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eNotes
A News Service from the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center
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ECTA
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eNotes
The following two notices of proposed information collection requests were recently published in the Federal Register:
NBC's Today show is preparing a 10-part series that will run the week of February 21 airing at 8:10 AM and 9:10 AM. The series will look at autism from a variety of angles, with segments exploring topics such as etiology, diagnosis, treatment, educational programs, affect on siblings, and how to be an advocate for your autistic child. Be sure to tune in for the "How to be the Best Advocate For Your Child" segment airing on February 24 featuring Autism Coalition board member, Gary Mayerson. He will be interviewed on his new book, "How To Compromise With Your School District Without Compromising Your Child."
In conjunction with the Today show series, CNBC is airing a four-part series from Tuesday through Friday, Feb. 22-25. Segments will air at 12:30 PM and 1:30 PM during CNBC's Power Lunch program. Titled "Autism: Paying the Price," the CNBC series will focus on the financial implications of the disorder, with segments on the financial impact on families, the roles of government and private funding for research, the opportunities in healthcare and pharmaceuticals and autism in the workplace. Both the NBC and CNBC series will feature interviews with leading members of the autism community, from researchers and physicians to activists, educators and parents. Information is available at http://www.autismcoalition.org/index.asp [Note: Link checked on 11/26/2007 - this document is no longer available online].
This new issue brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation explores the history of research about the effects of electronic media on children zero to six years old (including the funding sources), summarizes the findings of the seminal studies in this area, and notes gaps in the research base.
Recent studies indicate that even the youngest children in the United States are using a wide variety of screen media. Some children's organizations have expressed concerns about the impact of media on young children; others have touted the educational benefits of certain media products. This issue brief provides a comprehensive overview of the major research that has been conducted over the decades on various aspects of young children's media use, and also highlights the issues that have not been researched to date. Availabe at http://www.kff.org/entmedia/7239.cfm.
The following new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is now available online: Special Education: Children with Autism. Go to http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05220.pdf.
Can investing in high-quality early education reduce the demand for high-cost special education, social welfare and criminal justice systems? NIEER Director Steve Barnett makes this point in this new video, which features children in preschool and parents who weigh in on the issue. The 7-minute video, Preschool: America's Best Investment, is available in both vhs and dvd formats. To request a copy, please e-mail info@nieer.org. For more information go to http://nieer.org/resources/video/.