling more confident in supporting young children with SLI or DD when opportunities to collaborate with members of the special education team are made available. SLPs and ECSEs agree that their most effective post-qualification training is time spent collaborating with one another. The results of this study encouraged efforts of collaboration to be viewed as a networking model inspired by the foundations of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory. Using this model guides further professional development for Early Childhood professionals by exploring how multiple microsystems work together and achieve highly effective teaching and intervening for a young child’s development, whilst including collaboration among professionals.