engleski

Developmentally Appropriate Teaching Strategies For Preschool Children With Disabilities In Inclusive Settings

Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) encompasses a variety of behaviors applied by preschool teachers in their everyday pedagogical practice. In order to identify the basic characteristics of DAP for preschool children with multiple disabilities, video recordings of adult - child interaction in mainstream kindergartens were made. Overall 55 molar activities (episodes of interaction) were analyzed. The chronological age of the children with multiple disabilities ranged from 4 to 7 years (M=5.8, SD=1.24). All the children attended a 4 hours program. The teachers' professional experience ranged from 1 to 25 years (M=17, SD=7.33). The adults manifested specific teaching strategies that can be divided in 3 major categories: (1) directive verbal and non-verbal strategies (pointing and touching objects, verbal correction with negations, description of key features of a particular object etc.), (2) directive physical strategies (taking away and blocking the approach to objects, placing elements, materials and objects directly in a child's palm etc.) and (3) multi-field regulation (redirecting the flow of activity, presenting clues/keys for completing the task, regulating speed/pace of problem solving etc.). The results of this survey can be used for further research of DAP for preschoolers with multiple disabilities and for designing a developmentally appropriate curriculum, especially for managing specific, directive instruction and follow-up strategies for monitoring children's development in diverse social contexts.

adult-child interaction ; adults’ support ; behaviorism ; directive instruction ; specific teaching strategies

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