Supporting Infant & Toddler Best Practices in QRIS Christine R. Hughes, Ph.D. QRIS National Meeting July 16, 2015
Quality Counts: Miami-Dade County s QRIS Voluntary QRIS (2008) centers, homes, HS/EHS, MDCPS sites Standards include: Learning Environment Staff Qualifications (Curriculum Family Support & Inclusion) Funding from The Children s Trust & Early Learning Coalition Supports include: Technical assistance Career advising Child mental health supports Scholarships Training WAGE$ Materials & financial awards
Why Focus on Infants and Toddlers? Quality matters more to infants and toddlers More time in a high quality program Larger impact in supporting positive child outcomes + Better relationship building with families Quality of I/T care tends to be low National landscape CCDBG set aside But QRIS have been focused on preschool age In 2014, EHS-CCP solidified the national focus on infants & toddlers as a critical population
What Is Quality Infant & Toddler Care? Babies learn but not necessarily the way preschoolers do. The Baby is the Curriculum Experiences & routines Sensitive & responsive caregiving
Key Components of Quality I/T Care Several important best practices in care of children 0-3 Developmentally appropriate environment Relevant professional development Sensitive, individualized care Small group size Low caregiver-child ratio Primary caregiving Continuity of care Cultural & familial continuity
Infants & Toddlers in QRIS Majority of QRIS have focused on preschool children (3-5 years) Typically incorporate I/T quality with an assessment of program quality Only recently have QRIS begun to purposefully integrate I/T into their standards (R) and supports (I)
Miami-Dade s Experience In 2011, we began planning our revision to Quality Counts with commitments to: Target programs serving children and families living in poverty (access & supports) Expand our support of infants & toddlers and inclusive practices Rating CLASS and ERS in Learning Environment Several best practices in infant & toddler care in Curriculum Specific training requirements in Curriculum Improvement Supports are focused on programs serving children in poverty Technical assistance specialization
ZTT s Supporting Babies Through QRIS Series Implementation Status and Tools in US States & Jurisdictions a national scan of the operational status of U.S. states and jurisdictions QRIS, as well as links to their QRIS standards and tools Inclusion of Infant and Toddler Quality Standards some examples of QRIS standards that have been included in statewideoperating QRIS and intentionally help programs promote the healthy development and learning of infants and toddlers A Self-Assessment Tool for States to identify the strengths, opportunities, and gaps in a coordinated system of quality improvement for programs serving infants and toddlers www.zerothree.org/qris
Standards To measure the level of quality and support the use of best practices based on the research evidence (attachment, child development) QC 2.0: Learning Environment standards: ITERS Curriculum standards: 1 Point: 100% teaching staff provide individualized personal care and play experiences for all children; Information about feeding, elimination, sleep, and other activities is written and shared with families daily. 2 Points: 100% of infants and toddlers have a designated primary caregiver. 3 Points: Program uses a continuity of care model with infants and toddlers. Family Support standards
CQI Supports: Financial To provide financial supports to practitioners and to programs AND To ensure access to high-quality I/T care by providing funding to support high quality Addressing equity in QC 2.0: Support Grants directly related to the program s Quality Improvement Plan Purchasing developmentally appropriate materials and/or equipment Awarding money to support more substantial improvements/purchases Scholarships for practitioners
CQI Supports: Practitioner/Program To create a knowledgeable workforce who has access to ongoing training and professional development QC 2.0: Training requirements for I/T caregivers built into Curriculum standard 1 Point: 100% teaching staff have at least.5 CEUs in infant/toddler development and care per renewal period 3 Points: 100% teaching staff have at least 1 CEU in infant/toddler development and care per renewal period Increased training opportunities to meet the demand Flexibility around topics, but must be relevant to I/T (development, care, curriculum) Plan to enhance TA by developing specialization in infant & toddler development and care
Monitoring & Accountability To ensure the QRIS (standards & supports) do create quality improvement in programs which support positive child outcomes QC 2.0: Monitoring: Internal review process for assessment, verification, rating processes Accountability: Logic model to track outputs and outcomes Staff, Program, Child, Families/Community
Areas To Improve Upon Engagement, Outreach & Promotion Ratings Family engagement Community awareness Partnerships & Collaborations QC was designed to include many community agencies Informal partnerships are important to expanding the work and leveraging dollars Florida Dept. of Children & Families (child care licensing agency) Nemours ECE obesity prevention & health promotion program local specialty ECE programs, IMH consultation programs Support from the business community
Current Challenges How do we measure the important elements of infant & toddler care? How do we balance the cost of measuring/monitoring with the cost of quality improvement supports? R vs. I
Contact Me Christine R. Hughes Director of Research, Evaluation & Assessment Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/Monroe chughes@elcmdm.org