Supporting children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in Early Years Settings through embedded open practices and principles

Elizabeth Richards, Postgraduate Student, Department of Education

Others involved in this project: Dr Gill Francis and Jessica Hume, Department of Education

Summary

Research surrounding the support for children with SEND is currently limited, and existing studies have highlighted gaps in teacher's preparedness. This is especially true at a local level, as MPs in York have emphasised the need to improve provisions within Early Years Settings if they want to meet the needs of children with SEND. This research project exemplifies a strong commitment to open research practices from design through to analysis, addressing challenges and enabling collaboration, transparency and reproducibility to help deliver positive change in educational approaches.

Child colouring in a butterfly with adult supervision

^{Child drawing a butterfly (Credit: Lucas Alexander, Unsplash Licence -}^source⁾

Case study

A commitment to open research practices and principles extends throughout this study, from the design phase through the methodology, data collection and analysis. From the start of the project the team recognised the importance of collaboration, transparency and reproducibility to advance knowledge, promote inclusivity and drive positive change in the field of education.

One way in which the study shows this commitment is through pre-registration on OSF (Open Science Framework). Registering the study was a critical step in enabling open access at an early stage for all stakeholders with an interest in the project. Documenting the research design, questions and hypotheses before data collection demonstrates transparency in the study’s purpose and methodology. This allows for validation and academic scrutiny, and reduces the risk of bias in the analysis.

^{Activity table with wooden letters (credit: Gautam Arora, Unsplash Licence -}^source⁾

The study employed a comprehensive mixed-methods approach combining quantitative and qualitative data. All raw data was anonymised to protect participants’ confidentiality while ensuring that outputs could be shared and reused. Participants were informed about the open sharing of data and results and were provided with a step-by-step guide detailing how the analysis was conducted. This transparency facilitates re-use of data and results, fostering opportunities for collaboration and further research in the field.

The researchers encountered some challenges when seeking to align their work with the principles of openness and transparency. A primary obstacle involved obtaining and storing employers’ postcodes for the study; postcodes are essential for understanding socio-economic context, however acquiring this information posed logistical and privacy concerns. The researchers recognised that overcoming resistance to change was an essential part of advancing open research principles, and with guidance and support from an ethics committee member they conducted a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) to identify and mitigate potential risks associated with handling this data. The researchers explicitly informed participants both before and during data collection that postcode data would be obtained, and all personal data was separately coded in a password-protected file accessible only to the research team. The consent and information sheet also specified that the data collected would be handled confidentially and in compliance with GDPR and data protection policies. To ensure anonymity, no postcodes or specific area names were included in the final report.

The insights from the study will not only inform local practices in York and North Yorkshire, but will lay the groundwork for a larger-scale pilot study across the country. Exploration of open practices and principles in this study enabled the researcher to deepen their understanding of the importance of transparency, collaboration, and accessibility in research. Embracing these values not only enhances the credibility of their work but also ensures that the findings are available for other professionals who are interested in the field of Education.

Links

Preregistration documentation: https://osf.io/yx4b5

Funding

National Institute for Health and Care Research, Three Schools Mental Health Fellowship

Licensing information

Except where otherwise noted copyright in this work belongs to the author(s), licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License