Newsletter Archive
Newsletter Issue 12: 03/02/09
SpecialQuest Birth–Five Newsletter
Last month I had coffee in Oklahoma with a college faculty member who found SpecialQuest through Twitter! She stumbled upon our website while looking for resources for her early childhood courses. More and more we are hearing about how faculty are incorporating the SpecialQuest approach and materials in their courses and programs of study.
To support the work of faculty, we've developed a companion guide to the SpecialQuest Approach to Professional Development on Inclusion for Young Children with Disabilities and their Families. The Faculty Self-Assessment Guide to Using the SpecialQuest Approach in College/University Coursework and Programs of Study provides guidance to those designing personnel preparation in Early Childhood Education, Early Intervention, Early Childhood Special Education, and related fields.
Additional resources for faculty are listed in the sidebar to the left. I hope you'll contribute syllabi and assignments to the Resource Bank and share ideas through dialogue on the discussion forums, adding to the list started by Debra Murphy from Cape Cod Community College.
Please contribute!
susan.stewart@specialquest.org
707-548-4910
Spotlight: It's a Win-Win Situation for Molly Win and Texas Christian University
It took several months to work out details, activities, and areas of interest for both parties, but eventually the pieces came together. What started as a formal meeting has evolved into a true partnership with informal meetings and discussions, which continue to build on the existing programs. Overall, it has been both remarkable and beneficial to both parties.
The College of Education at Texas Christian University (TCU) hired a full-time faculty member with expertise in infant/toddler development and intervention to strengthen their existing early childhood/special education program. Knowing that ten percent of infants/toddlers enrolled in Early Head Start must have diagnosed disabilities, it seemed appropriate for the TCU faculty member to contact Early Head Start and set up an initial meeting to discuss a collaborative endeavor. The Early Head Start Coordinator met with the TCU faculty member and thus began a collaborative partnership between Early Head Start and TCU.
You can see from the documents submitted by Molly Win what has been accomplished up to this point. Early Head Start and TCU continue to meet and discuss ways to assist each other to strengthen their programs, enhance the learning for the Early Head Start children and staff, and support the growth of pre-service and graduate students enrolled in TCU's College of Education.
Molly Win is a SpecialQuest Ambassador and an EHS Program Coordinator for Child Care Associates. She can be reached
at mwin@childcareassociates.org.
SpecialQuest State Leadership Teams
Several State Leadership Teams are working with their partners in Institutions of Higher Education to incorporate the SpecialQuest approach and materials into the curriculum of personnel preparation programs.
Faculty in Colorado's two- and four-year Institutions of Higher Education have developed workgroups that will integrate the SpecialQuest approach and materials into their early childhood coursework.
The Massachusetts State Leadership Team will introduce the SpecialQuest approach and materials to parents, teachers, trainers, and higher education faculty at a Birth-to-Five Early Childhood Inclusion Symposium this spring.
Members of Pennsylvania's State Leadership Team and SpecialQuest consultants will be presenting the SpecialQuest approach and materials at the Higher Education Institute, It's Our Future: Investing in Each and Every Child, this spring.
SpecialQuest Website Update
Maintenance was performed on the Discussion Forums this last week. Some users may need to re-register to participate in the forums.
The NEW address for discussion forums is: http://www.specialquest.org/php/punbb/index.php You must be logged in to access a forum. Anyone may register to participate.
A pleasant byproduct of the maintenance is that you can add your picture to your profile.
State Summaries
Learn about State Leadership Teams' action plans and who is participating on the teams at the local and state levels.
Facelift
Based on your input, we've changed the navigation of our site so that you can get around more easily.
Faculty Self-Assessment Guide
Using the SpecialQuest Approach in College/ University Coursework and Programs of Study
SpecialQuest Goes to College
Ideas and tips summarized from the Spring 2008 discussion.
Adaptations For Those Serving Preschool-age Children
- Supplementary and adapted materials
- Recommendations for adaptations to the SpecialQuest Multimedia Training Library
Access Supplements and Adaptations
SpecialQuest Multimedia Training Library
It's easy to get to the SpecialQuest Multimedia Training Library: http://www.specialquestlibrary.org
Follow SpecialQuest
View the new What Is SpecialQuest? video and photos from SpecialQuest activities.
