Work. Family. Life.

At last, a sign of strategic progress for Island children - PEI Throne Speech

Remember this?

Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. Prince Edward Island needs an autism strategy. We need this today, not tomorrow.

We are getting to the tipping point on these issues. Islanders recognize that children are our future and will no longer be tolerant of policy decisions and programs that are clearly not in the best interests of children and families.

How about this?

Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. 

What about this?

There is little doubt that this is a complex issue.  There are no simple solutions and it will take ongoing dialogue.  What I believe is truly needed is a broad based early childhood development strategy for Prince Edward Island that does more than sit on a shelf. One that addresses the full spectrum of early childhood development issues and that is about much more than just child care.  One that is comprehensive both in scope and nature. A strategy that is actually supported and implemented by all of the partners; inlcluding the PEI government.

Perhaps this?

Current research in the early years clearly demonstrates the critical importance of investing in the healthy development of young children. It is time for P.E.I. to develop and implement an updated early years strategy.

Today we heard some good news with respect to long term strategy!

Today's Throne Speech included this:

My Government is mindful that the magnitude of this change will have an impact on the early childhood sector. My Government recognizes that early childhood education and care holds lifelong benefits for children – and provides vital support to Island families. My Government is working with the early childhood sector to define the financial and human resource impacts and to identify potential transition measures to help the sector move toward sustainability. In the coming year, my Government will build on this work through a comprehensive review to establish a vision and long-term strategy for the healthy development and well-being of Island children and their families.

via www.assembly.pe.ca

ECDA to host sector meeting on November 14, 2009

The Early Childhood Educators Association of PEI is hosting a meeting for Early Childhood Educators on November 14, 2009 to discuss the following questions:

• What do you want the future to hold for licensed early childhood programs?
• What do you need to stay in the sector?
• What policies and programs do licensed programs need to stay in the sector beyond the transition of
• kindergarten?
• Let’s get ahead of the provincial review of early childhood and begin to formulate a professional “must have “ list for the future of this sector!

A detailed handout can be found here.

Editorial - The Guardian - Addressing the needs of Island child care

Addressing the needs of Island child care
Our child care facilities will need help to continue operating during the transition of kindergarten to the public school system.
The Guardian

A Tignish day care operator who expressed concern recently about her facility's future now that kindergarten is becoming part of the public school system has issued the latest warning from the Island's child care sector. The needs of Island child care facilities are urgent, and government must soon outline its plan for addressing them during this important transition period.

The Ghiz government plans to incorporate the Island's kindergarten into the public school system by September 2010. Such a merger was recommended by the province's kindergarten commissioner, Pat Mella, and it's a sound policy. But it won't be an easy transition as kindergarten-age children move from the Island's child care centres into the public education system, and some of the staff pursue upgrading opportunities to move into kindergarten teaching positions in the public schools. This can't help but have a direct impact on child care operators and their ability to continue offering services to the public. Ms. Mella acknowledged this in her report, and warned government to put a plan in place to help child care facilities stay afloat.

Government has said it's working with the child care sector on a plan, but no final decisions have been made. In the meantime, while working groups have been established and a financial impact analysis is being conducted to determine how losing kindergarten funding will affect child care facilities, some operators have already warned they may be forced to close. The above-mentioned Tignish operator, for example, says she doesn't want to close her centre, yet she's worried about the loss of kindergarten children, and some staff.

How often does government have to hear this warning? Ultimately, as the operators say, this concern, if unaddressed, could affect their ability to stay open and provide the child care services their respective communities need.

Government can't allow this to happen. In her report, the kindergarten commissioner made some sound suggestions that could help child care operators manage during the transition of kindergarten. For instance, she said, while conducting the review of the child care sector and working on a long-term plan, government should offer some short-term help, such as one-time payments or grants. As well, she suggested raising the income cutoffs to increase the number of moderate-income families eligible under the province's subsidy program.

Government needs to act on some of these suggestions. It's doing the right thing in working with the child care sector on a long-term plan, but if there are real obstacles threatening the survival of some of these operations, government can't ignore these. They provide much-needed services in their communities and if they are forced to close, it's not just the operators who suffer. So do the families that have come to rely on their services.

From the Journal Pioneer: We must think of the children

November 3, 2009

The Journal Pioneer

Editor,

It stuns me that a program such as the passport to employment program would be considered a viable solution to both the shortage of Early Childhood Educators on Prince Edward Island due to the move to full-day kindergarten and the shortage of qualified staff to work with young children who have been diagnosed with autism.

Clearly it is time for the P.E.I. government to rethink many of the approaches that are being made with respect to Island children.

The policies, decisions and actions of the P.E.I. government are no longer even remotely close to acceptable. Suggesting that people with four weeks of training is a quality solution to educator shortages in the fields of early learning and early intervention is ridiculous.

Yet somehow these programs were allowed to move forward. Even worse; they have been viewed by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development as a viable option to addressing staffing shortages and to supporting Island families.

I ask this: How much does the future of Island children really matter? Does the future of Prince Edward Island even matter?

If children were truly valued on Prince Edward Island then we would be seeing sound and strategic decisions being made and implemented. Quite plainly, Island families and children are being put at risk due to the bureaucratic carelessness and inappropriate policy decisions.It appears that many of these policies are being made up as we go along. Solutions are being implemented based on desperation, not research, best practice or long-term strategy.

Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. Prince Edward Island needs an autism strategy. We need this today, not tomorrow.

We are getting to the tipping point on these issues. Islanders recognize that children are our future and will no longer be tolerant of policy decisions and programs that are clearly not in the best interests of children and families.

Please contact your MLA today and voice your concern. The future of Prince Edward Island deserves much, much better than this.

Jane Boyd, President,
Parents for Choice Quality Society,

via www.journalpioneer.com

It is absolutely time to stand up for Island children

And so it seems that the Passport to Employment Program is a solution to more than the shortage of Early Childhood Educators on Prince Edward Island. It is also the solution to finding people to work with children who have Autism!  Really.  Of course, I have also been following this issue for some time now as well; thanks to the tireless work of my colleague April Ennis.

Here is a Letter to the Editor that was in the Guardian earlier this week.  It speaks volumes about the inappropriate policy decisions that the PEI Government are making with respect to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Editor:

I am writing with regard to the guest opinion, 'Children with autism need more support' by Christina Rodd, (The Guardian, Oct. 22, 2009).

I applaud Christina for stepping up and telling it like it is. I have a grandson with autism, and having witnessed the countless hours and patience required to work with these children, my hat goes off to the so very few dedicated therapists we have here on P.E.I.

I cannot for the life of me understand how and where this idea came from - to take unemployed people from ages 55-65 and expect them, after a four-week job creation course, to work with, and through, thebehaviours of our children with ASD . Not complaining about the age, as I am there myself, but I can just picture a child bolting and these people trying to catch them, or, the child having a meltdown and these people trying to handle the situation as it should be handled, so that the child learns from the experience and overcomes the fear that initiated it.

My grandson is now in the school system where there are no 'consultants' available for training therapists right now or for creating programs after school or over the summer, so qualified therapists are even more imperative to his progress.

This 'Passport to Employment' idea is truly a slap in the face, not only to the women and men who have spent years of schooling, training and guided hands-on experience, but also every family on P.E.I. with a child with autism. As one specialist put it, "I understand the outrage of the families. It is clear that this is not being done in the best interest of the children. A passport to employment, yes; however, for children with autism, it's their passport to failure and isolation." Where proper programming and training are in place, statistics show a 10-20 per cent recovery rate in autistic children by age nine. It is no wonder we have a zero per cent recovery rate here on P.E.I.

I would like our premier, Mr. Ghiz, to put himself in our shoes and tell us, if tomorrow his child was diagnosed with ASD, who would he want to work with his child - a professionally trained consultant or therapist, or a job creation program four-week trainee?

Scott Kaye,

Charlottetown

via www.theguardian.pe.ca

Here is another Letter to the Editor that was also in the Guardian this week.  It speaks to the significant financial challenges that Island families face due to the waits for access to funding and other Autism related supports.

Editor:

I would like to compliment Chrissy Rodd on her letter 'Children with autism deserve more support' and Darlene Ellis 'Our daughter has waited long enough' (The Guardian, Oct. 22, 2009).

Our daughter was diagnosed with autism by her pediatrician back in July 2008 and we are currently still waiting for funding to help with the cost of her therapy - a year and a half later. We have been paying for therapy privately (as many parents waiting are) for the last year. Most parents such as myself feel the sense of urgency to act now being as the window of recovery is in the preschool years.

Having said this, raising a child with special needs poses many challenges and is quite stressful without the added financial stress and the stress of wondering who/where we can get help from while waiting this incredibly long time. We are hopefully a matter of weeks away from receiving funding only to find out not only will our daughter not be receiving occupational therapy and will rarely see a speech therapist but they are only paying our intensive behaviour intervention (IBI) therapist $10 an hour, which is an insult to offer any professional who has gone through the training to work with special needs children.

So here I am, I'll be compensating my therapist's wages for what the government is too cheap to offer and now looking at hiring a private occupational therapist, which costs up to $95 an hour. With the 2009 statistics being one in every 91 children being diagnosed with autism (one in every 58 boys) maybe government will find a heart and invest more money into our Island children suffering with autism and develop a stategy that does not leave Island families feeling hopeless and terrified for their children's future.

Tammy McQuaid,

Victoria

Clearly it is time for the PEI Government to rethink many of the approaches that are being made with respect to Island children. The policies, decisions and actions of the PEI Government are no longer even remotely close to acceptable. Suggesting that people with four weeks of training is a quality solution to the staffing shortages in the fields of early learning and early intervention is ridiculous.  Yet somehow these programs were allowed to move forward. Even worse; they have been viewed by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development as a viable option to addressing staffing shortages.

I ask this:

How much does the future of Island children matter?  How much does the future of Prince Edward Island matter? Quite plainly, Island families and children are being put at risk due to the bureaucratic carelessness and inappropriate policy decisions.  It appears that many of these policies are being made up by Department staff as they go along.  Solutions are being implemented based on desperation; not research, best practice or long term strategy.

Once again I say this:

·         Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. 

·         Prince Edward Island needs an Autism Strategy.

We are getting to the tipping point on these issues.  Islanders recognize that children are our future and will no longer be tolerant of ridiculous policy decisions and programs that are clearly not in the best interest of children and families.

Please contact your MLA today and voice your concern. The future of Prince Edward Island deserves much, much better than this.

Moving to full day Kindergarten in PEI...well thought out? Perhaps not.

I am one of the biggest supporters of offering full day Kindergarten for children; however on PEI we are just beginning to feel the real ripples of this pending new reality for community based child care and early learning programs across the Island.  Sure it is good to offer enhanced early learning opportunities (Kindergarten) on a full day basis for five year olds - but is it worth it to do this if many child care and early learning centres are forced to close or become compromised due to a shortage of qualified staff? Unfortunately, this is going to happen as so many of the qualified teachers move into the school system along with the Kindergarten children.  Who is this good for...children, families or communities??

It is important to recognize that the Island has a long way to go in ensuring that all children have access to quality early learning experiences and care in their communities. There is a huge variation in quality from area to area. For this reason alone, the move to full day Kindergarten is of critical importance. It will level the playing field for many children.  That said, perhaps the move to implement full day Kindergarten so quickly is going to leave a wake of early learning devastation as it rolls out.  By removing so many qualified staff from the child care field so quickly there is little doubt that programs are going to be significantly compromised across the Island.  No amount of fast tracking of educators will make up for such a loss of experience all at once.  What will this mean for the field? What will it mean for quality? Even more importantly, what will this mean for the young children who are left in community based early learning and care programs. Perhaps many centres will close.  Perhaps only some will close. Perhaps only the lowest quality centres will close. However - here is the thing; what happens if the overall quality level of early learning and care is greatly reduced across the Island? Given the current variation in quality levels; any move that further compromises the quality of care is one that we should all be very worried about.  There is a very strong chance that this will happen.

Let's be clear - caring for young children takes passion, commitment and most of all a strong knowledge and education related to early learning and child development. This is not something that one can just pick up through a Passport to Employment type of program. Really...is this the way we are going to enhance quality on Prince Edward Island? This is NOT a solution; it is a band aid on already hemorrhaging system.  This is not anything that will enhance quality....perhaps it will  help to meet child-staff ratios - but, again, this is not a solution by any means.

So while the Provincial Government means well for the future of five year old children; I am concerned for all of the other younger children on the Island.  Who is thinking about their needs?  Surely there must be some consideration for these children....and I say children specifically as opposed to early learning operators.  I understand that there is a working group related to the early childhood sector as a result of Pat Mella's report.  Of course, there should be a group to discuss all of the issues that are going to impact child care programs.  However, is this group really going to be able to think broadly and strategically about the best interests of all young Island children when so much of their sector is under attack?

So, once again, I say this....

Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. 

One that is comprehensive both in scope and nature. A strategy that is actually supported and implemented by all of the partners; inlcluding the PEI government.  We need to dream big…the sky should be the limit for our children.  After all, they are our future.  If we don't invest now we will pay later; there is endless research to demonstrate this.  Such a strategy will need to be designed through comprehensive public consultation, research and planning.  This will take the leadership and support of all who are involved – those who work with children and families, operators, professional associations, government employees, the government as a whole and the individual MLA's, community members AND most importantly – PEI FAMILIES.  Flexibility and a willingness by ALL to put PEI children and families first will be the key to success….for both the Island and it's children.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From this morning's Guardian, here is an article by Teresa Wright.  It gives example of how one centre is going to be impacted by these pending changes to the system.  How many more programs will be impacted like this?  What will this mean for children and and families?  What about quality?

Magic Moments Childcare is the only licensed daycare in Tignish, but it may soon be forced to close now that its entire staff is moving into the public school system.
Tracy Doyle owns and operates Magic Moments. She said she doesn’t want to close the centre, but the trained early childhood educators she currently employs are leaving to teach kindergarten in the public system next year and she has little hope of attracting new replacements.
“Rural areas are much different,” Doyle said.
“It’s really difficult to recruit and retain early childhood educators who are trained.”
The pay she offers is not enough to bring trained educators as far west as Tignish, and raising rates is not an option, she said.
“Parents can only afford to pay so much because they only get so much pay in a rural area. It’s seasonal jobs, it’s high unemployment rates — there’s not a lot of money there to pay the staff what they deserve to get paid.”
That’s why Doyle believes she may have to close her doors.
With kindergarten moving into the public system next September and over 100 high-paying teaching jobs up for grabs, Doyle says she just can’t compete for trained early childhood educators. 
“They’re taking the best trained staff from us,” Doyle said.
“My biggest concern then is what’s going to happen to the quality of early childhood programs? I will not and I refuse to run and compromise quality care for children.”
Doyle is not alone.
Magic Moments is just one of several rural centres facing imminent closure unless government offers help to the sector, said Lynn Hogan, chair of the Early Learning Operators of P.E.I. (ELOPEI).
That will seriously jeopardize the ability for smaller communities to remain viable for working parents, she said.
“These rural areas, they could lose their early childcare centres,” Hogan said.
“What is left for these little communities?”
Hogan said early childhood operators are frustrated with the lack of planning for the sector before government announced the upcoming changes to kindergarten last year.
Operators are also frustrated at the lack of information about what will happen in 2010 and whether government will be supporting the industry in the future.
That has many operators in limbo, Hogan said.
“There are people who are just waiting to see what they’re going to do.”
ELOPEI wants government and the sector to develop a comprehensive child-care system to ensure everyone on P.E.I. has access to quality, affordable childcare.
Government is currently working with the sector on such a plan, but no final decisions have yet been made.
A number of working groups were set up as a result of Kindergarten Commissioner Pat Mella’s recommendations on the introduction of kindergarten in the public system, including one group dealing primarily with the early childhood sector.
As well, a financial impact analysis is currently being done to measure the financial implications of day cares losing kindergarten funding and teachers and what needs will exist in this sector in future.
But while the province and the working groups continue to study and debate the issue, operators like Doyle are facing some tough decisions.
“The chances are, if there’s no supports there and there’s no trained staff, I won’t compromise quality care — the option is I may be closing,” she said.
“It’s so sad because I put my heart and soul in this.”

ECEBC now accepting bursary applications for Fall 2009

The Bursary Program is a partnership between Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC) and the Vancity Community Foundation with funds from the Ministry of Children and Family Development. The goal is to assist ECE students with the cost of Basic and/or Post Basic Early Childhood Education Programs at approved institutions.

For students attending public institutions:
Bursary applications starting in 2009 are now eligible for $200 per course (maximum of $1000 per semester).

BC child care is now under MCFD Minister

With the announcement of a new BC government cabinet today, the Hon. Mary Polak has been named as the Minister Responsible for Child Care on top of her new portfolio of the Ministry for Children and Family Development.  This is a shift from child care previously having a Minister of State for Childcare (Hon. Linda Reid) under the last BC Liberal government.

This is what Minister Polak is accountable for:

MINISTRY OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY DEVELOPMENT

(Minister Responsible for Child Care)

 

General Responsibilities

Adoption and reunion services

Child protection and family development

Foster care

Child care

Children and youth with special needs

Child and Youth Mental Health

Youth justice programs

 

Major Agencies, Boards and Commissions

Board of Registration for Social Workers

Provincial Child Care Council

One more time, why placing a cap on PEI child care spaces is NOT the answer

You may recall the recent posts on this blog regarding the issue of capping child care spaces on Prince Edward Island.  In one of these posts I noted:

"So - let's just be clear on something here - placing a cap on the number of child care centres will protect child care operators NOT children.  Placing a cap on spaces is only about the needs of operators - it is NOT about the needs of children and families.  Placing a cap on spaces is absolutely NOT the way to enhance the level of quality of early learning environments on PEI."

After Parent's for Choice and Quality wrote letters to the editors of several Island papers we were contacted by Stephen Brun who writes for the Eastern Graphic.  He was interested in our concerns related to capping spaces.  Last week he wrote a follow-up article about all of this.  I have placed a copy of the article below. You will note that one of the quoted child care operator feels that Parent's for Choice and Quality is somewhat uninformed about what is involved with operating Island child care facilities.

“Those people really don’t know how much we go out of our way to help parents and children, “ Ms Brown said. “I guess what we’re saying is, walk a mile in our shoes. If I was the only centre in the this area, then it wouldn’t be an issue. If there gets to be centres where there aren’t enough kids and they all close, what choice to parents have then?”

I feel that it is important to state that as President of Parents for Choice and Quality, I am clearly aware of the great many concerns and challenges that Island child care operators are facing. The provision of child care and early learning  programs is both challenging and complex. I do truly believe that there are many Operators who do all that they can to help children and families.  They care - I understand that and I admire them for that. It is important to note that I, myself, have been an Operator and Supervisor of child care on Prince Edward Island.  Given this, I have a full understanding of what it means when a program is not filled to capacity and how this can place services at risk.  Despite knowing all of this, I still feel that placing a cap on the number of spaces available on the Island is not the answer. 

So...why no cap?   While there are many programs on the Island that offer high quality services to families and children, the truth is that there are also some who are not of this standard.  In the areas where this exists - and if these are the only programs in that community - it means that families virtually have no other child care choice.  If they require child care to work or attend school they are faced with having to "settle" for what is available.   By placing a cap on spaces, PEI will be protecting programs that may be of a lesser quality. Unfortunately, there is no easy or politically correct way to state this, but it is the reality.  By protecting all programs, there will be virtually no incentive for programs to improve or enhance their offerings. Why would they need to?  It is not like there will be any new competition coming into the area for parents to make comparisons to.  With all that we know about the importance of the Early Years, creating a system that actually protects marginal quality early learning environments is NOT appropriate nor acceptable. Simply put, this is not in the best interests of children or families.  We must do all that we can to ensure that ALL Island children have access to high quality early learning experiences in all Island communities.  This is critical to ensure school readiness and the ability for children to meet the necessary learning outcomes later in life. Further, if no new programs are allowed to come into an area then parental choice will eventually become much more limited than it already is. This is not a good thing either.  Child care, as it stands today, is a market based system and it would not be appropriate for the government to start limiting where or when new services can be created or opened.

It is critical that Prince Edward Island look at the much larger picture of how the Early Years are being addressed and supported overall.  PEI needs an Island wide Early Years Strategy.  I have written about this multiple times.  Let's be clear, there is much work to be done to ensure that young children and their families have access to all of the necessary supports and services that they need as their children grow - this includes access to high quality, affordable child care.

Government energies would be better spent implementing ways to improve program quality levels, attracting more qualified early childhood educators to the Island, reaching out to families whose children are not in licensed child care programs and by ensuring that all Island children have access to a full range of early learning opportunities and services BEFORE they reach the public school system.   These things would accomplish far more than would placing a cap on new child care spaces and program openings.

Below is a copy of the story that ran in the paper last week. 

From Eastern Graphic - March 18, 2009

Capping daycare spaces not the answer, group says

By Stephen Brun

Placing a limit on the number of daycare centres that can open in the province could hinder the quality of care children receive, says a group representing some parents. Jane Boyd and April Ennis, directors of Parents for Choice and Quality, responded to a February 25 story in The Eastern Graphic which included some daycare operators in eastern Kings County calling on government to cap the number of centres that could open in a given area based on low enrollment numbers.

Ms Boyd said better steps need to be taken to ensure high-quality programming, rather than limiting a parent’s choice of daycare centres.

“If we reduce the number of centres, we reduce quality levels and we reduce parent choice,” she said. “I understand the concerns operators have and I’m very clear on what the issues are, but it’s like a pendulum – it can swing one way or the other. These are private service providers so, when it comes to legislated caps, there’s probably a line the legislation shouldn’t cross.”

Parents for Choice and Quality was created in February 2008 when the Province attempted to change legislation to cap child care space on the Island.

Part of a letter to the editor from the group, published in the March 4 Graphic, states: “To suggest that the government should change the legislation to allow for a cap on the number of child care spaces and centres in a given area is purely about the needs of the operators and is not about the needs of the children and families…it is absolutely not the way to enhance the quality level of early learning environments on PEI”.

Norma Brown, owner of Child’s Play daycare in Fortune, who was one of the operators to call for a cap, said the group’s assumption that the workers are protecting themselves is false.

“Those people really don’t know how much we go out of our way to help parents and children, “ Ms Brown said. “I guess what we’re saying is, walk a mile in our shoes. If I was the only centre in the this area, then it wouldn’t be an issue. If there gets to be centres where there aren’t enough kids and they all close, what choice to parents have then?”

Child’s Play is one of six daycares operating in roughly a 30-mile radius in Eastern Kings, including centres in Cardigan, Souris, St Peters, and Howe Bay.

Ms. Brown and other operators in the area also called for increased subsidies so parents could better afford to send their children to daycare, but feels a cap should have been put in place two years ago.

“I’ve been here 18 years and there is nothing I haven’t seen, but there are more daycares than there ever was in this area,” she said. “It’s not that we have a problem with the other centres, but it would be the same as opening another fish plant in Souris. The one that’s there is hanging on by the skin of its teeth as it is.”

While Ms Boyd agrees better subsidies are needed for parents, she said the Province would be better suited to ensure new daycares meet a higher standard of quality before they become licensed than the current standard. She said some members on the childcare board, who approve licence requests on PEI, are daycare operators themselves and could be in a conflict of interest.

“I’m not arguing and saying it’s all perfect, because clearly it’s not,” she said. “There is quite a difference in the degree of quality across the Island. It’s a pretty baseline level (of acceptance) on PEI. With high quality programs, parents will come to those and parents will drive distances for those.”

Placing a cap on PEI child care spaces is about the needs of operators NOT children

Here is an exerpt from a story appeared in the Eastern Graphic last week -

"In addition to better subsidies for parents, Ms Brown said another solution could be to put a cap on the number of daycare centres that are allowed to open in a given area. “We’re kind of hoping the government will legislate something to put a cap that there’ll be no more centres open, at least until we’re full. There’s not much point having 20 centres and nobody full,” she said. “(Amalgamation of daycares in the area) would be impossible. Amanda’s got a mortgage to pay and I have a mortgage to pay. You can’t walk away from one mortgage and into another one if you open a bigger centre.” Mr Greenan is out of the province until the end of the week at a meeting of the Canadian Ministers of Education, but Jean Doherty, communications officer for the Department of Education, said the current legislation doesn’t allow for any such cap on the opening of new daycares. “If the provisions of the law are met, a licence has to be granted,” Ms Doherty said. “The parents want to have a choice and it’s a privately-delivered service.”

Hmmmmm.....why does this sound a little familiar?  Just over a year ago this issue arose and created quite a stir on the Island.  Many parents became passionate about the fact that there was the possibility that child care spaces might be capped.  A petition was created and a Facebook group was formed.  Blog posts were written and videos were even developed by Island parents in an effort to raise awareness about how important it is for families to have choice when it comes to early learning and child care programs on PEI. An informal group which we called Parents for Choice and Quality emerged to ensure that the needs of children and families were put BEFORE the needs of operators and the system. Collectively we became clear about the fact that we are for a system that puts children and families first and foremost. Today Parents for Choice & Quality is an incorporated non profit organization that works toward ensuring that all children and families have access to a comprehensive and coordinated range of high quality services that supports them in achieving their full potential.

So - let's just be clear on something here - placing a cap on the number of child care centres will protect child care operators NOT children.  Placing a cap on spaces is only about the needs of operators - it is NOT about the needs of children and families.  Placing a cap on spaces is absolutely NOT the way to enhance the level of quality of early learning environments on PEI.

Make sure you stay tuned to the debate. Listen to what child care operators are saying and challenge them if they talk about capping spaces. Parents, contact your MLA and let them know how important you feel it is to have choice when it comes to early learning programs on PEI. Don't let your right to choice be taken away. Tell your MLA that placing a cap on the number of spaces and child care facilities available in your area is not what is good for children and is not what is wanted by Island families!

Labour mobility across Canada - good news for ECE's

From December 2008 BC Gov Press Release

Full labour mobility between provinces was confirmed today by agreement among Canada’s 
labour and trade ministers, breaking down economic barriers and allowing Canadians and their families to move freely throughout the country, Premier Gordon Campbell said today.  

Negotiated as part of Canada’s Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), the new labour mobility 
provisions require that, effective April 1, 2009, people with a specific professional or occupational 
certification in one province or territory will be recognized as qualified to practise their profession in all provinces and territories where their profession or occupation is regulated.

I have previously written about the BC-Alberta Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Trade Agreement here.  ECE's were included in this agreement, so one can assume that this will also be the case for the new National agreement.  Therefore, so long as an ECE is certified in one Province it should eventually be fairly straightforward for their credentials to be accepted and recognized in all others as well.  This is very good news as it will assist with the current qualified staffing shortages across the country.  In addition, it should make the process to obtaining a license to practice much less challenging in certain Provinces, especially PEI.

 

Excellent reports out on employer models in ECEC & related employer issues

Supporting Employers in Canada ’s Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Sector
The Child Care Human Resources Sector Council’s Supporting Employers in ECEC Project seeks to clearly define the range of employer models in Canada ’s ECEC sector and identify related human resource needs. As this 18-month project nears completion, two documents are now available that preview the research findings and shed light on the employer in Canada’s ECEC sector:

Preliminary Findings - October 2008: This document provides a summary of the preliminary research findings, including the results of the Employer Survey (completed by 987 employers across Canada), the literature review, focus groups, and key informant interviews.

Employer Models in Canada’s ECEC Sector: This document contains a series of 14 descriptive articles designed to bring ECEC governance models to life by exploring different programs and models from the employer perspective.

Critical staff shortages in BC child care

From Whistler Question - October 16, 2008

Whistler – The crippling shortage of qualified staff could force the Whistler Children’s Centre (WCC) to shut down its two infant and toddler programs at the WCC’s Spring Creek campus.

After an emergency board meeting last Wednesday (Oct. 8), Program Coordinator Kari Gaudet and WCC board members met with families of the 16 children in the Daisies and Blueberries streams at Spring Creek to tell them the programs will have to close after Nov. 28 if qualified staff members aren’t hired.

WCC Society officials announced last week that the child care service would have to temporarily stop taking on new families, because it doesn’t have enough B.C.-certified Early Childhood Educators (ECEs), especially those with the Infant-Toddler specialization.

The shortage is a problem throughout the field, the province and the corridor, Gaudet said, but Whistler feels the effects keenly because of the high cost of living here and the lack of affordable housing.

The WCC’s infant and toddler programs at the Nesters location won’t be affected in the same way as the Spring Creek streams, because the WCC was able to work with the licencing officer to have the extensive Ontarian and Australian experience of two of its Nesters staff members temporarily accepted while they work toward their B.C. accreditation.

“We didn’t have that opportunity in either of our programs down at Spring Creek,” Gaudet said.

The WCC needs to hire several new ECEs, including at least one with the Infant-Toddler concentration for each program, to keep the two Spring Creek programs open.

Paula Palmer, mother of a two-year-old son who has been cared for at Spring Creek for about 18 months, said the news was distressing, and particularly challenging as the ski season approaches, and that the families will have to struggle to find new child care or work options.

Palmer said the Spring Creek parents have been firing emails back and forth about options since they were told about the impending closure, as well as contacting licensing officials and local, provincial and federal politicians about the situation.

 

“We’re all on board, and we’re all trying to deal with it… we’re all trying to do it together,” she said.

Palmer said Spring Creek parents have suggested alternatives to the closure such as some daycare sharing between the Nesters location and Spring Creek, to ensure everyone has some child care.

 

The idea of sharing between Nesters and Spring Creek is “something we are looking at,” Gaudet said, and the approximately 24 families using the Nesters infant-toddler programs will be brought into the discussions this week.

 

“Now we are just trying to work as much as we can with the families,” Gaudet said.

Though the staff shortage is widespread, Gaudet said the WCC is working hard to attract new ECEs, by contacting “every resource we can think of,” talking to a few qualified educators in the community who might be available for short-term solutions, and approaching officials at child care centres in Squamish and Pemberton.

“But everyone in the corridor is in the same boat,” Gaudet said.

While the struggle for short-term solutions continues, Gaudet said it’s important for everyone to get involved in advocating for child care, to motivate political leaders to make the systemic changes needed for long-term solutions.

Child care should be important to everyone because there’s a “huge trickle-down effect” from problems such as the WCC’s, Gaudet said. Parents have said they might have to leave the Whistler workforce to care for their kids, or move out of Whistler entirely, Gaudet said.

“I think the effects can be drastic and everyone must be in realization of that,” she said.

Lisa St-Amand, whose two-year-old daughter who loves her time at the Spring Creek daycare, said she thinks legislative changes are necessary across the province to repair the state of the ECE field and the hurdles in the licensing process for educators with out-of-province certifications.

She and her husband work in Whistler, having been part of the community since 1994, but they live in Squamish. If they can’t find child-care solutions beyond temporary help from grandparents, St-Amand said, “we may have to change our working scenario.”

Gaudet encouraged concerned community members to contact municipal political candidates, the federal government, provincial MLA Joan McIntyre and Linda Reid, the B.C. Minister of State for Child Care. Palmer, St-Amand and many of the other Spring Creek parents have already done so, they said.