Department Education Studies

Level Taught Postgraduate Level

Module leader Dr Samantha Flynn

Credit value 30

Module duration 10 weeks

Assessment 100% coursework

Study location University of Warwick main campus, Coventry

Introduction

This module will provide an overview of early intervention as a means of improving the life chances of children, with particular reference to addressing the adverse effect of social disadvantage and special educational needs and disabilities, especially autism or intellectual disability.

Principal Module Aims and Outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Understand the rationale and research basis for early intervention and the technical issues regarding early intervention of children and parents that might benefit.
• Understand the nature of, and factors influencing early psycho-social development in children with intellectual and developmental disabilities including autism.
• Provide an account of the recent and current large scale examples of early intervention and programmes, and identify the actions needed for implementing an early intervention programme at local and national level.

Syllabus

• Introduction: From early identification of individual children to early intervention on a
  local area and national scale.
• National advocates for Early Intervention: learning from recent research on the role of the
  Early Intervention Foundation and of the Big Lottery Fund’s Early Intervention
  programmes in driving changing practice.
• Parenting programmes as early intervention: learning from recent research on targeted
  and universal delivery modes.
• Early development in children with intellectual and developmental disabilities including
  autism.
• Further issues in early intervention for children with intellectual and developmental
  disabilities including autism: Impact and outcomes for family members, long term effects
  of early intervention, and cost effectiveness.
• Principles and the practice of early intervention for children with intellectual and
  developmental disabilities including autism, and their families.
• The emergence and development of early intervention as a public policy option in relation
  to health, education and social policy in England.
• Critically engaging with academic and political critiques of the early intervention model.

Study Time

Type	Required
Lectures	10 sessions of 2 hours (7%)
Seminars	10 sessions of 1 hour (3%)
Tutorials	1 session of 1 hour (0%)
Private study	269 hours (90%)
Total	300 hours

Assessment

	Weighting
5000 word essay or evidence report	100%
Students will have the opportunity either to write an essay or produce an evidence report. For the latter we would ask students to select one early intervention model/approach and write a report as if for a local authority, service provider, etc. The report could be structured to cover policy/practice context, principles of the approach, its evidence base, and an assessment/evaluation of key points relating to the implementation of whatever is chosen.

Module Information

This module is a core module for MA Psychology and Education, and an optional module for MA Childhood In Society, MA Education, MA Educational Innovation, MA Educational Leadership and Management, MA Islamic Education: Theory and Practice, and MA Global Education and International Development.