Authentic assessments are naturalistic methods to obtain functional, contextual information relevant to learning in routine activities. Seven focus groups were conducted with 73 practicing Part C early interventionists to gather their reports on authentic assessments. Participants reported various ways of applying authentic assessment methods, with eligibility determination identified as the most difficult assessment decision point and progress monitoring as the easiest assessment decision point to use such strategies. Barriers and facilitators to using authentic assessments were described in the themes of administrative requirements, knowledge and experience, and family-professional partnerships. Implications for professional development systems and early intervention leadership are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to inform early intervention practice by exploring the various adaptations families make to promote their child's learning, the supports they perceive as helpful in creating adaptations, and the supports they perceive as still needed. Holistic case studies were developed for 5 families of infants and toddlers with disabilities or developmental delays. Resulting conclusions were that families (a) created adaptations according to their goals, their child's developmental characteristics, and environmental factors; (b) relied primarily on their own knowledge of their child; (c) most frequently used responsive caregiving strategies and adaptations of the requirements of, or instruction for, participation; and (d) applied intervention guidance in various ways. Resulting recommendations for early intervention practices are described.

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Contemporary recommended practices in early childhood assessment strive to gain a holistic picture of child learning and development to inform screening, eligibility, and program planning decisions. These practices have traditionally focused on competencies reflected in developmental domains with limited attention to the approaches-tolearning used to acquire those competencies. In this article, we call for the examination of early childhood constructs that impact a child's ability to learn and develop, such as executive function (EF), mastery motivation, self-regulation and selfdetermination, specifically in the infant-toddler period. With EF defined as a wide range of central control processes in the brain that link and categorize information that is discernible in cognitive, motor, and behavioral responses [1], we propose a model of EF as the core construct that drives and unites these learning processes and describe how the model can be applied to Part C early intervention screening, assessment, eligibility determination, and program planning, as well as identify future directions in research and personnel preparation.