S.03, Ep.2: Fostering Inclusive Early Childhood Education

Date

2023

The AEM Center has enjoyed an exciting partnership with Step Up AT and the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA) .  On this episode, CAST Technical Assistance Specialist Maggie Pickett is joined by Michelle Schladant and Austin Garilli from Step Up AT and Jani Kozlowski from ECTA to discuss how their respective centers are working to foster more inclusive learning in early childhood settings. All three centers are funded by the Office of Special Education Programs to improve outcomes for children with disabilities. Over the past year, the teams collaborated on a workshop series to help early childhood education providers better understand how the use of assistive technology (or AT) and accessible educational materials (or AEM) relates to the successful development of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities.

Guests

• Austin Garilli, Step Up AT
• Michelle Schladant, Step Up AT
• Jani Kozlowski, Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA)

Resources

• AEM Center:
  • S1 Ep 7: Stepping Up for Young Children with Disabilities with Assistive Technology (featuring Step Up AT)
  • National AEM Cohort 
  • Find Your State AEM Contact
  • Coordinating Early Childhood Systems
  • Early Childhood and Accessible Educational Materials: Synthesis of Knowledge Development Findings
• ECTA Center Website
  • ECTA Indicators of High-Quality Inclusion
• Step Up AT Website 
  • AT in the Classroom Videos
  • Early Literacy Training Courses
• Pyramid Model Overview 
• Every Child Can Fly: An Early Childhood Educator's Guide to Inclusion
• Policy Statement on Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Early Childhood Programs
• NAEYC/DEC Position Statement on Inclusion