COMBINING TRADITIONAL MODELS OF EDUCATION WITH NORMAL AND DISABLED PRESCHOOLERS

Much of the disagreement among educators of young children is about th e extent to which programs should follow an approach emphasizing devel opment from within (romantic school), development through interaction (developmental/progressive school), or development from without (behav ioral/cultural transmission school). Early-intervention programs for c hildren with disabilities have tended to be aligned with the latter; d aycare and nursery school programs for nonhandicapped, with the former two. A natural question for educators is the extent to which these hi storic schools of thought can be rationally joined. This article revie ws the various positions on combining the schools-they are mutually in compatible, they can be combined by instructional area, they can be co mbined by a separation of means and ends, and they can be combined by type of child. A schema is then suggested for a tripartite theoretical amalgamation that takes into account the interlocking relationships a mong objectives, methods, and child-nature. Such a proposal is particu larly appropriate in early education where educational purposes tend t o be broad and, increasingly, the nature of the children, diverse.