Date Presented 04/04/2025
Parents and teachers in rural childcare centers understand the importance of developmental programming and OT’s role in preventing developmental delays. OTPs can aid in creating developmentally appropriate curricula to identify and prevent delays.
Primary Author and Speaker: Breanna Adkins
Contributing Authors: Whitney Coffield, Madalyn Comer, Nicholas Passarelli, SueAnn Woods
PURPOSE: Occupational therapy’s (OT) role in early intervention has been well documented, but little research has evaluated the possible role of OT in developmental programming in childcare centers. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perceptions and experiences of parents and teachers with developmental programming, identifying developmental delays, and OT’s unique role in the childcare environment.
DESIGN: Ethnographic study with thematic analysis from semi-structured interviews. Teachers (n = 5) and parents (n = 3) of children enrolled in two rural childcare centers in West Virginia were recruited through email and flyers posted at the centers. Interviews were conducted in person and virtually.
METHOD: To answer the research questions and collect data, semi-structured interview guides, a teacher and parent version, were created. All researchers completed thematic analysis, and themes were synthesized. Rapport building, multi-coder analysis, and member checking were used to improve reliability and validity.
RESULTS: Thematic analysis indicated participants had positive perceptions of the developmental programming at their centers but felt improvements could be made to prevent developmental delays further. While teachers were confident in their abilities to identify developmental delays, parents felt teachers would benefit from receiving additional education in this area. Notably, all participants agreed that OT can play an important role in childcare.
CONCLUSION: Participants were overwhelmingly supportive of OT’s role and understanding of the developmental impact in the childcare environment. Future indications suggest that occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) can assist in creating developmentally appropriate curricula for childcare settings to help identify and prevent developmental delays, enhance awareness of OTP’s knowledge of early child development, and facilitate discussions on OT’s role in the childcare environment
References
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