This study examined the effects of integration and segregation in a special education preschool program for children with mild to moderate disabilities to determine whether initial level of development differentially influenced gains achieved. No main-effect differences between the two groups appeared on several pretest and pastiest measures. Aptitude-by-Treatment analyses revealed that higher performing students gained more from integrated classes, whereas lower performing students gained more from segregated classes. The data suggest careful monitoring of lower functioning students to ensure appropriate academic and social stimulation.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AllenK. (1980). Mainstreaming in early childhood education. Albany, NY: Delmar Press.
2.
AllenK.MillsP. BenningDrummondW. (1972). Interaction of normal and handicapped children in a behavior modification preschool: A case study. In SembG. (Ed.), Behavior analysis and evaluation (pp. 127–144). Lawrence, KS: University of Kansas Press.
3.
BlackmonA.DemboM. (1984). Prosocial behaviors in a mainstreamed preschool. Child Study Journal, 14, 205–215.
4.
BrickerD. (1978). A rationale for the integration of handicapped and nonhandicapped preschool children. In GuralnickM. (Ed.), Early intervention and the integration of handicapped and nonhandicapped children (pp. 3–26). Baltimore: University Park Press.
5.
BrickerD.SandallS. (1979). Mainstreaming in preschool programs: How and why to do it. Education Unlimited, 1, 29.
6.
CavallaroS.PorterR. (1980). Peer preferences of at-risk and normally developing children in a preschool mainstream classroom. American Journal of Mental Deficiency, 84, 357–366.
7.
CookeT.RuskusJ.ApolloniT.PeckC. (1981). Handicapped preschool children in the mainstream: Background, outcomes, and clinical suggestions. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 1(1), 73–83.
8.
DaleP.ColeK. (1988). Comparison of academic and cognitive programs for young handicapped children. Exceptional Children, 54, 439–447.
9.
DunnL.DunnL. (1981.) Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
10.
FeyM. (1986). Language intervention with young children. San Diego: College-Hill Press.
11.
FurrowD.NelsonK.BenedictH. (1979). Mothers' speech to children and syntactic development: Some simple relationships. Journal of Child Language, 6, 423–442.
12.
GallowayC.ChandlerP. (1978). The marriage of special and generic early education services. In GuralnickM. (Ed.), Early intervention and the integration of handicapped and nonhandicapped children. (pp. 261–287). Baltimore: University Park Press.
13.
GuralnickM. (1978). Early intervention and the integration of handicapped and nonhandicapped children. Baltimore: University Park Press.
14.
GuralnickM. (1980). Social interaction among preschool handicapped children. Exceptional Children, 46, 248–253.
15.
HreskoW.ReidD.HammillD. (1981). Test of Early Language Development. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.
16.
IspaJ. (1981). Social interaction among teachers, handicapped children and nonhandicapped children in a mainstreamed preschool. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 1, 231–250.
17.
IspaJ.MatzR. (1978). Integrating handicapped and preschool children within a cognitively oriented program. In GuralnickM. (Ed.), Early intervention and the integration of handicapped and nonhandicapped children (pp. 167–190). Baltimore: University Park Press.
18.
JenkinsJ. R.ColeK.DaleP.MillsP. (1989). A longitudinal comparison of two preschool instruction models (Grant no. G008400646). Washington, DC: Department of Education; Special Education Programs.
19.
JenkinsJ. R.OdomS.SpeltzM. (1989). Effects of social integration on preschool children with handicaps. Exceptional Children, 55, 420–428.
20.
JenkinsJ. R.SpeltzM.OdomS. (1985). Integrating normal and handicapped preschoolers: Effects on child development and social interaction. Exceptional Children, 52, 7–17.
21.
MacMillanD. (1982). Mental retardation in school and society. Boston: Little, Brown.
22.
McCarthyD. (1972). McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities. New York: The Psychological Corporation.
23.
OdomS.McEvoyM. (1988). Integration of young handicapped children and normally developing children. In OdomS.KarnesM. (Eds.), Early intervention for infants and children with handicaps: An empirical base (pp. 241–267). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.
24.
PedhazurE. J. (1982). Multiple regression in behavioral research (2nd ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
25.
ReidD.HreskoW.HammillD. (1981). Test of Early Reading Ability. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.
26.
Rogers-WarrenA.RugglesT.PetersonN.CooperA. (1981). Playing and learning together: Patterns of social interaction in handicapped and nonhandicapped children. Journal of the Division for Early Childhood, 3, 56–63.
27.
ShatzM.GelmanR. (1973). The development of communication skills: Modification in the speech of young children as a function of the listener. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development No. 152, 38(5).
