Professional Competence Levels in the Early Intervention Standards for Speech and Language Pathologists in the Arab Republic of Egypt in Light of the Professional Practice Standards of the Council for Exceptional Childrens (A Survey Study)

          The current study aimed  to assess the professional competencies aligned with the Early Childhood Early Intervention (ECES/EI) intervention standards issued by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC, 2020) among speech and language therapists. It also aims to investigate the impact of various variables such as Gender,specialization, educational level, years of experience, gender, training courses, Service Location and geographic location. The study was conducted on 478 specialists in the Arab Republic of Egypt, including  (99) males and  (379) females The study used a professional competency scale based on the ECES/EI standards, adapted to the Egyptian context and the nature of rehabilitation centers. The scale comprised(70) items distributed across(7) criteria: developing early learning skills for children, building partnerships with families, collaboration and teamwork, assessment procedures, employing appropriate training frameworks, utilizing suitable interventions, and ethical and professional practice The study results indicated that the level of competencies of speech and language specialists in accordance with the early intervention standards for exceptional children in the Arab Republic of Egypt varies between "high" and "very high". The criterion of "building partnership with families" ranked first with the highest average (4.210), reflecting a "very high" level. On the other hand, the criterion of using appropriate interventions ranked last with an average (3.099), reflecting a "high" level. Based on the results, the study presented a set of recommendations and suggestions. One of the most prominent recommendations is to incorporate early intervention specialist preparation programs in specialized departments and colleges focusing on special needs. Additionally, conducting studies to measure the level of use of appropriate interventions and their impact on children with speech and language disorders was recommended.