Abstract
Abuse or neglect and disability often go hand in hand. Unfortunately, most professionals who work with maltreated young children are not aware of early childhood and disability-related resources and services available. In order to raise awareness across early childhood and child welfare systems, a five-week advanced training for volunteer child advocates, entitled Court-Appointed Special Advocate Strong Beginnings, was created. The pilot programme and formative evaluation are highlighted. Upon completion of the training, advocates reported being better prepared and more informed about both early childhood and child welfare systems. Future directions for raising awareness across the child welfare and early childhood special education communities are discussed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1436-1446 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Journal | Early Child Development and Care |
Volume | 184 |
Issue number | 9-10 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2014 |
Keywords
- abuse
- advocacy
- child welfare
- disability
- neglect
- young children
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Pediatrics