Recognition of the profession

Stunting and poor child development are major public health concerns in Malawi. Integrated nutrition and early child development (ECD) interventions have shown potential to reduce stunting, but it is not known how these integrated approaches can be implemented in Malawi. In this paper, the authors aimed to evaluate the current jobs status of community health workers and their potential to implement integrated approaches. This was accomplished by a desk review of nutrition and ECD policy documents, as well as interviews with key informants, community health workers, and community members. They found that Malawi has comprehensive policies and well-outlined coordination structures for nutrition and ECD that advocate for integrated approaches. Strong multidisciplinary interaction exists at central levels but not at the community level. Integration of community health workers from different sectors is limited by workload, logistics, and a lack of synchronized work schedules. Favorable, sound policies and well-outlined coordination structures alone are not enough for the establishment of integrated nutrition and ECD activities. Balanced bureaucratic structures, improved task allocation, and synchronization of work schedules across all relevant sectors are needed for integrated intervention in Malawi.

This report from Early Childhood Ireland maps remuneration within the Irish ECCE Sector. The report presents data on how pay rates vary by role, qualifications and county. The report concluded with future steps including research on the professionalization with the sector.

Examining the Associations Between Infant/Toddler Workforce Preparation, Program Quality and Child Outcomes: A Review of the Research Evidence summarizes the findings of an evidence review conducted to address the following question:
What evidence do we have from the research literature about associations between infant/toddler teacher and caregiver preparation (e.g. education, credentials, etc.) and improvements in quality and child outcomes.

The research team worked to synthesized research about which core competencies and credentials have the strongest associations with program quality outcomes. Their findings report what research currently says about:

• teachers’ degrees in relation to program quality and child outcomes;
• teachers’ major/concentration in ECE or child development in relation to observed quality and child outcomes;
• state credentials on observed quality and child outcomes; and
• teacher training on observed quality and child outcomes.

The study describes the implications of this research for policy, practice and for further research.

2013 National Early Childhood Education and Care Workforce Census, commissioned by the Department of Education as part of a range of Australian Government initiatives designed to improve the quality of information used in developing and measuring early childhood policy and programs. This report was developed specifically to address information gaps in existing administrative data sources, with respect other ECEC workforce, participation in and provision of preschool programs and children with additional needs in child care. The data presented in this census will help policy makers better understand the challenges of providing quality child care and early learning, assess the capacity in the workforce to meet future demand and formulate strategies to support early childhood development policies.

Resisting Neoliberalism: Professionalisation of Early Childhood Education and Care focuses on the professionalization of early childhood in Australia, Chile, England, Germany, Ireland and the United States.

This paper questions how the sector manages the constraints imposed by a neoliberal political and social world and calls upon manages the constraints imposed on it in a neoliberal political and social world. It calls on professionals to take a stand in terms of what is considered best practice. The paper further argues that continued debate is needed around the boundaries of what is called the early childhood profession, considering the ways in which the education, health and welfare sectors contribute to a holistic approach balanced against the requirement for a profession to have an identified and discrete body of knowledge.

Mary Moloney, Margaret Sims, Antje Rothe, Cynthia Buettner

International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education

2019

The Wanda method: overview and steps forward  report is the result of an ISSA Peer Learning Activity and involved several members of the ISSA network.

WANDA is a method developed in 2010 in order to support professional group reflection, with specific attention to valuing each other, with respect towards the child, the family, the colleagues, the community. WANDA aims to improve quality in ECEC for children and families.

The specific objectives of the PLA were:

1) Get an overview of what (and how) has been done with Wanda on a local level in each country: which services have been involved, with which frequency did they organize Wanda sessions, what has been the impact, what are the strengths and the critical points that come out, what are the needs of the target groups etc.
2) Co-reflect on the strengths and challenges, with the aim of fine-tuning the different Wanda paths: the aim is not homologating the peculiar experiences of the different contexts, but finding coherency within the differences (agreeing on what is Wanda and what it is not, discussing possibilities and borders, stimulating each other by getting to know the different experiences that took place etc.).
3) Consider all this, thinking together about possible next steps for Wanda, both on a local level in each country involved, and on an international one (f.e. through EU projects).

Today, there is a growing interest on the part of governments and other institutions to make large investments in the early years. However, many well-intentioned initiatives designed to support the health and development of young children struggle to move beyond the pilot or project stage. A critical factor in delivering quality services for young children is the quality of the workforce involved in delivering a service. In this Webinar, we will be discussing the challenges in scaling up the early childhood workforce by using two examples of programmes targeting children aged birth to three and their caregivers.These programs include the Cuna Mas Home Visiting programme in Peru, and a program supported by PATH in Mozambique to integrate early childhood development screening and counselling into the routine work of community health workers and clinical providers. Under the ECWI, R4D recently carried out (1) a country study on the workforce supporting Cuna Mas in Peru, and (2) a global landscape analysis of training and professional development for the broader early childhood workforce which includes a case study of PATH’s work in Mozambique.We are very fortunate to have as our Webinar panellists two of the researchers of the country study in Peru, Gabriela Guerrero (GRADE) and Kimberly Josephson (Results for Development), as well as Jordi Fernandez (PATH) and Nami Kawakyu (Kawayku Consulting) who are actively involved PATH’s maternal and child health work in Mozambique.To listen to the webinar recording, click the YouTube link below. Visit the webinar page to access all the webinar presentations.

ISSA and R4D, in partnership with ICDI, are glad to announce a new webinar series in the framework of the Early Childhood Workforce Initiative. This webinar puts the spotlight on the notion of early childhood practice being political, and on early years practitioners as activists and change agents. In an interactive format we explore:

• What does early childhood activism mean or look like in different political, geographical and cultural contexts?
• Are advocacy, activism and the ability to effect positive change essential elements of professionalism in general, and therefore the early childhood profession in particular?
• Is it reasonable to expect early childhood practitioners to balance an activist critical stance alongside other roles such as pedagogical expert; builder and maintainer of relationships with children, their parents and other professionals; as well as manager in return for little recognition and poor remuneration?

The webinar is primarily intended for early childhood practitioners, leaders in early childhood services and lecturers/trainers teaching pre-service and continuing professional development courses on leadership, professional practice in the early years, working with families with young children and social policy.  It is also beneficial to those who represent the interests of the early childhood workforce (trade unions, professional councils, representative bodies) at national and international levels.To listen to the webinar recording, click the YouTube link below. To access resources and presentations related to this webinar, visit the webinar webpage.

In many countries around the world, the early childhood workforce often experiences poor recognition for their work which translates to lower wages and qualifications, fewer opportunities for career development and inadequate professional development, in comparison with other professionals working to support older children and adults.

Recently, the Early Childhood Workforce Initiative conducted key informant interviews in 15 countries to understand country priorities and challenges, as well as promising approaches to supporting the early childhood workforce. The recruitment and retention of staff and volunteers as well as working conditions were among the major challenges surfaced in those conversations.

The webinar will address the following questions pertaining to the theme:

• What working conditions do members of the early childhood workforce face?
• To what extent are challenging working conditions a barrier in recruiting and retaining the early childhood workforce?
• To what extent do working conditions influence the quality of service delivery?
• What efforts have been taken in different countries to improve the working conditions of various categories of early childhood workers?

- How do countries design and implement such efforts in the face of resource constraints?

- What factors can support the introduction of policies to improve working conditions?

- What challenges are encountered in introducing these policies?

This discussion aims to cover different country contexts, and will refer to various categories of professionals and paraprofessionals from different sectors.

This webinar is intended for policymakers and program implementers interested in learning more about the working conditions that members of the early childhood workforce face as well as approaches that have been used to improve them.

Access the recording via the YouTube link below. You may also resources from the webinar, such as reccomended readings from the panel and the webinar slides, here.

The early years workforce in England from the Education Policy Institute (EPI) compares conditions and characteristics of childcare workers with those in occupations that are often regarded as career alternatives.

The report highlights several key findings:

• A large proportion of childcare workers are struggling financially
• Sector recruitment problems: immediate and long-term
• The workforce has low qualifications, which could affect the quality of childcare provision
• The workforce remains predominantly female