I've been reading a material which might seem very useful for our needs. I would have wanted to move forward on identifying and/ or helping develop workshop materials for ECD benchmarks, theories, and best practices but I don't know what materials we already have and what materials need to be developed. Anyway, I just assumed that I'm working from zero, so this is one of the materials which I have identified and I'll outline some of its contents that we can use. I've decided to review seemingly good materials that I have already searched and see where they can be used rather than search and save/print haphazardly. I figured that this would be a better way to manage the knowledge that is already being accumulated.
Planning Policies for Early Childhood Development: Guidelines for Action
Emily Vargas-Barón
Available online at: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001395/139545e.pdf
Because the material is a “tool kit,” it is a good guide book especially for a multi – sectoral working group who has to understand the basics of having to work in collaboration. The material works on the basic principles of participatory planning, integrated and life cycle approach to ECD.
Practical suggestions for conducting the five phases (Preparation; ECD Situation Analysis and Consultation Preparation; Community, Regional and National Consultations; Policy Drafts and Consensus Building; and Policy Approval and Adoption) of an ECD policy planning process follows after an introduction on all major areas of child survival and development.
Area/ Task/ Need:
Workshop Material for Early Childhood Development Benchmarks, Theories and Best Practices
Contents (From the Material):
The Needs and Justification for ECD Policies.......... 3
A Brief History of ECD Policy Development.......... 6
The Integrated Approach ................ 7
The Life Cycle Approach to ECD Policy Planning..... 9
Increasing Investment in Young Children...... 11
The Participatory Approach......... 12
Achieving Policy Alignment................ 13
Area/ Task/ Need:
Design and Implement a Baseline Assessment for ECD services and programming in Aceh/
Develop indicators for STC ECD Programming in Aceh
Contents (From the Material):
ECD Indicators Linked to MDGs..... 63
Policy Indicators (for content areas and policy assessment)..... 91
ECD Indicators Linked to MDGs
Goal 1 Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Target 2 under this MDG is: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger. Target 2 includes the indicator: Prevalence of underweight children under five years of age. 47
Goal 2 Achieve universal primary education
Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling. The indicators include: net enrolment ratio in primary education and the proportion of pupils starting grade one who reach grade five. Children need to be “ready for school” in all respects in order to enrol in and complete primary school, without grade repetition.
Goal 3 Promote gender equality and empower women
Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015. Indicators include: ratios of girls to boys in primary education that requires that girls be ready for school as well as boys.
Goal 4 Reduce child mortality
Reduce by two-thirds, between 1900 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate. The three indicators are: Under-five mortality rate; infant mortality rate, and the proportion of one-year-old children immunised against measles.
Goal 5 Improve maternal health
Reduce by three-quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio. The two indicators are: maternal mortality ratio and the proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel.
Goal 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
Target One: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. Indicators include: HIV prevalence among pregnant women ages 15 to 24 and ratio of school attendance of orphans to school attendance of non-orphans ages 10 to 14. Clearly, prenatal education and care plus attention to children affected by HIV/AIDS needs to be a part of comprehensive National ECD Policies.
Target Two: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases. Indicators include child-related measures of prevalence and death rates associated with malaria and tuberculosis as well as the proportion of the population in malaria risk areas using effective malaria prevent and treatment measures.
Goal 7 Ensure environmental sustainability
Target Two: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. Indicators include: Proportion of population with sustainable access to an improved water source, urban and rural, and proportion of population with access to improved sanitation, urban and rural. Water and sanitation are essential areas for every National ECD Policy.
Policy Indicators (for content areas and policy assessment)
The purpose of this Annex is to help Planning Teams consider a wide range of indicators previously used in many nations and provinces for possible application in National ECD Policies. Several of the indicators also have been used in Poverty Reduction Strategies and in other multi-sectoral or sectoral policies, such as health, nutrition, sanitation, education, and children’s rights that include indicators related to young children and families. Some of the ECD indicators listed in this paper are used widely while others pertain mainly to certain situations in specific nations. The latter tend to be ECD indicators that are used in nations with severe resource constraints and major human development needs. This list is not intended to be exhaustive but rather to inspire reflection in each nation about which indicators
No nation would ever use all of these indicators because the list is too long, only a few of them will be needed, and it would be very expensive to gather so much data. Each Policy Planning Team must make a judicious selection of indicators for each age range and outcomes area. Indicators that are not on this list certainly can be added. At the end of the list, a few indicators are suggested for the evaluation of the policy itself. Others could be considered but these are central to achieving policy goals and objectives.
Examples of National-level Policy Indicators Used by Nations, by Life Cycle and by Special Theme
The list below is divided into indicators for specific age ranges or special populations:
• Zero to 36 Months
• 37 to 72 Months
• 73 to 96 Months
• Special Populations
• Indicators for Assessing Policy Implementation
In each age range or special population, it is important to consider each sector: health, nutrition, sanitation, education and juridical protection. The set of indicators for each age range is divided into the following types of outcomes:
• Child Outcomes
• Family or Community Outcomes
• Programme Service Outcomes
By dividing the indicators this way, it is possible for Policy Planning Teams to ensure they have selected appropriate indicators for each age range, sector and type of outcomes.
Several of the indicators listed below are ones that the Planning Team may wish to continue to measure through the next age range. The ones recommended for consideration for continuation are asterisked when they first appear in the list. They are not repeated in the next list although they may be added in the text of the policy.
Indicators for the Prenatal/Perinatal Period
Child Outcomes: Birth Outcomes
• Infant Mortality Rate (per 1000)
• Ratio of infant mortality rate of poorest quintile to infant mortality rate of least poor quintile
• Percent of infants with low birth weight (<2500 gm)
• Percent of infants born pre-term (<32 weeks)
• Percent of newborns with national identification number and birth data nationally registered
• Percent of newborns with a congenital malformation, hearing or visual impairment or other disability identified at birth or very shortly thereafter
Family or Community Outcomes: Maternal Outcomes
• Rate of pregnancies to girls 11 to 17 years of age
• Percent of pregnancies to single girls or women
• Percent of pregnancies to women living in poverty, in extreme poverty (national measures)
• Percent of women with anaemia or other vitamin or mineral deficiency during the prenatal period
• Maternal mortality rate
• Percent of infants who receive only breast milk for the first six months of life
Programme Service Outcomes
• Percent of pregnant women who begin receiving prenatal health and nutrition care and parenting education during first trimester
• Percent of pregnant women who receive all regularly scheduled prenatal checkups
• Percent of pregnant women who receive at least four home visits or group meetings on prenatal health, nutrition and parenting education before they give birth
• Percent of births attended by a trained and skilled health worker
• Percent of births taking place in a government or other quality health facility
• Percent of women who make at least three post-natal health and education visits in a health centre
• Percent of women receiving at least four home visits or group meetings on infant care and psycho-social stimulation, parenting, child development, health, nutrition before child is six months old*
• Percent of mothers informed about good infant feeding practices and who follow those practices*
Indicators for Zero to 36 Months
Child Outcomes
• Number and percent of children identified to be developmentally delayed or are at high risk of delay at certain ages (for example: three, six, nine, 12, 18, 24, and 36 months)
• Number and percent of children who achieve normal development by three, six, nine, 12, 18 and
36 months of age
• Percent of infants under six months (or 12 months) with vision or hearing problems
• Percent of infants and young children with complete DPT3 coverage
• Percent of infants and young children at 36 months who received all immunisations on time
• Percent of young children who consistently receive a breakfast*
• Percent of infants and children having enough vitamin A, vitamins and minerals, including iodine*
• Incidence of diarrhoea among children under 36 months of age (under 60 months of age)*
• Percent of mortality attributable to diarrhoea among children under 36 months (under 60 months)*
• Percent of mortality attributable to malaria among children under 36 months (under 60 months) *
• Percent of children under 36 months diagnosed with malaria (under 60 months) (or other disease)*
• Percent of children under 36 moderately or severely stunted (height for age) (under 60 months)*
• Percent of children under 36 months moderately or severely wasted (weight for height) (under 60 months)*
• Percent of children under 36 months moderately or severely underweight (weight for age) (under 60 months)*
• Number and percent of children identified to be malnourished whose growth curve improves*
Family or Community Outcomes
• Percent of mothers who maintain breastfeeding until six, 12, 18 months
• Percent of parents that maintain or develop good parenting skills (as measured by a parent observation scale)*
• Percent of parents who have a good knowledge of basic nutrition, health and child development stages and learning activities (as measured by a survey questionnaire)*
• Percent of mothers and fathers that state they feel greater support and ability as parents due to participating in early childhood programmes*
• Percent of mothers who completed primary school*
• Percent of parents who report that they read or tell stories to their children three to six times a week*
• Percent of parents who report that they have supportive networks and are able to access parenting advice and resources*
• Percent of families with young children with access to piped or protected clean water as their main drinking water source*
• Percent of households able to fetch clean water in under 30 minutes*
• Percent of families living at or below the basic needs poverty line*
• Number and percent of families with young children and no working parent*
• Number and percent of single mothers who are working*
• Number and percent of single mothers without work*
• Percent of families living at or below the food poverty line*
• Percent of districts reported to be food insecure*
• Percent of households who eat no more than one meal a day *
• Percent of absent fathers who provide adequate financial or material child support (as specified by national child support policy)*
• Total fertility rate*
• Number of reported cholera cases (or other prevalent disease)*
• Life expectancy*
Programme Service Outcomes
• Number and percent of children whose development is screened or assessed at three, six, nine, 12, 18, 24, and 36 months (assessment instrument required)
• Number and percent of infants and children identi.ed with developmental delays or at high risk of becoming delayed served by community parent education and child stimulation programmes*
• Number and percent of children receiving services for a developmental delay or a high-risk condition who are tracked and followed up until 36 months of age (48 or 60 months)*
• Number and percent of children screened for vision and hearing before 24 months
• Percent of parents participating in some form of early learning programmes (e.g. home visiting
programmes, family or centre-based child care, family resource centres, or others)*
• Availability of family resource centres or similar parent education and support services for families per city, town or village*
• Number of community educators trained and who teach health, nutrition and child development*
• Number and percent of communities with trained community educators*
• Number and percent of families served by each/all community educators*
• Number and percent of children zero to 36 months served by community educators (37 to 60 months)*
• Number of outpatient health visits per child per annum*
• Percent of children receiving primary health care and well-baby checkups according to schedule*
• (Alternative) Percent of children who have had a physical examination or well-child visit during the interval recommended for their age group*
• Number and percent of children with a well-child check-up booklet*
• Number and percent of malnourished children whose parents receive appropriate services*
• Total number of family planning acceptors*
• Percent of mothers reporting to be satisfied with health services for them and their children*
• Number of radio and/or television programmes with messages regarding parent education, early child development, health and nutrition*
• Number and percent of infants and children zero to 36 months who receive quality child care
Indicators for 37 to 72 Months
Child Outcomes
• Number and percent of children 48 and 60 months who are screened or assessed and identi.ed to be delayed in their development or at high risk of delay
• Number and percent of children who achieve normal development by 48 and 60 months of
• Child mortality rate (under 60 months of age)
• Percent of children with severe developmental delays or disabilities receiving special education
programmes*
Family or Community Outcomes
• Percent of families that report they have access to quality child care or preschools
• Percent of families that report their children are safe from accidents and protected before and after child care or preschool
Programme Service Outcomes
• Number and percent of children whose development is assessed at 48 months and 60 months (assessment or screening instrument required)
• Number and percent of children requiring quality child care or preschool who receive care
• Total number of child care centre slots (places)
• Total number of preschool slots (places)
• Total number of child care centres
• Total number of licensed child care centres
• Total number of preschools
• Total number of licensed preschools
• Total number of child care centres using age-appropriate curriculum for holistic child development
• Total number of preschools using an age-appropriate curriculum for holistic child development
• Total number of child care centres repaired and upgraded
• Total number of preschools repaired and upgraded
• Number and percent of child care centres or preschools with functioning latrines
• Number and percent of child care centres or preschools with access to abundant clean water
• Number and percent of child care centres that are assessed to be of acceptable quality (according to a scale including: age-appropriate curriculum, methods, suf.cient trained staff, suf.cient learning materials, adequate building and equipment, etc.)
• Number and percent of preschools that are assessed to be of acceptable quality (according to a scale including: age-appropriate curriculum, methods, suf.cient trained staff, suf.cient learning materials, adequate building and equipment, etc.)
• Number and percent of children in family child care by single year, by age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children in publicly funded and regulated family child care by single year, age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children in a child care centre by single year, age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children in a preschool by single year, age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children in publicly funded and regulated child care centre by single year, age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children in publicly funded and regulated preschool by single year, age, sex and region
• Number and percent of children requiring quality child care or preschool services who receive them, by age, sex and region
• Number and percent of child caregivers who receive at least 10 days (80 hours) of in-service training each year
• Number and percent of preschool teachers who receive at least 10 days (80 hours) of in-service training each year
• Number and percent of child caregivers and preschool teachers who have completed formal training, as specified by national guidelines
• Number and percent of caregivers and teachers trained and certified for providing services to children with malnutrition, low birth weight, developmental delays and chronic ill health
• Percent of annual staff turnover of caregivers in child care centres
• Percent of annual staff turnover of caregivers in preschool centres
• Average caregiver duration in post
• Number and percent of family child care homes that have received of.cial recognition
• Number and percent of trained directors of child care centres
• Number and percent of trained directors of preschools
• Number and percent or family child care homes assessed as acceptable (quality assessment scale)
• Ratio of children to trained staff in family child care homes
• Ratio of children to trained staff in child care centres
• Ratio of children to trained staff in preschools
• Average hourly cost per child enrolled in family child care homes
• Average hourly cost per child enrolled in child care centres
• Average hourly cost per child enrolled in preschools or
• Average daily or weekly cost per child of full day family child care
• Average daily or weekly cost per child of full day child care centre services
• Average daily or weekly cost per child of full day preschool services
Indicators for 73 to 96 Months
Child Outcomes
• Percent of children assessed to be “ready for school” with age-appropriate skills and behaviour, by age, sex and region (assessment instrument required)
• Percent of children entering primary school with one or more years of preschool, by sex/region
• Net primary school enrolment rate
• Gross primary school enrolment rate
• Girl/boy ratio in primary school
• Percent of children identified upon school entry to have developmental disabilities or delays
• Rate of school attendance
• Percent of children with mother tongue that is not the national language who receive their first instruction in their mother tongue
• Percent of children who pass the first, second and third grades
• Percent of children who repeat one or more grades before completing third year of primary school
• Percent of children who are at or above grade level in reading by the end of third year of school
• Percent of children who are at or above grade level in mathematics by end of third year of school
• Percent of children who drop out of school by age, sex and region
• Percent of children who complete primary school
• Percent of students passing the Primary School Leavers’ Exam
• Percent of children in the labour force and not going to school
• Percent of children fully immunised at school entry
Family or Community Outcomes
• Percent of parents that state they have developed positive relationships with local schools, child care providers and health facilities
• Percent of parents that report they have become involved in the schooling of their children
• Percent of parents reporting they contribute to the development of their child’s school
• Percent of parents who consider their children to be safe before and after school
Education and Programme Service Outcomes
• Percent of primary schools that screen or assess children’s school readiness at school entry
• Ratio of students per teacher
• Ratio of students per class
• Percent of children identi.ed to have developmental disabilities or delays who receive inclusive special education services in the schools
• Rate of school attendance
• Percent of primary schools with high drop out rates
• Percent of primary schools with high repetition rates
• Percent of primary schools with low levels of primary school completion
• Percent of primary schools assessed to have quality learning environment (observation scale)
• Number and percent of primary schools with functioning latrines
• Number and percent of primary schools with access to abundant clean water
• Percent of primary schools that have a parent orientation programme for the school year, especially for the first year of school
• Percent of primary schools whose teachers make at least one home visit per year
• Percent primary schools that report they work with families to support learning
• Percent of primary schools with parent involvement policies and activities
• Percent of primary schools with children in special education that provide family support
• Percent of primary schools offering family support services
• Percent of primary schools providing school feeding programmes (specify breakfast and/or lunch)
Indicators for Special Populations
• Rate of substantiated child abuse or neglect (per 1000)
• Number and percent of abused or neglected children whose parents receive parenting education and family support and counselling
• Rate of reported cases of family violence where children are present in the family (per 100,000)
• Number and percent of families with violence receiving counselling and parenting education
• Rate of reported cases of maternal depression
• Number and percent of women identified to be depressed that receive support to meet their needs,
counselling and parenting education
• Number and percent of children, three to eight years of age identified to be in child labour
• Number and percent of children ages three to eight years in child labour who enter child development
programmes to prepare for school entry or are placed in primary school
• Number and percent of children affected by war or living in displaced families
• Number of children affected by war or living in displaced families who receive appropriate trauma, child development and parent education services
• Number and percent of children infected or affected by HIV/AIDS
• Number and percent of AIDS orphans
• Number and percent of HIV/AIDS infected or affected children who receive early child development services
• Number and percent of children identified to be begging in the streets
• Number and percent of former beggar children who are placed in good care or homes
Indicators for Policy Assessment
• Annual ECD Action Plan prepared, reviewed, approved and adopted
• Structures for implementing, co-ordinating, monitoring, evaluating and revising ECD Policy established and functioning (national, regional/provincial and district/community levels by phases)
• Policy Implementation and Evaluation Unit established and conducting all expected roles successfully
• Priority ECD programmes designed, augmented or improved according to Policy and Action Plan
• ECD Training Plan designed and functioning in accordance with the Annual ECD Action Plan
• Policy Advocacy and Social Communications Plan designed and implemented according to Annual ECD
Action Plan
• Donor and Partnership Co-ordination Plan implemented according to schedule
• Investment Plan implemented and additional investments made according to plan
• Data for assessing the achievement of Policy indicators collected, analyzed and disseminated widely and used for preparation of next Annual ECD Action Plan
• Consultations and consensus meetings for the preparation of next Annual ECD Action Plan designed, convened and reported
• Second Annual ECD Action Plan prepared, reviewed, approved and adopted
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Monday, June 26, 2006
Comparative Analysis of ECD/ ECE Programmatic Guidelines
Comparative Analysis of ECD/ ECE Programmatic Guidelines
Synthesis and Summaries of Different Programming Guidelines
I. Head Start program
The Head Start Program is based on the premise that all children share certain needs and that children of low-income families, in particular, can benefit from a comprehensive developmental program to meet those needs. The Head Start approach makes the following assumptions:
A child can benefit from a comprehensive, interdisciplinary program to foster development.
Because the family is the principal influence on the child's development, the child's family, as well as the community, must be involved in the program.
Local communities are allowed latitude to develop creative program designs so long as the basic goals, objectives and standards of the comprehensive program are maintained.
The overall goal of the Head Start Program is to bring about a greater degree of social competence in children of low-income families. Social competence means the child's everyday effectiveness in dealing with both the present environment and later responsibilities in school and in life. Social competence takes into account the interrelatedness of cognitive and intellectual development, physical and mental health, nutritional needs as well as other factors. To achieve social competence, Head Start objectives and performance standards provide for:
· Improvement of the child's health and physical abilities, including appropriate steps to correct present physical and mental problems and to enhance every child's access to an adequate diet.
· Improvement of the family's attitude toward future health care and physical abilities.
· Encouragement of self-confidence, spontaneity, curiosity and self-discipline that will assist the development of the child's social and emotional health.
· Enhancement of the child's mental processes and skills, with particular attention to conceptual and communication skills.
· Establishment of patterns and expectations of success for the child that will create a climate of confidence for present and future learning efforts and overall development.
· Enhancement of the ability of the child and family to relate to one another and to others.
· Development of a sense of dignity and self-worth within the child and his family.
A comprehensive preschool program for children from low-income families
Project Head Start, launched as a summer program by the Office of Economic Opportunity in 1965, was designed to break the cycle of poverty by providing preschool children and their families with a program to meet their social, health, nutritional and psychological needs. Head Start is now a $4 billion dollar program that provides comprehensive services to low-income children from age three to the age of school attendance. A new program, Early Head Start, serving children from birth to three years was initiated in 1995. Head Start serves nearly 800,000 children and families nationwide, through a network of approximately 1,450 grantees.
Head Start has experienced phenomenal growth in recent years, more than doubling in size since 1990. The program currently receives approximately $21 million in federal assistance and serves more than 3,200 children each year in the following critical areas:
Education
Each child receives a variety of individualized learning experiences to foster social, intellectual, physical and emotional growth. Children participate in indoor and outdoor play and are introduced to the concepts of words and numbers. They are encouraged to express their feelings, develop self-confidence and their ability to get along with others.
Health and Nutrition
Head Start emphasizes preventive care and early detection of health problems. Every child receives a complete physical examination including vision and hearing tests, immunizations, a dental exam and identification of disabling conditions. Follow-up services are provided. Through the nutrition program, children are served a minimum of one balanced meal and a healthful snack each day.
Parent Involvement
An essential part of every Head Start program is the involvement of parents in education, program planning and operation. Parents play an active role in all aspects of the program. Through that involvement and other training and activities, parents also have the opportunity to gain skills and secure employment. Many employees at both the grantee and delegate agency levels are former Head Start parents.
Social Services
A case management program assists families in assessing their own needs, identifying and securing services and building upon their individual strengths. A variety of community resources are available to families in addition to crisis intervention and emergency assistance.
Disabilities
At least 10 percent of Head Start's enrollment is dedicated to children with disabilities or other special needs. Specially trained staff work closely with community agencies to provide services to disabled children while simultaneously providing them with an integrated, developmentally appropriate early childhood experience within the Head Start classroom.
Mental Health
Mental health professionals work with staff and parents to increase awareness of the special problems of children and provide a link to mental health resources.
Source: http://phoenix.gov/YOUTH/headstrt.html
II. Learning Menu Guidelines for Early Childhood Education (Generic Learning Menu)
The ECE Learning Menu Guidelines is one of various sets of guidelines developed by the Directorate of Early Childhood Education (DECE) in collaboration with experts, practitioners, and caregivers of young children who are involved with the ECE Forum and the Central ECE Consortium. The DECE was established by the Ministry of National Education (MONE) as a result of the Indonesian government’s awareness of the importance of early education. It operates under the Directorate General of Out of School Education and Youth (DGOSEY) and is expected to be able to encourage and facilitate the community in ECE services (0-6 years old), particularly those children who are denied access to ECE services due to their poor living conditions.
The guidelines, the arrangement of which also involved the MONE Curriculum Center, were later called Generic Learning Menu, meaning it was not intended to be rigidly followed and should further be developed by ECE providers. In addition, the guidelines, which are arranged according to children’s age, are expected to be viewed as a continuum of processes so that it must not be interpreted rigidly. That is, an activity may be applied to children of any age; yet with different level of depth or variations.
The guidelines were designed to be used until a standard one can be made available. Therefore, it will continuously be refined based on actual practices and recent research findings in the field of child growth. However, should any refinement be considered necessary in the future, its basic principles should be kept in tact.
Shortened as Learning Menu, the ECE Learning Menu Guidelines is a set of plans and arrangements for development and education activities that is designed to function as guidelines for the implementation of educational activities. As a Generic Learning Menu, it is a holistic ECE program (0-6 years old) that can be utilized in providing development and education activity service at any type of programs intended for young children.
Source: Directorate of Early Childhood Education, Directorate General of Out – of – School Education and Youth, Ministry of National Education, Indonesia, “Learning Menu Guidelines for Early Childhood Education (Generic Learning Menu)”
III. Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century
In 1999, under the direction of Sue Wortham of the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) with Leah Adams and Ulla Grob-Menges of the Organización Mundial para la Educación Preescolar (OMEP), a symposium was held in Ruschlikon, Switzerland to develop global guidelines for early childhood education and care. Early childhood and care professionals representing 28 countries attended the symposium and developed the guidelines entitled, “Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century.”
Using items from the Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century, ACEI sponsored a second initiative to form the ACEI Global Self-Assessment Tool. The instrument was first piloted in Chile and the United States in 2000 and again in 2001 in Nigeria, Botswana, China, and additional sites in the United States. By 2002, the instrument development was completed.
The purpose of the ACEI Global Self-Assessment is to provide a practical method for helping early childhood educators in countries around the world to assess and improve program quality. The ACEI Global Self-Assessment contains items for examining program quality in five areas:
Environment and Physical Space;
Curriculum Content and Pedagogy;
Early Childhood Educators and Caregivers;
Partnerships with Families and Communities; and
Young Children with Special Needs.
Source: Chapel Hill Training-Outreach Project, Inc., http://www.chtop.org/GPselfassessment.htm
This Self-Assessment Tool was designed to enable early childhood education and care sites to assess and evaluate their program using basic guidelines for quality.
The Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century co-sponsored by the Association for Childhood Education International (A.C.E.I.) and the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (Organisation Mondiale pour L’Éducation Préscolaire: O.M.E.P.) indicate that “every child should have the opportunity to grow up in a setting that values children, that provides conditions for a safe and secure environment, and that respects diversity” (International Symposium of Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century: Global guidelines, 1999, p. 5). The International Symposium was a thoughtful deliberation on the parts of 83 early childhood professionals from countries around the world to operationalize "quality education and care for all children in accordance with each countries own needs, resources, and culture" (Self-Assessment Tool Adapted from the Global Guidelines for the Education and Care of Young Children, 2003).
Source: Child Care Resource and Research Unit, University of Toronto, http://action.web.ca/home/crru/rsrcs_crru_full.shtml?x=86209&AA_EX_Session=03bdba7075dae5441f5fbd84ed4a1398
IV. What Barangay Officials Can do to Set Up a Child – Friendly Society
The Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) was launched in 1996 to act on the resolution passed during the second UN Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) to make cities liveable places for all; in UNICEF terms, for "children first." The Conference declared that the well-being of children is the ultimate indicator of a healthy habitat, a democratic society and of good governance.
The Child-Friendly Movement has energized many parts of the Philippines. But many communities remain uncertain how to make the movement work for them. "What Barangay Officials Can Do to Set Up a Child-Friendly Locality" is a useful guide to creating child-friendly communities that will help realize the vision of a good quality of life for the Filipino child in the 21st century. The booklet is intended to be simple and user-friendly. It is designed to be used at community level as a tool to assess itself and track its progress towards creating conditions that help children develop to their full potential. It describes 7 foundations in order to fulfil 24 Child Goals. The 24 goals are:
(A) Child Health:
(1) All children are registered at birth.
(2) All infants are exclusively breastfed up to about 6 months.
(3) All children are fully immunized against Tuberculosis, Diphtheria/Pertussis/Tetanus, Polio and Measles.
(4) All children 0-2 years old are weighed monthly and mothers counselled on health, nutrition and psychosocial care.
(5) All children are well-nourished.
(6) All children 1-5 years old are given Vitamin A capsules twice a year.
(B) Maternal Health:
(7) All births are attended by trained personnel.
(8) All pregnant women get at least four pre-natal checkups.
(9) All mothers are immunised against Tetanus.
(10) All pregnant or lactating women are sufficient in Vitamin A and are not anaemic.
(11) All pregnant women who are at risk get emergency obstetric care.
(12) All pregnancies are spaced at least two years apart.
(C) Education:
(13) All children 3-5 years old attend early education programmes.
(14) All children 6-16 years old are in school and finish high school.
(15) All schoolchildren pass the National Elementary Achievement Test (NEAT)
(16) All out-of-school-children are identified and reinstated, or are provided alternative education.
(17) All illiterate parents and caregivers are enrolled in functional literacy programmes.
(D) Special protection:
(18) All children are removed from exploitative and hazardous labour, prostitution and pornography.
(19) All cases of physical and sexual abuse and violence are eliminated in the home and community.
(E) Family practices:
(20) All families have safe drinking water.
(21) All families have access to and use only iodised salt.
(22) All families use sanitary latrines.
(23) All family members share in child care and other domestic responsibilities.
(F) Child Participation:
(24) Children 12-17 years old participate in socio-cultural and community development activities, for example sports, children’s theatre, cleanliness drives, community fund raising campaigns and information dissemination on child right issues.
The 7 foundations are: a functional Barangay Council for the protection of children, a functional children’s organisation, a functioning justice system, a functioning health and nutrition system, a functional early childhood care and development centre, child-friendly schools, a community managed knowledge dissemination and exchange system addressing issues concerning children and parents. A self-assessment method has been linked to these points. The method was developed in careful consideration of the existing evaluation tools of the Council for the Welfare of Children. The publication has been jointly prepared by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), League of Barangay Officials, and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Source: UNICEF Innocenti Research Center, http://www.childfriendlycities.org/news/index_information_material.html
Synthesis and Summaries of Different Programming Guidelines
I. Head Start program
The Head Start Program is based on the premise that all children share certain needs and that children of low-income families, in particular, can benefit from a comprehensive developmental program to meet those needs. The Head Start approach makes the following assumptions:
A child can benefit from a comprehensive, interdisciplinary program to foster development.
Because the family is the principal influence on the child's development, the child's family, as well as the community, must be involved in the program.
Local communities are allowed latitude to develop creative program designs so long as the basic goals, objectives and standards of the comprehensive program are maintained.
The overall goal of the Head Start Program is to bring about a greater degree of social competence in children of low-income families. Social competence means the child's everyday effectiveness in dealing with both the present environment and later responsibilities in school and in life. Social competence takes into account the interrelatedness of cognitive and intellectual development, physical and mental health, nutritional needs as well as other factors. To achieve social competence, Head Start objectives and performance standards provide for:
· Improvement of the child's health and physical abilities, including appropriate steps to correct present physical and mental problems and to enhance every child's access to an adequate diet.
· Improvement of the family's attitude toward future health care and physical abilities.
· Encouragement of self-confidence, spontaneity, curiosity and self-discipline that will assist the development of the child's social and emotional health.
· Enhancement of the child's mental processes and skills, with particular attention to conceptual and communication skills.
· Establishment of patterns and expectations of success for the child that will create a climate of confidence for present and future learning efforts and overall development.
· Enhancement of the ability of the child and family to relate to one another and to others.
· Development of a sense of dignity and self-worth within the child and his family.
A comprehensive preschool program for children from low-income families
Project Head Start, launched as a summer program by the Office of Economic Opportunity in 1965, was designed to break the cycle of poverty by providing preschool children and their families with a program to meet their social, health, nutritional and psychological needs. Head Start is now a $4 billion dollar program that provides comprehensive services to low-income children from age three to the age of school attendance. A new program, Early Head Start, serving children from birth to three years was initiated in 1995. Head Start serves nearly 800,000 children and families nationwide, through a network of approximately 1,450 grantees.
Head Start has experienced phenomenal growth in recent years, more than doubling in size since 1990. The program currently receives approximately $21 million in federal assistance and serves more than 3,200 children each year in the following critical areas:
Education
Each child receives a variety of individualized learning experiences to foster social, intellectual, physical and emotional growth. Children participate in indoor and outdoor play and are introduced to the concepts of words and numbers. They are encouraged to express their feelings, develop self-confidence and their ability to get along with others.
Health and Nutrition
Head Start emphasizes preventive care and early detection of health problems. Every child receives a complete physical examination including vision and hearing tests, immunizations, a dental exam and identification of disabling conditions. Follow-up services are provided. Through the nutrition program, children are served a minimum of one balanced meal and a healthful snack each day.
Parent Involvement
An essential part of every Head Start program is the involvement of parents in education, program planning and operation. Parents play an active role in all aspects of the program. Through that involvement and other training and activities, parents also have the opportunity to gain skills and secure employment. Many employees at both the grantee and delegate agency levels are former Head Start parents.
Social Services
A case management program assists families in assessing their own needs, identifying and securing services and building upon their individual strengths. A variety of community resources are available to families in addition to crisis intervention and emergency assistance.
Disabilities
At least 10 percent of Head Start's enrollment is dedicated to children with disabilities or other special needs. Specially trained staff work closely with community agencies to provide services to disabled children while simultaneously providing them with an integrated, developmentally appropriate early childhood experience within the Head Start classroom.
Mental Health
Mental health professionals work with staff and parents to increase awareness of the special problems of children and provide a link to mental health resources.
Source: http://phoenix.gov/YOUTH/headstrt.html
II. Learning Menu Guidelines for Early Childhood Education (Generic Learning Menu)
The ECE Learning Menu Guidelines is one of various sets of guidelines developed by the Directorate of Early Childhood Education (DECE) in collaboration with experts, practitioners, and caregivers of young children who are involved with the ECE Forum and the Central ECE Consortium. The DECE was established by the Ministry of National Education (MONE) as a result of the Indonesian government’s awareness of the importance of early education. It operates under the Directorate General of Out of School Education and Youth (DGOSEY) and is expected to be able to encourage and facilitate the community in ECE services (0-6 years old), particularly those children who are denied access to ECE services due to their poor living conditions.
The guidelines, the arrangement of which also involved the MONE Curriculum Center, were later called Generic Learning Menu, meaning it was not intended to be rigidly followed and should further be developed by ECE providers. In addition, the guidelines, which are arranged according to children’s age, are expected to be viewed as a continuum of processes so that it must not be interpreted rigidly. That is, an activity may be applied to children of any age; yet with different level of depth or variations.
The guidelines were designed to be used until a standard one can be made available. Therefore, it will continuously be refined based on actual practices and recent research findings in the field of child growth. However, should any refinement be considered necessary in the future, its basic principles should be kept in tact.
Shortened as Learning Menu, the ECE Learning Menu Guidelines is a set of plans and arrangements for development and education activities that is designed to function as guidelines for the implementation of educational activities. As a Generic Learning Menu, it is a holistic ECE program (0-6 years old) that can be utilized in providing development and education activity service at any type of programs intended for young children.
Source: Directorate of Early Childhood Education, Directorate General of Out – of – School Education and Youth, Ministry of National Education, Indonesia, “Learning Menu Guidelines for Early Childhood Education (Generic Learning Menu)”
III. Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century
In 1999, under the direction of Sue Wortham of the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) with Leah Adams and Ulla Grob-Menges of the Organización Mundial para la Educación Preescolar (OMEP), a symposium was held in Ruschlikon, Switzerland to develop global guidelines for early childhood education and care. Early childhood and care professionals representing 28 countries attended the symposium and developed the guidelines entitled, “Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century.”
Using items from the Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century, ACEI sponsored a second initiative to form the ACEI Global Self-Assessment Tool. The instrument was first piloted in Chile and the United States in 2000 and again in 2001 in Nigeria, Botswana, China, and additional sites in the United States. By 2002, the instrument development was completed.
The purpose of the ACEI Global Self-Assessment is to provide a practical method for helping early childhood educators in countries around the world to assess and improve program quality. The ACEI Global Self-Assessment contains items for examining program quality in five areas:
Environment and Physical Space;
Curriculum Content and Pedagogy;
Early Childhood Educators and Caregivers;
Partnerships with Families and Communities; and
Young Children with Special Needs.
Source: Chapel Hill Training-Outreach Project, Inc., http://www.chtop.org/GPselfassessment.htm
This Self-Assessment Tool was designed to enable early childhood education and care sites to assess and evaluate their program using basic guidelines for quality.
The Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century co-sponsored by the Association for Childhood Education International (A.C.E.I.) and the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (Organisation Mondiale pour L’Éducation Préscolaire: O.M.E.P.) indicate that “every child should have the opportunity to grow up in a setting that values children, that provides conditions for a safe and secure environment, and that respects diversity” (International Symposium of Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century: Global guidelines, 1999, p. 5). The International Symposium was a thoughtful deliberation on the parts of 83 early childhood professionals from countries around the world to operationalize "quality education and care for all children in accordance with each countries own needs, resources, and culture" (Self-Assessment Tool Adapted from the Global Guidelines for the Education and Care of Young Children, 2003).
Source: Child Care Resource and Research Unit, University of Toronto, http://action.web.ca/home/crru/rsrcs_crru_full.shtml?x=86209&AA_EX_Session=03bdba7075dae5441f5fbd84ed4a1398
IV. What Barangay Officials Can do to Set Up a Child – Friendly Society
The Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) was launched in 1996 to act on the resolution passed during the second UN Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) to make cities liveable places for all; in UNICEF terms, for "children first." The Conference declared that the well-being of children is the ultimate indicator of a healthy habitat, a democratic society and of good governance.
The Child-Friendly Movement has energized many parts of the Philippines. But many communities remain uncertain how to make the movement work for them. "What Barangay Officials Can Do to Set Up a Child-Friendly Locality" is a useful guide to creating child-friendly communities that will help realize the vision of a good quality of life for the Filipino child in the 21st century. The booklet is intended to be simple and user-friendly. It is designed to be used at community level as a tool to assess itself and track its progress towards creating conditions that help children develop to their full potential. It describes 7 foundations in order to fulfil 24 Child Goals. The 24 goals are:
(A) Child Health:
(1) All children are registered at birth.
(2) All infants are exclusively breastfed up to about 6 months.
(3) All children are fully immunized against Tuberculosis, Diphtheria/Pertussis/Tetanus, Polio and Measles.
(4) All children 0-2 years old are weighed monthly and mothers counselled on health, nutrition and psychosocial care.
(5) All children are well-nourished.
(6) All children 1-5 years old are given Vitamin A capsules twice a year.
(B) Maternal Health:
(7) All births are attended by trained personnel.
(8) All pregnant women get at least four pre-natal checkups.
(9) All mothers are immunised against Tetanus.
(10) All pregnant or lactating women are sufficient in Vitamin A and are not anaemic.
(11) All pregnant women who are at risk get emergency obstetric care.
(12) All pregnancies are spaced at least two years apart.
(C) Education:
(13) All children 3-5 years old attend early education programmes.
(14) All children 6-16 years old are in school and finish high school.
(15) All schoolchildren pass the National Elementary Achievement Test (NEAT)
(16) All out-of-school-children are identified and reinstated, or are provided alternative education.
(17) All illiterate parents and caregivers are enrolled in functional literacy programmes.
(D) Special protection:
(18) All children are removed from exploitative and hazardous labour, prostitution and pornography.
(19) All cases of physical and sexual abuse and violence are eliminated in the home and community.
(E) Family practices:
(20) All families have safe drinking water.
(21) All families have access to and use only iodised salt.
(22) All families use sanitary latrines.
(23) All family members share in child care and other domestic responsibilities.
(F) Child Participation:
(24) Children 12-17 years old participate in socio-cultural and community development activities, for example sports, children’s theatre, cleanliness drives, community fund raising campaigns and information dissemination on child right issues.
The 7 foundations are: a functional Barangay Council for the protection of children, a functional children’s organisation, a functioning justice system, a functioning health and nutrition system, a functional early childhood care and development centre, child-friendly schools, a community managed knowledge dissemination and exchange system addressing issues concerning children and parents. A self-assessment method has been linked to these points. The method was developed in careful consideration of the existing evaluation tools of the Council for the Welfare of Children. The publication has been jointly prepared by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), League of Barangay Officials, and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Source: UNICEF Innocenti Research Center, http://www.childfriendlycities.org/news/index_information_material.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)