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Adult (age 30) educational, economic, and social-emotional adjustment outcomes were investigated for participants in the Abecedarian Project, a randomized controlled trial of early childhood education for children from low-income families. Of the original 111 infants enrolled (98% African American), 101 took part in the age 30 follow-up. Primary indicators of educational level, economic status, and social adjustment were examined as a function of early childhood treatment. Treated individuals attained significantly more years of education, but income-to-needs ratios and criminal involvement did not vary significantly as a function of early treatment. A number of other indicators were described for each domain. Overall, the findings provide strong evidence for educational benefits, mixed evidence for economic benefits, and little evidence for treatment-related social adjustment outcomes. Implications for public policy are discussed. (Contains 5 tables.)

The Infant Health and Development Program was an eight-site randomized controlled trial testing the efficacy of early intervention to enhance the cognitive, behavioral, and health status of low birth weight, premature infants. The 377 intervention families received for the first 3 years of life: (1) pediatric follow-up (2) home visits, (3) parent support groups, and (4) a systematic educational program provided in specialized child development centers. The control group (n = 608) received the same pediatric follow-up and referral services only. This paper describes the delivery of the intervention and its outcomes. A Family Participation Index that was the sum of participation frequencies in each of the program modalities unique to the intervention revealed that program implementation was not different across the eight sites. Index scores did not vary systematically with mother's ethnicity, age, or education or with child's birth weight, gender, or neonatal health status; but they were positively related to children's IQ scores at age 3. Only 1.9% of children of families in the highest tercile of participation scored in the mentally retarded range (IQ (is less than or equal to) 70), whereas 3.5% and 13% of children in the middle and lowest participation terciles, respectively, scored in the retarted range. Similar findings were obtained for borderline intellectual functioning. These findings are consistent with previous research linking intensity of intervention services with degree of positive cognitive outcomes for high-risk infants. The determinants of variations in individual family participation remain unknown. Pediatrics 1992; 89:454-465; low birth weight, prematurity, intervention, intelligence quotient, family, systems theory, treatment, prevention.

When serving special needs children under the age of 24 months, two divergent curricular approaches should be fused: a narrow curriculum focusing educational stimulation on the area of risk or disability, and a broad curriculum supporting the child's general humanity by making available a comprehensive array of experiences. (Author/JDD)

This review examines eighteen exemplary prevention-oriented early intervention programs designed for high-risk and normal infants. The target populations, the form of the program delivery, and the content of the curriculum are described. Issues in the design and methodology of such programs are discussed. The review also summarizes continuing and delayed effects of early intervention programs with an emphasis on those projects that had a follow-up evaluation phase. Finally, three theoretical perspectives are presented. These perspectives have imponant implications for infant program planning and evaluation from which recommendations are made for future programs designed for high-risk infants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper describes a comprehensive educational program for preschool children and their families. The model, named the Carolina Approach to Responsive Education, is a multidisciplinary approach to child and family services derived from a general systems theory of development. This educational approach is the result of a longitudinal research and development program designed to create a comprehensive system of family supports which, in turn, will have positive effects on the development of young children. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study sought to determine whether variations in intensity of early educational intervention are related to different patterns of mental development during the first three years of life. Sixty-four high risk children were randomly assigned at birth to a more intense treatment condition (Educational Daycare Plus Family Education) or a less intense treatment condition (Family Education Alone). Both groups were compared to similar high risk children who did not receive educational intervention from our project. Standardized tests of mental development were administered at regular intervals. Gains in IQ scores at 36 months were greater for the more intensely treated group than for the other two groups, which did not differ significantly from one another. The observed differences were due primarily to the decline of mental performance over time in the Control and Family Education Alone groups, suggesting that early education prevents intellectual decline in high risk children whereas less intense treatments may not. Developmental trends and policy implications of these results are noted. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]