DEC Recommended Practices and Standards Crosswalks

Crosswalks of the Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Recommended Practices (2014) with the DEC Initial Specialty Set: Early Childhood Special Education/Early Intervention (2017), Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) Professional Preparation Standards and Elements (2012), and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Standards for Initial Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs (2010) were completed with support of the Office of Special Education Programs funded Early Childhood Personnel Center 1 (ECPC 2) and the Early Childhood Recommended Practices Modules (RPMs) project.

African American children sitting on the ground while listening to a teacher reading them a book

A crosswalk for each Recommended Practice within seven of the eight Recommended Practices topical areas was developed. The Leadership practices have not yet been included in the crosswalk. For the DEC Initial Specialty Set knowledge and skill statements that are cross walked with the DEC Recommended Practices, the previously developed alignment of Initial CEC and NAEYC Standards with the DEC Initial Specialty Set was used.

The crosswalks are designed to assist faculty and professional development providers in identifying the intersection of the DEC Recommended Practices with the CEC and NAEYC Standards as well as the DEC knowledge and skill statements. The crosswalks provide a resource to facilitate integration of the DEC Recommended Practices by higher education faculty and professional development providers into course/workshop activities, assignments, and fieldwork. Exemplars within four possible categories are provided, as appropriate, for each Recommended Practice. Exemplars that are more observational in nature and intended to support knowledge introduction are identified for course/workshop activities and field work, as appropriate per practice. Exemplars that are participatory or interactional are also identified for course/workshop activities and assignments/field work, as appropriate.

The complete set of professional standards, specialty set statements, and recommended practices represented in the crosswalks can be found at the following links:

(Note: The DEC Specialty Sets are organized by knowledge and skill statements.)

For additional resources: link to the Division of Early Childhood (DEC) Personnel Preparation Committee webpage.