I am having trouble with my international contact. All of a sudden I am not hearing anymore from him. I am not sure if he is extremely busy or if he is no longer there. The email hasn't bounced back so I know the address is still good. I did however meet a person Monday night at a parent workshop that was held at my nephew's school, (Also the school where the Head Start class I work in is located). She isn't international but she is in another state. This person I talked to had a wealth of information for me. I had printed out this assignment for the blog, so I was asking her some of the questions. She is a parent trainer, and also trains teachers and teacher assistants in the Early Childhood professions. She said the issue regarding quality childcare that they are talking about is training. Of course she is in the training field so they are most concerned about the development of staff. She said they find the primary reason programs do not train staff is because of budget. However this is so important for maintaining a high quality center.
They have several different opportunities for professionals. One of them is the CDA-Credential. The program that she works with offers that for groups and will send out professionals to oversee staff working on the credential. They also offer private trainings on a variety of topics focused on specific needs of programs.
Her professional goals are to travel, meet and train as many Early Childhood Professionals as she possibly can. She feels this is the key to transforming our childcare standards to higher quality. Her dream is to see a set of Standards put into place for all child care centers that want to be licensed. She also wants to see a system of checks and balances so that we know the centers are abiding by the standards.
I really enjoyed the chat with her that happened by chance. I don't believe in coincidences, I feel God sent her my way because he knew I would need her. I also got her card so maybe our teaching staff can be trained by her.
They have several different opportunities for professionals. One of them is the CDA-Credential. The program that she works with offers that for groups and will send out professionals to oversee staff working on the credential. They also offer private trainings on a variety of topics focused on specific needs of programs.
Her professional goals are to travel, meet and train as many Early Childhood Professionals as she possibly can. She feels this is the key to transforming our childcare standards to higher quality. Her dream is to see a set of Standards put into place for all child care centers that want to be licensed. She also wants to see a system of checks and balances so that we know the centers are abiding by the standards.
I really enjoyed the chat with her that happened by chance. I don't believe in coincidences, I feel God sent her my way because he knew I would need her. I also got her card so maybe our teaching staff can be trained by her.
I have had trouble contacting international resources, but I'm sure they are very busy.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the information you provided was great. I really enjoyed your post. I believe that budget is a problem with a lot of programs in a variety of states, but I think it is great that they are providing opportunities for training and credentials to help teachers provide high quality care and education. This is something worth looking more into. Thanks for the post!
Your encounter is a great example of how we can learn from each other. I am not surprised to hear that budgets are a problem in training. Unfortunately, often staff is trained but not maintained. This is why a fair compensation for child care is so important! Thanks so much for your informative post.
ReplyDeleteI have always marvelled that no real educational requirements past high school are required of child care providers here, in Ohio. Perhaps this is a product of the "child-care-is-just-babysitting" belief that has not yet been fully overcome. I have found it difficult to convince providers who have little education that they must invest time and money in professional development, just as a doctor or a lawyer must, before qualifying for a professional level wage. Ohio is providing more training for child care staff at an affordable price, often free, but unless a saavy director keeps staff informed, I find it difficult for child care providers to know about. Networking like the experience you had with the Head Start Trainer is surely a good way to learn about training opportunities and methods being used to make training accessible.
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