Chronic illness is common and has a profound impact on the education of affected children. A variety of approaches and programs to facilitate the transition from hospital to school for children with chronic health problems has been described in the literature. Traditional transition plans may no longer be effective because medical service delivery has changed to reduce long‐term hospital stays while increasing outpatient care. As a result, comprehensive hospital‐to‐school transitions increasingly emphasize home and family involvement that includes homebound instruction strategies, flexible school days, using differentiated instructional strategies, increasing child autonomy, and addressing affective issues. This article describes the needs of children with chronic illness, identifies educational programming consistent with the current health care system, and describes current hospital‐to‐school transition plans that integrate systemic needs of schools and health care systems with the needs of children with chronic illness. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Key Points Question How effective are universal curriculum-based social and emotional learning programs delivered in early childhood education and care centers at improving children’s social and emotional development? Findings A systematic review and meta-analysis of 79 unique studies with 18 292 unique participants found children exposed to a universal social and emotional learning intervention showed significant improvement in social competence, emotional competence, behavioral self-regulation, emotional and behavioral problems, and early learning outcomes compared with control participants. Meaning Early childhood is a crucial period for children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development, and these findings highlight what appears to be benefit of social and emotional learning interventions for young children across developmental domains.

Given the research that suggests the social use of language is the latest developing aspect of language, it was hypothesized that children with speech/language impairment (SLI) are particularly susceptible to social interaction difficulties, resulting in diminished social competence. This hypothesis was explored with SLI and non-language-impaired (NLI) 4-and 5-year-old children by gathering measures of social problem solving ability (as rated by teachers, parents, and peers), emotion knowledge, and language development. Results provided partial support for the hypothesis above. Speech/language-impaired children were rated significantly lower on parent ratings of self-control and higher in internalizing behaviors, and lower on teacher ratings of assertiveness, than the NLI controls. There were no differences noted on peer sociometric ratings or mutual friendships. However, SLI children scored lower on a stereotypical test of emotional knowledge, while scoring similarly to NLI controls on a nonstereotypical test. A test of language development (TELD-2) differentiated the SLI and NLI groups, both expressively and receptively. In addition, the TELD-2 indicated a significant difference in semantic processing errors, but not syntax errors, between the two groups. The differential effects of speech/language impairment on the development of social competence were explored.

Research over the past few decades has highlighted the importance of social and emotional competence in preschool children on later academic, social, and psychological outcomes. Children who are socially and emotionally competent have increased socialization opportunities with peers, develop more friends, have better relationships with their parents and teachers, and enjoy more academic and social successes. Children who lack social and emotional competence are at risk for reduced socialization opportunities, rejection, withdrawal, behavioral disturbance, and achievement problems. Intervention programs that target social -emotional development in preschool are ideally situated to bolster these skills before the problems exacerbate. In this paper, research on the importance of social and emotional competence in young children is reviewed as it relates to immediate and long-term outcomes. Assessments of social and emotional development and behavioral adjustment are briefly reviewed, followed by a review of intervention programs with demonstrated empirical efficacy. Although preliminary evidence supports the utility of these intervention programs, additional research on short-and long-term efficacy is recommended, and more programs designed specifically for early childhood are needed. C 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.