NHPS Early Childhood Assessment Team (ECAT) is a group of NHPS professionals comprised of an administrator, PPT chair, school psychologists, speech and language pathologists, school social workers and special education teachers who work in tandem to determine the need for special education services for New Haven children, ages 3 - 5, who present with developmental, academic, and/or behavioral concerns.
The first step in the ECAT process is to have a PPT meeting. PPT is the abbreviation for the Planning and Placement Team. The first PPT, also called the "Initial" PPT meeting, can be held at the ECAT office building or virtually, via Google Meets, based on the parent's preference. Parents and representatives of the school district participate in the PPT meeting. A PPT must include a special education teacher, a regular education teacher, an administrator, and one or more of the following professionals: school social worker, school psychologist or speech and language pathologist. Parents are encouraged to invite those people who provide support to their family, for example, birth to three service providers.
During the initial PPT, the team will discuss the development of the child, including strengths and concerns. A series of questions will be asked to help the ECAT team best understand the presenting concern(s). The team will also review and update information gathered prior to the PPT. Based on all the information available, the team will determine whether evaluations are needed or warranted. Once it is determined that evaluations are recommended, the team will discuss evaluations that are appropriate.
The evaluations at ECAT are designed to obtain information which will help to determine if your child qualifies for special education services. The evaluations that we use may include one or more of the following:
Preschool Language Scale (PLS-5)
Goldman Fristoe Test of Articulation (GFTA-3)
Clinical Assessment of Articulation and Phonology (CAAP-3)
Test of Early Language Development (TELD-3)
Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals - Preschool Edition (CELF-P-3)
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales
Social Work Assessment
DAYC-2
KBIT
Behavior & Attention Rating Scales
Autism Rating Scales
Bilingual (Spanish & English) evaluators are available.
Evaluation Day
The ECAT team and parents will decide on a day and time for the child to be evaluated. On that day, the child and parent need to come in person to the ECAT building. The child will then "work" (play) with the school psychologist and speech & language pathologist, while the parent meets with the school social worker. The school psychologist and speech and language pathologist will assess the child's abilities using numerous data-gathering techniques. The school social worker will gather information about the child's family history, developmental history and health history by interviewing the parents.
Final/Eligibility PPT
The ECAT team will have 45 school days in which to complete the process from referral to the final meeting. At this meeting, often referred to as the "Final" PPT meeting, the results of the evaluations are shared with the team members. Determination of eligibility for special education services and/or related services is based on evaluative results. Parents, as a member of the team, will provide input into the decisions and recommendations made at this meeting.
An IEP (Individualized Education Plan) will be developed if your child qualifies for special education services. An IEP formally identifies the child's needs and addresses them via specific goals and objectives. The purpose of the IEP is to help the child be as successful as possible in the school setting.
New Haven Public Schools participate in the Birth to Three transitions meetings. At the transition meetings, parents are given information regarding pre-schools in New Haven as well as the Planning and Placement Team process. Birth to Three then sends the signed referral to New Haven’s ECAT team at least 90 days prior to the child’s 3rd birthday. Parent must consent that they agree to the referral in order to move forward with the PPT process. Once this is received, ECAT will set up the referral PPT to discuss data and determine if further evaluations are needed to determine eligibility. Implementation of the IEP is by the child’s 3rd birthday. If the school district receives the referral from Birth to Three, not within the 90-day period, the evaluation timeline operates on a 45-day timeline from receipt of referral, evaluations, determine eligibility and implementation of IEP.
