Peer Interactions in Mainstreamed and Specialized Classrooms: A Comparative Analysis

Abstract

The peer interactions and cognitive levels of play of mildly developmentally delayed preschool children were compared as they participated in mainstreamed and in specialized settings. When in mainstreamed playgroups, delayed children engaged in a substantially higher rate of peer-related social behaviors and played more constructively. In relation to previous findings, these results suggested that the proportion of nonhandicapped children in mainstreamed settings and the availability of children similar in chronological age to the delayed children are important programmatic factors in early childhood mainstreaming efficacy research. The potential value of mainstreamed settings as a framework for more systematic and individual treatment programs for mildly developmentally delayed preschool children also was discussed.