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Early Childhood is a Journey,

Not a Race!

Shannon Lockhart

Senior Early Childhood Specialist

slockhart@highscope.org

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What do you want young children to gain from being in your ECCE programs?

(think about several characteristics you want to encourage)

Self-ConfidentSelf-ConfidentIndependentIndependent

Socially well adjustedSocially well adjustedCreativeCreative

Good problem solverGood problem solverShows initiativeShows initiative

CooperativeCooperativeHealthyHealthy

Risk takerRisk takerIntelligentIntelligent

Self-sufficientSelf-sufficient

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Current Status• According to the EFA Global Monitoring

Report (2007), ½ the world’s countries have no early childhood care and education policies for children under three. (UNESCO)

• In some countries that do have policies, they are not enforced.

• Most policies/licensing regulations that are in place for ECCE are minimum standards and do not indicate high-quality.

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Current Status• “Comprehensive group care programs that

address the development of the whole child are relatively rare in resource-poor countries.”

• “Even in resource-rich nations, the availability and quality of programs to ensure good care for infants and toddlers remains problematic.”

• Estimates as many as 40% of children in US are attending child care programs judges to be of

low quality (Danziger, Wallfogel 2000; Currie 2001).

Qualities of Caring: Good Practices in the Infant-ToddlerGroup Care. World Bank January 1999

Learning Environment: Percentage of Total Score for Safe and Healthy Environment

3%

41%

8%

17%

31%

Learning Environment:Percentage of Total Score For Sensory Materials Accessible

5%

29%

24%

Schedules and Routines:Percentage of Total Score For

Overall Daily Schedule

3%

13%

20%

36%

28%

Adult-Child Interactions:Percentage of Total Score For

Children’s Relationships with Caregivers

7%

15%

36%

27%

Child Observation and Planning:Percentage of Total Score for Caregivers Observe Children

27%

4%

15%

III-D. Adults Encourage Child Language:

Percentage of Total Score for All Countries

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50 Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

Level 5

26% 26%

48%

III-F. Adults as Partners in Children’s Play:

Percentage of Total Score For All Countries

0

10

20

30

40

50

60Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

Level 5

55%

14%

28%

3%

III-F. Adults as Partners in Children’s Play:

Percentage of Total Score by Country

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5

Antigua & Barbuda

Dominica

Grenada

St. Kitts & Nevis

Why Strive for High Quality Experiences?

• Research has shown that high quality early childhood experiences has long term affects. (HighScope Perry Preschool Project, Carolina Abecederian Project, HighScope IEA Preprimary Project)

• Well targeted ECD programs cost less– and produce more dramatic and lasting results– than education investment at any other level. (World Bank June 2004)

• Low quality experiences have negative affects on children’s growth and development.

What Brain Research Tells Us:

• The brain is 2 ½ times more active from 0-3 than it will ever be again in a lifetime.

• The human brain develops as it wires. It wires as it experiences the world (learns).

• Relationships play a major role in the wiring of intelligence.

• There are critical windows of opportunities which produce optimal learning.

“When we fail to use the information and what we know and

have learned about children, it is malnourishment—

Malpractice!”

Dr. Pam Schiller

Let’s Discuss

What elements contribute to a high quality infant and toddler program?

Or what is it that we need to do to provide the best high-quality experiences for infants and toddlers?

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1) A child development curriculum

2) Low enrollment limits

3) Staff trained

4) Supervisory support and inservice training

5) Parent Partnership

6) Developmentally appropriate evaluation procedures (child and program)

7) Sensitivity to non-educational needs of children

Elements of High-Quality Early Childhood Programs

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Schweinhart, L. 2004. A School Administrator’s Guide To Early Childhood Programs, 2nd Ed. HighScope Press: Ypsilanti, MI

Generally, Curriculum is Defined as:

A system of teaching, learning, assessment, and teacher training

Provides a philosophy Provides a set of decision-making tools

based on sound child development principles

Guides daily planning and decision making about instruction, educational activities

Guides ongoing interactions with children and families

Includes child and program evaluation tools consistent with the program's philosophy

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Curriculum serves 4 purposes:

1. Curriculum shapes our understanding of child development

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2. Curriculum guides our educational practices

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3. Curriculum supports staff training

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4. Curriculum provides evidence of effectiveness

A Child Development Curriculum• Emphasizes child development

• Focuses on child-initiated activities

• Supports independent decision making

• Incorporates active learning

HighScope: A Comprehensive Model

Comprehensive IT Curriculum

HighScopeHighScopeCaregiverTraining and Support Grounded

in Research

Active Learning

• Key content areas of development for Infants and Toddlers

Sense of Self Communication & Language

Social Relations Exploring Objects

Creative Rep. Early Quantity & Number

Movement Space

Music Time

Caregivers become better observers of development which allows them to plan for their children’s

learning more effectively.

MaterialsChoice

ManipulationChild Communication

and LanguageAdult Scaffolding

Adult-Child Interaction

Ingredients of supportive adult-child interactions:

• Establish policies that promote attachment:– Primary Caregivers– Small Group Sizes– Continuity of Care

• Create a climate of trust• Form partnerships• Support children’s intentions

“Interest in children and nurturing behaviors are considered more critical

qualifications than educationor trained staff.”

(World Bank)

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Primary Caregivers

• Assigned specific children

• Form trusting relationships with the child and family

• Care for the child while the child is at the center

• Observe, record and share observations of the child with the parents and teaching team for planning.

Parent Partnership• Parents are the

child’s first teachers

• Be respectful of their cultures and traditions

• Model for parents

• Working with parents is not a competition 28

Low enrollment limits, with caregiving teams assigned to small groups of children, because:• Small group sizes foster rich interactions• Promotes personal contact• Gives children a sense of belonging and

stability

Recommendations:• 1-3 infants/primary caregiver-- max 6• 1-3 older infants/primary caregiver-- max

9• 1-4 toddlers/primary caregiver-- max 12

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Continuity of Care Children and

caregivers stay together from year to year.

Caregivers’ schedules fit around children’s needs.

Caregivers tell children and parents about caregiver absences and returns.

Learning Environment• Build order and

flexibility

• Provide comfort and safety for both children and adults

• Provide materials that support children’s sensory-motor development

Cognitive Performance

HILOW

HI

Materials

Phase 3 Finding: As the number and variety of materials in settings increased, children’s age-7 cognitive performance improved.

© 2003 IEA Preprimary Project

The best toy for a young child is the invested, caring

adult - someone to pay attention, to

engage and to play with the child using words, song, touch,

and smile.

Bruce Perry, Lea Hogan, and Sarah Marlin “Curiosity, Pleasure, and Play: A Neurodevelopmental Perspective,”

available at http://www.ChildTrauma.org/Curiosity.htm

Daily Schedules and Caregiving Routines

Create an overall daily schedule that is predictable yet flexible

Incorporate active learning, including adult support, into each event and caregiving routine

SLOWSLOWDOWN!DOWN!

Child Observation• Observe children throughout their daily

routine• Record anecdotes and collect other

documentation• Interpret observations using the Infant-

Toddler COR or appropriate observation assessment

• Use the information for:» Daily team planning» Family conferences» Program evaluation» Staff development

Program Evaluation

• Self Assessment– Identify your own areas of strength

and areas for improvement.

• Supervision and Observation/Feedback– Supervisor and staff member together assess

areas of strength and improvement.

– Identify areas for further training.

– Setting program goals. (Plan for improvement)

Program Evaluation

• Research and Evaluation– Comparisons of quality in different

program settings.– Pre-service training tool for evaluation.

• Information and Dissemination– Explaining the effectiveness of your

program to a variety of funders, individuals, and agencies.

High Quality Teacher Training

•The HighScope Training of Trainers Evaluation shows that systematic in-service teacher training improves the quality of early childhood programs and promotes children’s development.

Why Look for Proven Training?

• Independent observers rated trained HighScope programs significantly higher than comparison programs on:– Providing a good physical

environment that was organized and gave children access to diverse materials.

– Creating a consistent daily routine that encouraged children to plan, carry out, and review their work.

– Establishing supportive patterns of adult-child interaction that promoted children’s reasoning and language skills.

Training Improves Program Quality!

• Novice teachers benefit from systematic in-service training which provides both needed information on theory and practical information on implementation in the classroom.

• Veteran teachers benefit, too. HighScope training provides a coherent curriculum framework including current research and innovation, renewing their commitment to working with children and families.

Summary #1 The elements of

quality:• Are vital for effective early childhood

programs

• Are based on child development curriculum grounded in child-initiated activities and research

• Include trained staff that will provide warm, friendly, responsive and respectful relationships

Summary # 2: Implementing a child development

curriculum is valuable because caregivers become:

• More knowledgeable about child development

• Better observers of infant and toddler’s development

• More thoughtful and purposeful in their interactions

• More focused on daily planning

We can ensure that what we want for our children,

will happen!

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