UPDating university curricula on Early InTervention

Skills such as taking a first step, smiling for the first time, and waving “bye bye” are called developmental milestones. According to the Center for Disease Control (2018) children reach milestones in how they play, learn, speak, act, and move (crawling, walking, etc.). Early identification of developmental delays is at the utmost importance in a child’s development. In order to have an efficient Early Identification and Early Intervention, certain practices must be set in place such as standardized instruments for screening and assessments as well as strategies for work with children with delays. In these modern times, we need to utilize all the available technology and create tools which are free and accessible to all. In that direction, this project will focus on the creation of an e-learning OER that will contain various screening methods for identification of children with disabilities as well as early intervention working strategies. These instruments stem from the project results. The content from the web-based OER (enriched with developmental check-lists and video/audio materials with exercises) will be the basis on which a development tracker mobile application will be created. Through this app, students in the early education field but also parents, caregivers, educators and special educators can monitor the development of each child and work with the children in home and/or professional settings. Ultimately, the content developed in the first part of the project will lead to the Update of University curricula in the area of Early Intervention for children with developmental delay in all HEIs participating in this project with a possibility of further dissemination with other universities, schools, preschool institutions and so on.