ECIs Making Strides in the Attainment of Standards

The efforts by the Early Childhood Commission (ECC) to have more Early Childhood Institutions (ECIs) certified by August 2017 are bearing results. The Board of the ECC has set a target of 100 more ECIs for certification in the next ten months.

“I am very confident that we can attain the target set,” says Trisha Williams-Singh, the ECC’s Board Chairman. “Already the responses from the more than 2,000 ECI operators and practitioners at the two Regional Certification Fairs held in St. Andrew and Portland have been very positive; 155 applications by ECI practitioners for police records among other things, have so far been processed at the two events.” Williams-Singh pointed out. Police records are among the staffing (Standard One) requirements for certification. To date only 17 ECIs across the parishes of St. Ann; St. James; Westmoreland and Hanover, representing a mix of public, private and corporate-sponsored institutions have been certified.

The twelve (12) legal standards for the operation of ECIs in Jamaica cover the areas of staffing; development and educational programmes; interactions and relationships with children; physical environment; indoor and outdoor equipment; health; nutrition; safety; child rights, child protection and equality; parent and stakeholder participation; administration and finance. A Certificate of Registration when issued is valid for five years.

Standard Two which addresses Developmental and Educational Programmes at ECIs has been reflected in the National Age-Four School Readiness Assessment which was rolled out in May 2016. Just under 40,000 children at age four participated in the two-day national assessment in May 2016. The objective was to determine students’ state of readiness to access primary level education. The assessment is also used to support learning and instruction, and to identify children in need of additional support services. Honourable Ruel Reid, announced recently, that 92 per cent of children at the early-childhood level are at the required learning development stage..

For more information on the work of the ECC please visit :

website at www.ecc.gov.jm

Twitter: @ECCJA and Instagram: @earlychildhoodcommission.

Contact: communications@ecc.gov.jm.          

How Does Learning Happen?

The Early Years are a vital part of a child’s development and at the School of Early Childhood, George Brown College we emphasize the importance of positive relationships and engagement. To do this, we follow Ontario’s Pedagogy, How Does Learning Happen?  Over the next few months we will share information that supports this pedagogy and hopefully enlighten you. 

Let’s begin this month with the definition of pedagogy according to How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy (pg. 3). The term pedagogy refers to the process of understanding and supporting learning.  Pedagogical approaches that support quality programs are those that:

1. Build positive and responsive relationships;

2. Focus on children’s social, emotional, physical, creative, and cognitive development in a holistic way;

3. Provide environments in which children learn through exploration, play, and inquiry; encourage self-reflection, discussion, and ongoing collaboration and learning among educators;

4. Engage with families, and value their strengths, contributions, and unique perspectives; and use pedagogical documentation to study, interpret, make visible, and help inform children’s learning and development.

These pedagogical approaches support children as they learn along a developmental continuum, and allow for smoother transitions from one program to another – for example, from child care and family support programs to kindergarten, elementary school, and beyond.

Subscribe to this Blog and our Facebook page to see further updates on this topic.

www.facebook.com/pacecanada.org

Tips For Parents

There are many programs in Toronto that are geared towards supporting parents of young children. Many organizations that offer parent and child programs can be found on the 211 Toronto website.

Listed below are specific instructions on how to search for an organization that may offer a parent and child program that is of interest to you.

* Step #1: Go to 211toronto.ca

* Step #2: Click on the Child / Family Services icon

* Step #3: Scroll down to the bottom of the web page and click on Recreation for children/families

* Step #4: Search for an organization that offers parent and child programs geared towards young children. One example of a search can be: Ontario Early Years Centres.

Good luck!

George Brown College and P.A.C.E.

Did you know…George Brown College has a long history with P.A.C.E. Canada? 

In 2003, the School of Early Childhood was awarded a 5 year project in Jamaica from the Association of Canadian Community Colleges, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency. 

In 2008, the college was awarded a 3-year project to continue cooperation with the Early Childhood Commission and Shortwood Teachers’ College. 

Our connection with P.A.C.E. included orientation sessions for our faculty and students travelling to Jamaica and our attendance at fundraising events. P.A.C.E. also hosted our Jamaican colleagues who travelled on study tours to Toronto.  

The College also prepared presentations of our work for meetings held by P.A.C.E. 

Our association has been an opportunity to engage and learn from each other. The college has adopted Newlands Basic School located in Portmore, St. Catherine and students and faculty visit annually.

Aboukir Basic School

We just heard this amazing news from one of our members and sponsor, Sharon Clayton. She has adopted the Aboukir Basic School.

“Our genealogy records indicate that my GGGG grandparents, William Webb and Jane Syms, (both born as slaves) were married in Aboukir in 1838. They were the parents of Rev. William Menzie Webb, founder of Trelawny's Westwood High School for Girls and Stewart Town's Baptist minister for 50 years”.

Read more about the use of solar power at the school in this article:

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Aboukir-Primary-goes-solar_49902

New Marketing Strategy

 Are you wondering why we have a new colour scheme for this newsletter? Is it just me, or do we have a new logo?

P.A.C.E. Canada has partnered with BrandEQ to promote our 30th Anniversary in 2017, as we prepare to launch a number of initiatives to celebrate this milestone. BrandEQ's wide marketing network and expertise, combined with the firm’s marked history of working with and supporting philanthropic causes, will make for a perfect fit for us. 

“Here at P.A.C.E. Canada our goal is to further education for young children both in Jamaica and Canada,” says President Sandra Whiting.  “We believe it is important that we get our message out to as many constituents and potential partners as possible.  BrandEQ has the professional pedigree to achieve that for us, and has demonstrated a commitment over the years to causes such as ours.  We know that they will bring a new dynamic to the organization, and help us to further our work moving forward.  We are pleased to announce BrandEQ as our marketing partner.  With planned growth, we need a partner to help us guide our strategic direction.”

Some of the initial deliverables of this partnership include a redesign of our logo; a new logo for the 30th anniversary; and a new colour scheme that will be included on our promotional material and social media platforms.

We have already updated the Facebook and Twitter accounts with this new branding, and launched our new Instagram account, @PACECanada.

Over the years we have collected a variety of “Objets d'art” from the students at the school we sponsor. You might have seen these on display at the Starwberry Social events in the past. These items are being photographed and will be used as part of our promotional merchandise during 2017. You will also see them on our social media postings, and some are included throughout this newsletter.

Finally, we are working with BrandEQ to redesign the content and navigation of the website. Some of you have told us that, for example, it is difficult to find membership and donation information on the site. So these are the  types of things we intend to fix with the next release.

As you can see, there are many exciting things planned for 2017 and we look forward to having more members volunteer to get involved in making these plans a reality.

Strawberry Social To Be Held On Sunday June 4, 2017

The 2017 Strawberry Social Committee is busy planning next year's event, in conjunction with our 30th Anniversary. Stay tuned for more exciting details.