| Abstract [eng] |
There has been performed in this work the theoretical analysis of the conception, development and the problematical questions of the early intervention in Lithuania as well as the comparison with other European countries. A hypothesis is raised, stating that the accessibility of early support for children and their families in towns and villages is unequal. The special needs of the early age children and their families in the regions, where there are no Early intervention services, are being met only partly or not at all. The aim of the research is to estimate from the aspect of support accessibility, how the special needs of the early age children in towns and villages are being met. There have been used in the empirical part the following methods: the analysis of the documents, secondary material (the report of the European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education) and other sources, questionnaire survey, the analysis of the survey of specialists, interview, descriptive analysis of the material acquired using semi-standardized and standardized questionnaire. The statistical data has been analysed using MS Office Excel 2007 and SPSS software. In order to estimate the statistical tendencies and connections there have been used the methods of descriptive analysis (rates, averages, percents). One hundred specialists, providing early support for the children with special needs and for their families, participated in the questionnaire survey. 12 respondents (6 from Lithuania, 4 from Ireland, 2 from England) participated in the oral and written interview. The basic conclusions of the empirical research 1. Though the system of early support for the child and the family is rapidly improving, but there are still fields which needs improvement. The analysis of the laws and other documents of the Republic of Lithuania, which regulate meeting of special needs of children in Lithuania, shows that the early education and support for the family, bringing up a child with developmental disorders are not been sufficiently developed; that the questions of early childhood intervention are insufficiently being analyzed and emphasized in the official documents; that the only decree in force of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania does not ensure the accessibility of the early support for every child and family in need. 2. The results of the research have shown that the system of early intervention is functioning and is judged positively by the specialists. But there is a negative evaluation of psychological support, lack of parents self-support groups in services, especially if services do not exist at all; low qualification of professionals working in the field of early intervention etc. enable us to conclude, that early intervention services are uneven and the accessibility of early support for every child and family in need is not guarantied. 3. The analysis of the documents showed, that early childhood intervention systems in Lithuania and other European countries are different, but all of them should be improved. The opportunity to receive support for early age children and their families in rural regions, where there are no Early intervention services, is limited. Conversely the situation in Lithuania, in other European countries, taking part in the survey, early support is home-based and accessible for every child in need. 4. In the process of early childhood intervention in Lithuania three main sectors (health, education, social) take part, but, according to the data of research, there is lack of cooperation and coordination among them in order to ensure the accessibility for every child in need. 5. A hypothesis, that the accessibility of early support for children and their families in towns and villages is unequal had been proved. The special needs of the early age children and their families in the regions, where there are no Early intervention services, are being met only partly or not at all. |
