Evaluation of the Effects of Pyramid Model Training on the Attitudes and Practices of Early Childhood Educators

There is growing evidence of the effectiveness of the pyramid model (PM) in promoting young children’s social-emotional competence and reducing challenging behaviours. In the province of Quebec (Canada), as in many other regions, many children with special needs are integrated into early childhood settings where educators have not had specific training in managing challenging behaviours. The current project’s objective was to evaluate, using a mixed-methods design, the effects of a two-day training session in PM practices provided to 33 educators working in inclusive early childhood settings in the province of Quebec. Before the session, educators had reported that inclusion is beneficial for the child but not for the early childhood educator, demonstrating a need for more training and resources to be provided to early childhood educators. Following the session, their perceptions of the usefulness and social validity of the training in PM were positive, and their implementation of PM practices significantly increased. Their perceptions of how inclusion affected them also became more positive; however, no differences were found in their overall attitudes when comparing results from pre- to post-test, indicating the need for further support.