An
outside link on the “Center for the Childcare Workforce” I chose to review was
“Child Care Law Center” (
www.childcarelaw.org). The child care
law center advocates for children, families and communities to provide high
quality child care services to everyone. The Child Care Law Center
uses legal expertise to secure good, affordable child care for low-income
families and communities. Every day, we break down barriers to child care
for working parents because without it they cannot support their
families. Every day, we stand up for child care providers because
children need good early care and education to thrive (
www.childcarelaw.org). The CCLC is
based in San Francisco
is a non-profit organization. It is the only organization in the country
devoted to ensuring intricate law issues related to child care are resolved.
The area I chose to search on the website was “public policy”.
This area had information about how states address compensation issues for
early childhood educators. The areas discussed include; apprenticeships, health
initiatives, mentoring programs, public/private partnerships, scholarship
programs, unionization wage incentives and tiered reimbursement rates. Adequate
compensation is vital to ensure the turnover rate is less. Teachers receiving
better compensation are more likely to provide more positive developmental
experiences for children. The “Center for the Childcare Workforce” realize that
teachers who are better compensated, well-educated, and have a voice in their
workplace improves the quality of care for children (
www.ccw.org).
The e-newsletter
had information about a new program through federal policy and legislation
called “And We’re Off to the Races”. Secretary
of Education Arne Duncan and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen
Sebelius announced the new $500 million Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge
program. The RTT-ELC grant competition will focus on improving early learning
and development programs for young children by supporting states' efforts to:
1.
increase the number and percentage of low-income and disadvantaged children in
each age group of infants, toddlers and preschoolers who are enrolled in
high-quality early learning programs;
2.
design and implement an integrated system of high-quality early learning
programs and services; and
3. ensure that any
use of assessments conforms with the recommendations of the National Research
Council's reports on early childhood (www.ccw.org).
The program is
still in the early stages. More information and data will be available as the
program progresses.
The website had
the following article from American Educator that talked about the value of
early childhood education. “The Economics
of Equality”, investing early allows us to shape the future; investing later
chains us to fixing the missed opportunities of the past. Controlling our
destiny is more in keeping with the American spirit." (www.ccw.org)
The Center for the
Childcare Workforce is an excellent website for resources relating to the early
childhood field and additional links for valuable information. The website
offers “Tips” for the classroom and other valuable information for early
childhood professionals. I learn something new each time I go to the website.
References:
