Evolution of Professional Standards: Reflecting on the Past to Inform the Future

Clearly defined professional standards result in better prepared professionals who positively impact outcomes for children and families by ensuring an effective workforce. This article describes the evolution of early intervention early/childhood special education preparation standards from the on-the-job competencies of the 1960s to the historic 2020 Initial Practice-Based Professional Standards for Early Interventionists/Early Childhood Special Educators (EI/ECSE Standards), in concert with the evolution of the profession itself. Influencing factors include (a) changes in federal legislation and policy, (b) ages and characteristics of children served, (c) growing knowledge of effective practices, (d) collaboration with other disciplines, and (e) ongoing advocacy for EI/ECSE as a profession. The article concludes with a vision for using these EI/ECSE Standards to guide the future local, state, and national agenda of the profession around preservice preparation and accreditation, professional development, state and federal policy, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and standards-informed research.