Preparing infant interventionists: Interdepartmental training in special education and maternal and child health

The provision of services to handicapped newborns, Infants, and their families challenges traditional approaches to preparing special educators. Early childhood special educators working with handicapped infants increasingly must assume new roles and work In a variety of settings, Including homes, daycare centers, and medical settings. Furthermore, they work intensively with families and must work within the context of broader community systems. This article describes one alternative approach to preparing infant Interventionists by providing Interdepartmental training In Special Education and Maternal and Child Health. The program recognizes the transactional nature of Infant development, the fact that Infants are a part of a family system, and the ecological notion that the family system is nested within larger systems.