Integrating Normal and Handicapped Preschoolers: Effects on Child Development and Social Interaction

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Abstract
Integrated special education preschools are one alternative for educating young handicapped and nonhandicapped children in the same setting. Previous research in this area has focused on the effects of specific variables upon child behavior in the classroom. Few studies have examined overall program effects upon child development. The present study evaluated the effects of integrated special education preschool programs, relative to comparable groups of children in nonintegrated special education preschools, across a broad assessment battery (i.e., measures of cognitive, language, motor, and social behavior). Children in both types of programs made significant gains across the year. The children in the integrated special education classes scored significantly higher only on a social play measure taken in an analog setting. Temporal integration, without specific programming to encourage interaction between handicapped and nonhandicapped children, did not have a pervasive effect on child development in our sample of handicapped preschoolers.