Evaluation of the ICAN Early Language Development Programme

Transcription

1 Evaluation of the ICAN Early Language Development Programme Case study: Essex Summary of the impact and value of the ELDP This case study provides an overview of how the Early Language Development Programme (ELDP) has been rolled out across Essex. The programme has been delivered through collaboration between ELDP leads at the County Council, Children s Centres and other key partners delivering children s services in Essex. The ELDP training has been closely integrated and immersed with the county wide initiative Talk, Listen, and Cuddle (TLC). Emerging evidence suggests that the ELDP has had a good deal of impact across Essex: The messages have been enthusiastically adopted both by ELDP lead practitioners and many of those to whom training has been cascaded. Anecdotal evidence suggests that this has led to changes in how practitioners interact with children and parents. Settings have re-considered their learning environments, reflecting on how communication friendly their spaces are and how they can tailor them to be more effective in supporting SLC development. A number of practitioners have been inspired to study for further qualifications to continue to improve their practice. The enthusiastic response from child-minders accessing the ELDP training has significantly raised the profile of language development amongst the families, parents and carers with whom they work. Background Essex is a comparatively large county, both in terms of land area and population. It contains a mixture of urban and rural areas, and has a mixed demographic, containing very affluent areas as well as areas of significant deprivation. Consequently a particular challenge for the region is that there is a large amount of variation in the level of early language attainment across the county, creating hot spots of significant need. Essex has been involved in ELDP since the pilot phase, establishing a steering group with key partners to provide a strategic overview of the cascade across the county. This steering group built on the good model of partnership working developed through the delivery of Every Child a Talker (ECaT) in Essex. The steering group includes representatives of key partners, including Preschool Learning Alliance, SLT teams, Children s Workforce development team, Inclusion & EMAS service, the pre-school Area Senco team and the children centre lead bodies. There are currently 85 children s centres in Essex which are led by 4Children, Spurgeons, and Barnardo s (which provide a number of centres in partnership with the Pre-school Learning Alliance and Castle Point Association of Voluntary Services). Currently, services in Classification: restricted external OPM page 1

2 mid Essex are run by 4Children, services in North East Essex and South Essex are run by Barnardo s and their key partners and those in West Essex are run by Spurgeons. There are 4 SLT providers across Essex and each team provides a variety of SLC development programmes, (such as ELKLAN Training & Hanen). However, the exact programmes vary across the four quadrants of the county. This case study This case study provides an overview of the ELDP across the whole of Essex. However the composition of interviewees meant that there is a particular focus on the mid and south quadrants, and also on the role of the central strategic oversight. In reading this case study, it should be borne in mind that the ELDP has been rolled out slightly differently in each of the four quadrants of Essex, so an example based on one quadrant may not be indicative of what is happening in other parts of the county. Getting involved in the programme Before becoming involved in the ELDP, Essex already had a steering group promoting good practice in supporting early language development, formed initially through involvement in ECaT and then sustained through the formation of TLC. This steering group took the lead in implementing the ELDP. One of their first actions was to set up a new group dedicated to providing oversight of the ELDP across the county. The TLC steering group saw the ELDP as a good way to support the messages and training that they were already offering. Instead of delivering the ELDP as a standalone programme, they closely integrated it with existing structures. For example, they modified the language of some of their existing programmes to tie in with the terminology used in ELDP. Initial challenges An initial hurdle was that the Council had just re-tendered the contracts for children s services. Consequently there was a change of provider in three of the quadrants, which meant that ELDP had a delayed start in those areas. This resulted in another challenge, which was to ensure the profile of the ELDP remained high and a key priority within the children s centres. However, they were quickly persuaded to engage more actively following the reported success of the programme in other areas. Selection of the lead practitioners Initially the expectations regarding the role of the Lead Practitioners were not felt to be fully clear. This resulted in capacity and time management issues, and highlighted the importance of ensuring that the nominated lead had the capacity, confidence and expertise to cascade the training. In order to address this issue, the ELDP steering group encouraged experienced people in positions of authority such as children s centre managers to attend the training. The steering group also made an effort to explain the purpose of the training to everyone in a centre, so that they were able to support their lead practitioner where possible. This targeted approach is credited with helping to improve the effectiveness of the cascade. Classification: restricted external OPM page 2

3 Relationship to the TLC: Talk, Listen, and Cuddle programme The county wide TLC programme evolved from ECaT and specific projects delivered in parts of Essex. When the ECaT initiative ended, the Council continued to work to support many of the messages of the programme, now under the umbrella of TLC: Talk, Listen, and Cuddle. The messages of TLC are compatible with the messages of the ELDP, and many of the strategic staff in the Council are involved in both programmes. Experiences of the Lead Practitioners - initial training It should be noted that we only spoke to a small sample of the people who accessed lead practitioner training in Essex. This section is primarily about the experiences of those whom we spoke to, but it also refers to anecdotal evidence about the experiences of other lead practitioners. Experiences of the training Some lead practitioners were already knowledgeable about language development. What they took from the I CAN ELDP sessions was information about the structure of the programme and how to roll it out, rather than directly learning about anything new regarding SLC development. However, they were still enthusiastic about the opportunity to refresh their knowledge: It has given me that thirst to make sure I am on top of my game. (Lead practitioner) However, not all lead practitioners were already language development experts: I am childcare trained, but often you don t always really stop to think so much about language (Lead practitioner) Suggestions for improvement One lead practitioner felt that if people attending the training did not have the relevant teaching skills already, they would have had difficulty cascading the training. They suggested that it would be helpful to have a third training day in which to practice delivering the sessions and to get more familiar with the resources. Classification: restricted external OPM page 3

4 What activities have been used to cascade early language principles? The cascade model in Essex combines 8 localised lead practitioners who each work within a particular quadrant, and 5 additional lead practitioners who provide countywide support. Children s Centre ELDP leads (localised) The main role of the lead practitioners in each quadrant is to provide modules 1 and 2 of the training (Working with Under 3s) to all children s centre staff in their area, and module 3 (Working with Parents) to the children s centre staff who are working closely to support families. Their role also includes supporting key feeder PVI providers, cascading ELDP training and when appropriate, delivering key messages to parents. All leads have prioritised the ELDP work as an essential component of their remit This has been possible as their managers felt it essential to children s development and wellbeing to prioritise the ELDP in their roles and work programmes. Essex early years ELDP leads (countywide) The 5 lead practitioners who deliver training across Essex are not tied to the organisations which provide children s services. These lead practitioners are therefore able to take a more strategic approach to delivering training. They have delivered training in areas where capacity issues were identified. They also focused on the hot spots in Essex, where early years SLC outcomes are both statistically lower with regards to Early Years Foundation Stage Profile data and also areas where the SLT teams reported a high level of referral for SLC assessments, with the aim of improving attainment in those areas. Follow on activities Additional training has been made available to many practitioners to build on the core modules of the ELDP programme. For example, those settings wishing to offer places to 2 year olds can now access specific training around best practice, including SLC. In some areas and through partnership with the SLT teams, early intervention programmes have been devised for practitioners, parents, carers and children to access, such as the Mid Essex based Talk With Me programme. There are plans to offer children s centre teams and PVI settings ELKLAN Communication Counts: 0-3, Quicker Communication training, through the ELDP. An Essex quality mark system is to be introduced, to celebrate settings which are embedding good practice for early years SLC. The hope is that the quality mark will incentivise practitioners to make use of what they have learned from the ELDP, and encourage them to go on to further training. Resources used The resource packs provided with the ELDP training proved popular: They could be easily lent out to people. For example, some child minders wanted to borrow just the activity cards, and some parents wanted to borrow just the DVDs. The activity cards were felt to be particularly good because they are parent friendly and help reinforce the messages of the ELDP to parents and carers. The DVDs were also valued, especially the ones aimed at parents because these could be given out in order to build on training sessions that the parents attended. Classification: restricted external OPM page 4

5 However there were some areas in which people felt that access to resources could have been improved: Some nurseries wanted their own box, and contacted I CAN to buy resources. However, the specific boxes provided with the training were not initially available on the I CAN website. The lead practitioners would have liked more packs and resources to be available as not having enough to respond to immediate requests became an excuse for some settings to not implement core strategies. On a similar theme, a local library wanted to give out some of the information leaflets from the boxes to parents coming into libraries. While these leaflets were free for them to order, they found the cost of shipping to be prohibitively high. Overall effectiveness of the cascade model Across the whole of Essex, over 15 ELDP lead practitioners have been trained. The programme has been cascaded to approximately 900 practitioners, including 200 childminders, and at least 290 different settings. The cascade approach has ensured there are a number of dedicated ELDP leads who have prioritised the ELDP as an essential component of their remit. This means that more practitioners and settings could be reached by the ELDP lead practitioners. It also gave the ELDP leads time to deliver training in a way that was most useful to people. For example, one lead practitioner found that delivering training to child-minders at evenings and weekends helped to increase attendance. The child minders have absolutely gone berserk for it- really loved it. We think obviously that the offer of it being free training has been an incentive. But the majority can t access training during the week, so I have delivered it on Saturdays for them, and those sessions have been fully booked. (Lead practitioner) This approach also enabled lead practitioners to visit some settings to provide follow up support, ensuring that the learning is successfully embedded. I think we have had more impact with the training because it is my whole role to do it. Others try to get the training delivered over 6 months, then that is it, whereas I can go out to each children s centre and support them every week. (Lead practitioner) Another advantage of having centralised ELDP leads is that they can target work where it is needed most. Certain community groups which might have otherwise struggled to access the ELDP programme were able to benefit. For example, one of the centralised lead practitioner s roles is to support schools and early learning settings with raising the achievement of Gypsy and Traveller children. Data shows that Gypsies and Travellers of Irish Heritage in Essex are achieving significantly lower levels in SLC at the Foundation Stage. This lead practitioner has been working to support children s centres in engaging with their local Gypsy and Traveller communities and suggesting ways in which the ELDP materials and principles could be used. Visiting families at home and building up a trusting relationship, before inviting them to children s centre events, has proved effective. ELDP and TLC resources and messages have been used in order to support the parents with raising their children s communication skills. Classification: restricted external OPM page 5

6 What is the impact of the programme? Impact on ELDP lead practitioners For the lead practitioners who were already knowledgeable regarding early years SLC, a main impact has been an increase in drive and enthusiasm: Personally I feel quite empowered and very, very enthusiastic, and that drives the contact that we have with people. (Lead practitioner) For lead practitioners who had less previous experience of supporting early years SLC, the programme equipped them with increased knowledge, and an enthusiasm to learn more. One lead practitioner said that the training had really emphasised the importance of early years communication. This lead practitioner decided to undertake further training in early years development because she wants to build on what she has learned in the ELDP. One reason for undertaking additional training was so that she could answer some of the more technical questions that she is asked when delivering the ELDP. Impact on practitioners and settings One of the main reported impacts is that the ELDP has kept the importance of early language development high in people s minds, while also giving them the knowledge to improve the support they provide for children. Impact on children s centres There has been a high level of enthusiasm for the ELDP among children s centre staff in some areas of Essex. We ve been waiting for I CAN [training] for years. We were excited to be trained. We didn t have any other things like ECaT because we don t have enough deprivation in the area. Now we ve finally got the tool we had been waiting for. (Lead practitioner) Many children s centres have closely integrated the training into their existing practice. As well as delivering specific language focused sessions, some settings are also integrating messages from the ELDP into other work. For example, one centre is sharing some of the key messages from the programme with parents during baby massage classes and prenatal classes. A lead practitioner told us that opportunities often occur to share the messages from the ELDP when they meet parents, even if that is not the primary purpose of the meeting. Whenever we deliver a group, I CAN [i.e. the ELDP programme] is there. (Lead practitioner) Because the ELDP has raised awareness about the importance of early years SLC development, it has also made it easier for settings to introduce other related initiatives. We are even working with pregnant mums- e.g. getting prams that face the right way ways to support parents and carers to recognise and respond to their baby s earliest communication. That is not necessarily based on ELDP resources, but the ELDP raised the awareness to make people receptive to it. (Lead practitioner) Some children s centre staff also said that their increased knowledge means that they can now address concerns that parents might have more appropriately. Impact on nurseries and preschools A number of nurseries have responded to the ELDP very positively and made significant changes as a result. For example, one setting rearranged their room so that there is now a Classification: restricted external OPM page 6

7 dedicated area where children can communicate more easily and play language based games. They had also updated a number of their displays to focus explicitly on language learning. Staff reported that they had really taken on board some of the key messages of the ELDP, such as getting on the same level as children when talking to them, and giving them sufficient time to respond to questions. [As a result of ELDP training] It is not just the activities they do, but the way they speak to children and the level they get on. They have changed the whole preschool really (Lead practitioner) This setting had also started to do specific activities promoted via the ELDP and TLC such as using Chatterboxes. Staff said that Chatterboxes had been particularly helpful in encouraging less confident children to talk. A lead practitioner said that these impacts are not atypical- similar changes have been made in a number of nurseries. One of the reasons that settings have been enthusiastic in adopting the programme is that they have learned that good SLC can help improve other areas of children s development too, such as their behaviour. We are realising that if you can t get communication and social skills right, the rest of it doesn t register either. (Nursery staff) In this picture the children have been using props on the table to develop a story together. The box in the foreground is a Chatterbox; (these were also introduced to the setting as a result of the ELDP) Inside is a collection of interesting objects, aimed to provoke responses from children. The box was not actually being used as a Chatterbox in this instance; it had simply been integrated into the story telling as an additional prop, after having been used for its intended purpose earlier on in the day. Impact on private, voluntary, and independent settings A lead practitioner reported that many PVI staff are now more knowledgeable, and more aware of the importance of early intervention where a child may be having difficulties in their SLC development. This observation is backed up by the fact that there has been an increase in appropriate referrals from PVIs to children s centres about SLC-based concerns. Classification: restricted external OPM page 7

8 Impact on other settings One lead practitioner described how delivering training in baby rooms helped early years practitioners to more effectively develop the fundamentals upon which language and communication is based. They said that practitioners often know what activities to do, but don t understand why they should do them. One thing that really helped was the ELDP analogy of language acquisition as a pyramid, with a number of basic communication skills needing to be developed before speech is possible. With EYPS (Early Years Professional Status) you often get told what activities to do, but don t really know how speech develops. Giving meaning to words is as important as the number of words they can speak. The pyramid exercise is something that recently trained early years practitioners find really impactful. (Lead practitioner) Impact for parents Parents are reported to have valued the ELDP sessions and taken learning on board from them. One lead practitioner said that it had really helped to have a DVD the parents could take away and watch. This provided extra information, explaining why the advice given in the training was so important. This lead practitioner said that the DVD was especially useful for parents who may be resistant to taking on advice if they did not understand why it was being given. One lead practitioner described the training as leading to light bulb moments for parents and carers. For example, they described how some parents had previously continued to give their children dummies, even if they had been told that it is not good for SLC development. When it was explained that this gives a message to the child that it is bad to make noises, and this might make them unwilling to try to speak, this helped the parents to understand the importance of not using a dummy. Some also thought that the fact that the consistent delivery of the programme across the county ensures that parents get similar messages even if they move around. They felt that this consistency would make the messages more likely to have a sustained impact. Additional impacts The ELDP has helped to improve the relationships between some children centres and their local PVIs. One lead practitioner told us that it has historically been difficult to engage with some PVIs and to get them involved in training and initiatives. One reason for this is that they can worry about sharing good practice with competitors in the private market. Being able to offer the PVIs some free training helped to improve relationships with them by creating a chance to meet up, and fostering feelings of goodwill. One children s centre delivered ELDP training for staff at a local library. The library staff then attended a session at the children s centre and encouraged parents to sign up for their library cards. The library benefitted by having more users; it is beneficial for children because they have better access to books; and parents can receive support from library staff. One children s centre lead practitioner said that before the ELDP came along they had been trying to roll out another programme, Talk With Me, with limited success. This programme is delivered to parents in small groups to help them to work more effectively to support their children s language development. Following the ELDP training, they tweaked much of the wording in Talk With Me to tie in with the wording used by ELDP, and trained people to deliver the programme as a follow up to ELDP. Local practitioners were much more receptive Classification: restricted external OPM page 8

9 to the training following the ELDP because they were more aware of the importance of early years SLC development: Talk With Me now works well because the staff all understand the issues now that they have done the ELDP. It has made them more willing to engage in the training for Talk With Me because they understand the context. Instead of just being told they need to deliver another programme, they understand what it is for and why it is needed. (Lead practitioner) Implications and transferable learning Having centrally located lead practitioners able to provide additional support over a wide area helped to ensure that training was delivered in areas which needed it most. By using consistent terminology, the ELDP can be successfully delivered alongside other programmes which promote similar messages. This can enhance the impact of the both the ELDP and other programmes, by sending out a wider coherent message. In order to maximise the impact of the lead practitioner training, it is important to ensure that the people receiving that training are well placed to cascade it on. Helping people to understand the purpose behind the different activities and strategies used has been a key factor in securing buy-in to the process. Incentivising participation from settings can be effective. For example, it seems likely that the quality mark system that Essex is implementing will encourage settings to continue to make use of learning from the ELDP into the future. Classification: restricted external OPM page 9