Roles of a Coordinator in a Children's Services setting.

An Early Childhood Teacher is normally qualified to hold the position as Co-Ordinator... the roles & responsibilities as defined by NSW Industrial Relations are as follows for a Coordinator in most Children's Services settings. 

"Co-ordinator:
Qualified means a qualified carer who holds the Diploma in Children’s Services, an Associate
Diploma in Social Science (Child Studies) from TAFE or equivalent qualifications which are recognised under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 as amended, and who is appointed by the employer to co-ordinate, administer and manage a service. An employee at this level is required to perform the following duties:

• be accountable to the employer for the administration of the Service;
• co-ordinate and manage the day-to-day operations of the service;
• manage staff through liaison and consultation with the employer;
• oversee and ensure the maintenance and implementation of a healthy, safe and clean environment for staff and children;
• ensure day-to-day administrative tasks are completed appropriately, including requirements for funding and licensing;
• ensure the Service adheres to all relevant regulations and licensing guidelines;
• ensure all appropriate records are maintained;
• liaise with and consult with parents regarding the needs of the children and the community;
• liaise with management to ensure that all matters and procedures relating to government funding are complied with in accordance with appropriate guidelines and, where applicable, submissions for funding to relevant authorities are made and funds applied in accordance with the relevant guidelines and approvals;
• assist with the preparation of budgets in consultation with the employer, making appropriate recommendations and manage service financial responsibilities within approved levels;
• attend meetings as required by the employer consistent with position responsibilities.

 In addition an employee may be required to perform some or all of the following duties:
acts as Authorised Supervisor in accordance with the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 as amended, where required by the employer;

• develop, implement and evaluate Service policies and procedures and ensure these and licensing conditions are met in consultation with the employer;
• prepare and present reports regarding service issues;
• develop goals and directions for the service in consultation with staff and management in line with early childhood policy and practice;
• ensure that government guidelines on priority access to services are adhered to;
• other duties as required by the employer which are within the knowledge, skills and capabilities of the carer, including duties at a lower classification; provided that this does not promote de skilling.
  
  An employee at this level is required to possess and maintain a current first aid certificate recognised under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 as amended, and administer first aid as required."

 Woah. That sure is a lot of roles, and responsibilities, isn't it? ^^

Australia: Regulation of ECTs by ECE settings, state and territory

Here is an extract from Dr Louise Watson report in the DEEWR website.

There is no national consistency in the requirement for qualified early childhood teachers at the pre-school level (4 year-olds). This varies by jurisdiction, and can be influenced by the type of provider and which set of regulations they come under.

Child care services are regulated by different government departments within each jurisdiction – in some states these are education departments, but more often, they are departments of family and community services.

For example, in most states when 4 year-olds attend a childcare centre, their program will be delivered primarily by childcare employees holding a VET Certificate in Children’s Services and possibly designed by an employee who holds a Diploma of Children’s Services.

In some jurisdictions (eg. Queensland), the director of a large childcare service must have a 3-year degree in Early Childhood Education or an Advanced Diploma in Children’s Services. But in other jurisdictions, it is acceptable for the Director of a childcare service to have a nursing degree. In New South Wales, childcare centres are required to employ a teaching staff member (who must have a Degree or Diploma in Early Childhood Education) for groups of 30-40 children over the age of two.

Within jurisdictions, pre-school provision can be a mix of government-operated pre-schools, private and community-based pre-schools and childcare centres (community-based or privately owned). While government-operated pre-schools usually come under the jurisdiction of an Education Department, other pre-school providers, such as childcare centres or early learning centres will be governed by children’s services legislation (which in many states is implemented by a family and community services agency, rather than an education department).

Thus 4 year-olds attending a government-run pre-school (ie, administered by an Education Department) are likely to be taught by an Early Childhood teacher with a 3 or 4-year Bachelor’s degree (with the help of an assistant).

In the ACT, for example, where all pre-schools are government-operated, children in pre-schools are taught by a qualified pre-school teacher whereas 4-year-olds in childcare centres fall under different legislation which does not mandate the qualifications of staff above VET Diploma level.

A privately-owned pre-school might also employ a qualified Early Childhood teacher, but would not be obliged to do so, if it is registered as a childcare facility under children’s services legislation.

A further complication is that in some jurisdictions non-government pre-schools may receive subsidies from State Education Departments and the receipt of this funding can involve meeting minimum qualification requirements – even though the pre-school would be registered under childcare legislation.

Confusing, eh? I'm still trying to figure it all out too.... ^^

Language Learning Strategies.

As I am currently taking up Korean at ICLS (a language school in Malaysia), many of these strategies will come useful as crunch-time heads on in the next three weeks with my language assessment in two weeks from now!

Many of these ideas were posted on FLTEACH. The original list is from the Spanish Department at the University of Kansas.• Make flashcards.
• Repeat aloud.
• Don't be afraid to make mistakes.
• Speak to others in French (Spanish/German.)
• Watch French (Spanish/German) television programs on cable TV.
• Praise yourself for your efforts.
• Listen to lab tapes.
• Don't wait for the teacher to evaluate your progress.
• Go to a French (Spanish/German) restaurant and order in the target language.
• Eavesdrop on people speaking French (Spanish/German.)
• Don't make excuses.
• Name objects in French (Spanish/German.)
• Relax before going to class and before studying.
• Don't worry about your age or aptitude.
• Talk to yourself in French (Spanish/German.)
• Try not to translate from French (Spanish/German) to English in your head.
• Practice speaking French (Spanish/German) with friends.
• Form a study group with classmates.
• Review class notes.
• Reward your successes.
• Guess when in doubt.
• Re-write class notes.
• Record new vocabulary and grammar in a notebook.
• Make review cards grouping verbs, nouns, etc.
• Don't pretend to understand when you really don't.
• Paraphrase when necessary.
• Listen to French (Spanish/German) radio.
• Rent French (Spanish/German) videos and watch them.
• Stay alert; don't "zone out" in class.
• Hang in there; be persistent.
• Read ahead in the book.
• Use mime and gestures.
• Write down words that you don't know, then find out what they mean.
• Keep a language diary.
• Keep your expectations realistic.
• Practice daily.
• Make corrections in class when reviewing homework.
• Memorize using images, sounds, rhymes (mnemonic devices.)
• Attend class.
• Teach someone what you have learned.
• Be assertive in class.
• Participate in group activities in class.
• Use cognates for association with English.
• Have a positive attitude towards class and the language.
• Read French (Spanish/German) newspapers on the Internet.
• Use what you learn.
• Make study sheets.
• Do homework.
• Review the day's lesson after class.
• Try not to use the dictionary too much.
• Ask for help when you need it.

Additional resources
• Tips on Studying
• Learning Style and Foreign Language Learning
• Concepts of Foreign Languages

 Copyright © 1999, 2000 Beverly Larson. All rights reserved.

NCLRC ORG. Extracts are taken from: http://www.nclrc.org/essentials/speaking/stratspeak.htm)

1. Using minimal responses
Language learners who lack confidence in their ability to participate successfully in oral interaction often listen in silence while others do the talking. One way to encourage such learners to begin to participate is to help them build up a stock of minimal responses that they can use in different types of exchanges. Such responses can be especially useful for beginners.

Minimal responses are predictable, often idiomatic phrases that conversation participants use to indicate understanding, agreement, doubt, and other responses to what another speaker is saying. Having a stock of such responses enables a learner to focus on what the other participant is saying, without having to simultaneously plan a response.

2. Recognizing scripts
Some communication situations are associated with a predictable set of spoken exchanges -- a script. Greetings, apologies, compliments, invitations, and other functions that are influenced by social and cultural norms often follow patterns or scripts. So do the transactional exchanges involved in activities such as obtaining information and making a purchase. In these scripts, the relationship between a speaker's turn and the one that follows it can often be anticipated.

Instructors can help students develop speaking ability by making them aware of the scripts for different situations so that they can predict what they will hear and what they will need to say in response. Through interactive activities, instructors can give students practice in managing and varying the language that different scripts contain.

The Playground: Play in developing Social Skill Awareness.

This article Playground describes some of the reasons why kids get bullied and rejected in skills.

As many will know, those who study play in early childhood studies will know that those early skills in the playground are actually essential, and an indicator to an individual's social skills when they are adults.

(will write more on this later...).