The following is her message:
Hi, Marie,
I haven't forgotten you. I have been super busy - and am behind on paperwork/data entry, etc. for my little students. … ….. Do you have the contact information for Elizabeth de Burro? Dr. Ann Austin knows her well and she would be the best person to answer the questions below. She was the director of Pastoral del Nino at the time the articles were written and is wonderful person with lots of insight, including insight into the political side of poverty issues.
Do you speak Spanish, then?
Blessings!
Cyle
So my next move is to ask for Elizabeth de Burro’s email address and venture writing Dr. Ann Austin.
This week, I received the Early Childhood WebWatch newsletter. Following is a summary of senior writer Stephanie Peatling’s article (2013) mentioned in the EC WebWatch and published in “theage.com.au” .
In the Land Down Under, private day care centers under the umbrella of Early Childhood Australia have asked the government to be directly paid so that parents do not have to advance half the tuition. This measure would simplify the process which at this time forces families to pay the tuition in whole and to wait for the refund of half of it later in the year. The current process is wasting administrative time because each family has to be reimbursed instead of just one institution and those institutions would greatly benefit from being paid early to better balance their budget.
Right now, it is difficult for families and schools to optimally manage their budgets. When a family chooses to have their refund directly paid to the school, they would only have to pay half and the school would be directly funded by the government. Many families have to wait for their refund to pay the rest of the tuition.
Since the government is requiring better teacher qualifications, the Early Childhood Australia is asking the government to increase teachers’ salaries and also provide funds for hiring the requested number of teachers per center.
With regards to this week’s topic, the EC WebWatch addresses the issue of funding that also has a big responsibility in excellence. If excellent teaching is performed by excellent teachers, those teachers must be paid accordingly to their talents in order to avoid teacher turn over. I appreciate the Early Childhood Australia position statement because it brings reality back into the discussion.
Peatling, S. (2013) Childcare industry pushes direct rebate to centres. Retrieved from:
http://www.theage.com.au/national/childcare-industry-pushes-direct-rebate-to-centres-20130208-2e3wy.html#ixzz2Ln6SdoP8
ECA WebWatch—Issue 156, February 2013. © Early Childhood Australia. Retrieved from: webwatch@earlychildhood.org.au
Since listening to the radio brings me companionship, I was stunned the first time I discovered that NAEYC had a station. This week, I listened to Dr. Walter’s interview.
Avoiding Preschool Expulsions
Pica and Ginsberg with Dr. Walter S. Gilliam
What an extraordinary revelation! At an amazing rate of three times more than any other grade, our three year old population is the cohort most frequently expelled from schools.
Since schools are reliable for their students’ well-being, they may expel young children when they present risks of harmful behavior to themselves or to peers. Also, teacher/child ratio and teachers’ lack of training on how to manage challenging behaviors weigh in the difficult relationship between the school and the child. However, Dr. Walter has never seen a child expelled when parents and teachers had a good relationship.
Consequently, Dr. Walter suggests that schools hire consultants/mentors that would attend classes and help teachers identify particular concerns children exhibit. If expulsion makes it on the agenda, consultants could work with teachers and directors as well as with parents with whom they could develop a home behavioral plan; the underlying idea being that providing mental health support for teachers leads to accrued tolerance for children.
Finally, keeping children in school reaps economic benefits and children with behavioral issues are the ones who benefit the most from being in school where they can receive appropriate help.
While emphasizing main reasons 3 year olds are expelled from schools such as overcrowded classrooms and teachers’ lack of training both leading to stress on the job, Dr. Walter throws in a comment about teachers that could be negatively interpreted due to its reference to mental health in a country where mental health is not well understood. According to a screening of which readers are given no details, teachers scoring positive for depression tend to expel young children at a greater rate than others. This unsubstantiated comment raises questions as to the implication of the administration in the decision making and the process through which the decision to expel is reached.
Earlier in the interview, Dr. Walter speaks about a consultant/mentor who could work with teachers in the classroom, with the director, and with parents and develop a school and a home behavioral plan. This idea is interesting because it would bring a specialist to the classroom who could bring their expert support to teachers and children.
In order to successfully be implanted, such a program would need to be accompanied by teachers’ employment protection provisions to prevent support from becoming potential documentation for no rehiring.
Walter, S., G,. NAEYC Radio. BAM Radio. Retrieved from: http://www.naeyc.org/newsroom/NAEYCradio
Oh Great! You're getting somewhere with your international contacts. Unfortunately, I haven't heard anything back. Anyways, I like that you brought up the correlation between teacher & parent relationship and the behvior of the child. This is so true! When children see that connection, they are less likely to act out. However, when they see and KNOW there's a disconnect between home and school, they are more likely to show behavior problems. If only we can get ALL parents to realize this! Great and thoughtful post! :)
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