ECE Advocacy Midterm Flashcards
Advocating is easiest when it’s….
Something that is important to you personally, start with your own story.
Characteristics of an Effective Advocate
Confidence
Professionalism
Active Listening
Knowledge
Body language
Consistency of the message
Calm temper
Un-bias
Knowing when your message is being herd
Collaborative
Research skills
Presentation skills
To be able to take you self out of it to benefit others
Levels of Advocacy
Micro “Silent”
Mezzo “Small a”
Macro “big A”
Micro “silent”
Conducting oneself ethically and professionally in one’s day to day work.
Mezzo “small a”
Actively speaking up for children and families at the centre level
Macro “big A”
Actively seeking out opportunities to challenge the prevailing social-political order, impacts policy or legislative change
ECEs as childcare Advocates
Examining the Scope of Childcare Advocacy Carried Out By ECEs from the Perspective of Childcare Movement Actors in Ontario and Manitoba
Explains the idea that ECE is primarily engage on the micro and meso level and an analyst on why
It’s easier to advocate for something when your….
Passionate about it
Advocacy is more passionate and from the heart when …
it’s your own story
Less experience you have on the topic the less……
Impact it has
The key to advocate well is…
Education
Characteristics of an Effective Advocate
• Confidence
• Professionalism
• Active listening
• Knowledge
• Body language
• Consistency of the message
• Calm temper
• Un-bias
• Knowing when your message is being herd
• Collaborative
• Research skills
• Presentation skills
• To be able to take you self out of it to benefit others
Level of advocacy is determined by
Who the receiver is of the advocacy, who is impacted or your target audience and what you are advocating for
The continuum of Advocacy is…
with impacts from ourselves (self-advocacy)
to single individuals
to mass impact of many people
Examples of Micro “silent” advocacy
• talking to a professional / colleague about a specific topic within the field
• ensuring child and youth well being & resilience
• if you are working ethically, you are providing a quality program, impacting quality which is advocating
• it’s what you do every day
• individual impact
Examples of Mezzo “silent” advocacy
Mezzo - helping families navigate the subsidy system, securing additional services through CF, JMCC, etc, fundraising for the centre/program
• ensuring parent & family well-being
• program well-being, supportive work environment
• individual impact
Examples of Macro Advocacy
Macro- participating in / organizing rallies, writing to politicians possibly in coordination with an advocacy group like the AECEO - being a member, impacting federal policy, participate in building a federal child care program that is Canada wide
• attending city council meeting to garner support - dependent on what you are advocating for whether it’s Messe or macro
• speak to the value of the profession and fight for fair wages
• impacting the masses
ECEs primarily engage in ______ and _____ advocacy
Why?
Micro and Mezzo
• a lack of understanding or knowledge about larger system and policy issues;
• a lack of confidence on the part of ECEs;
• a lack of time to devote to the broader advocacy movement; and
•instability of the field, including the immediate work environment.
Professionalism is too often conceptualized as_______ _______ ______ rather than developing the professional autonomy to critically reflect on and discuss the larger political issues around the childcare system (Urban, 2010).
applying technical knowledge
______ _______also appeared to prevent ECEs from engaging in “big A” advocacy.
Simply put, the day-to-day work of an ECE is hectic.
Practical barriers
If ECEs were presented with flexible opportunities to meet and discuss their work in relation to the broader sector, it might …..
facilitate unity within this ever-fragmented sector
Advocacy is…
is building support for an issue among audiences such as the general public, elected officials, the media, and key opinion leaders.
Examples of General public
May include families, children, colleagues
Elected officials:
Municipally (Locally), provincially, federally
Media
Social media, Tv/. Radio broadcasting
Opinion leaders
Ministry of education, policy makers, advisors
“We believe that a ________ ____ ______ is a vital foundation for all who work with young children” (Teaching Advocacy in Early Years Initial Teacher Education, 2009)
commitment to advocacy
The purpose of early childhood advocacy is to……
is to improve the lives of children and families by influencing legislators’ and policymakers’ opinions and activities.
To carry out their responsibilities, public officials require and welcome the advice that well-informed people (like you) provide.
You are an advocate if you have ever:
• talked to someone about the benefit of child care services & how to access them helped a family receive additional services
• stood up for someone who was being treated unfairly
• participated in a city council meeting
Key Issues in our field that’s would warrant advocacy
• The High Costs of Child Care - affordable
•RECE wages
• Funding - partial funding - FS to move towards a more universally funded system which would increase accessibility
• Accessibility - there is not enough licensed child care to meet growing demands
• Language and cultural barriers for families
• Greater cultural competency training
Issues in our field (class list)
• Cost
•patchwork of programs
•human resource crisis
• lack of public policy
Following class discussion:
• Wages
• location size (number of spaces available)
• perceived student value when on placement / equitable mentorship for students / paid placement
• behavior policy / expectation for parents to respond / use of strategies
• family engagement
• accessibility of programs
• program support
• outdoor space / curriculum
• mental health support for RECEs
• Benefit coverage including counselling coverage / pension /RRSPs
• Prep time / curriculum development
Equity of roles within a Kindergarten program - RECE vs Teacher
• Cultural awareness - effort to increase in a meaningful way
General Advocacy topics
• Valued Profession - respect
• Quality work environments
• Quality care
• Inclusion - currently children with needs are being declined a space b/c the supply cannot keep up with the demand for space. Operators are offering space to full time only, not part time spaces,
What is the purpose of advocacy
Equity for all
Early Childhood Programs from a Social Justice Perspective
•All young children must have access to good-quality learning opportunities
•Equal opportunities for all children & must compensate for early disadvantages
•The early years are the most significant in shaping children’s futures, and adequate provisions for learning and development must be ensured
From a social justice stance, equality for all children
To ensure all voices are heard and all needs are met in an equitable fashion & to feed decision making
To protect and promote children’s rights
It is important for you to…… into advocacy
It is important for you to translate your knowledge and strong commitment into advocacy!
Public awareness supports a greater voice / greater # of people saying the same thing…….
This is somtimes more effective and allows people to share the workload
Advocacy = public awareness that….
highlights concerns within our field OR shares information / frames
the content / educates
What is the benefits of public awareness for children / families?
increased quality when families know what quality looks like
They learn of things to be looking for - they are not aware of
what to ask? - I always provided a list of questions that families can use when in search of child care.
families can be desperate for child care with_____ being secondary or not even on their radar.
quality
If families begin to know, the demand changes which changes the impact on the field.
Families need to know to ask about…
qualifications, ratios.
what the standards / requirements are so they can make more discerning decisions.
Complaints being publicly available supports…
Quality- more eyes/ discernment impacts better outcome overall.
To Educate….
A means to gather and then share information or data
SUPPORTS THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALLIANCES / NETWORK AND ALLOWS FOR COLLABORATION
Advocacy can also serve the purpose of being a means to….
gather information / data and then disseminate it
Make use of the legal or regulatory system to….
Impact or change policies
Examples of updating legislation/laws/requirements within a field
i.e. - providing input to the Child Care & Early Years Act when transitioning from Day Nurseries Act. In
2014
More recently, BILL C-35 An Act respecting early learning and child care in Canada
Types of advocates
• LEADERS
• ADVISORS
• RESEARCHERS
• CONTRIBUTORS
ISSUES IN OUR FIELD
•PATCHWORK OF PROGRAMS
• COST
• QUALITY
• HUMAN RESOURCES CRISIS
• LACK OF PUBLIC POLICY
What kinda advocate should you fit into if you abide my the code of ethics and work professionally daily
Contributors
1942 to 1946 WW2’s childcare movement
“the Dominion-Provincial Wartime Agreement allowed for subsidized day nursery care for mothers working in essential wartime industries”
(CBC Digital Archives, 1998)
“Considered ahead of their time by child care advocates, these wartime day nurseries boasted…..
organized play, regular outings and other features of what would soon be known as “early child education.”
• 1966 The Canaca Assistance Plan (CAP) was introduced to….
ameliorate or prevent poverty “war on poverty”
• Under CAP, the federal government began to_____ _____ _____ of childcare with provincial governments
share some costs
In 1970 a _____ _____ ______ was recommended by the royal commission on the status of woman
National Childcare System
…….. was Create in 1967, it’s mandate was to inquire into and report upon…..
The Status of Women in Canada….. The Status of Women in Canada
Activism timeline
-During…
-Between…
-19..The..
-19..The…
-19..The…
-
-During the 1980s, the availability of some federal money combined with the feminist movement put pressure on the government for child care
-Between 1984 and 1995, there were three significant attempts to develop a national approach
-1984, The Task Force on Child Care set up by the Trudeau government
-1986, The Special Committee on Child Care of the Mulroney government
-1990, The Red Book and the Common Sense Revolution
-2000 Onward, Steps to a National Childcare program
During the 1980s, the availability of some ______ _______combined with the feminist movement put pressure on the government for child care
federal money
Between 1984 and 1995, there were three significant attempts to develop a…..
national approach
1984,____ ______ ______ on Child Care set up by the Trudeau government
The Task Force
1986, _____ ______ _________ on Child Care of the Mulroney government
The Special Committee
The initiative based on Jean Chrétien’s 1993 ______ _______ _______ ________ - was started by a federal government.
Red Book election commitment
The Red Book promised to expand _____ _______ _______ dramatically.
regulated child care
____ _______ ______was the Liberal Party’s plan for Canada in the 1993 Election - to create 50,000 new child care spaces
The Red Book
Martha’s speech
“I have a long history of advocacy for high quality, universal child care. I started as a ________, I became a _____ and saw it from that perspective and then carried on as a______ ______ ______ and now I’m a _________ of two twins in municipal child care.”
researcher
parent
researcher and advocate
grandmother
Martha’s speech
“Fighting for a ______ _____ _____ ______ has been a roller coaster, we started off in the 1970s with “_______ ______ ______ ______” but over the years our ask became more detailed and more complex.”
universal child care system
“more daycare, better daycare”
Martha’s speech
“It started with Action Daycare which was a ______ _______ ______ in the 1970s and we called for …….
small activist group
…accessible, affordable, high quality, 24-hour, community-controlled day care.”
The legacy of Toronto’s grassroots child….
“It’s crucial to remember that the fight for better child care has always been about making a world in which………….. The ideologies and philosophies of child care advocacy continue to provide the framework of our actions, as they have always done” (Lisa Pasolli, 2021)
….Creating universal child care from the ground up
…children, women, and families are free to achieve their full potential….
Gibbs reflective Learning Cycle
Description > Feelings > Evaluation > Analysis > Conclusion > Action Plan>
Early Childhood Education Advocacy Organizations
Canadian Child Care Federation
Child Care Now
Canadian Association for Young Children (CAYC)
Families Canada
Childcare Resource and Research Unit
Association of Early Childhood Educators (AECEO)
Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care
Social media as an Advocacy tool
• Provides a large platform for networking
• Cost-effective
• Offers efficient resources to inform and collect support from parents, teachers, and the community
• Connects you with almost every lawmaker who uses social media
• Connects you with reporters who also use social media
Making an impact with your MPP
• You put a human face onto the issue of early learning and child care.
• MPPs in different regions often compare notes about constituency meetings to help them identify when there is widespread support or opposition across the province on different issues.
•If you ask an MPP a question that they don’t have the answer to, they’ll often ask the central party staff to research and prepare an answer.
In 2019, MPP meetings and a petition campaign with over 15,000 signatures helped secure the continuation of the……….. for over 30,000 ECEs and child care workers.
$2 per hour wage enhancement
Following the 2019 provincial budget, child care was facing……….. Members of the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care and allies sent thousands of messages to their MPPs, collected petitions, took part in a day of action and banded together with municipal leaders to…….
over $80 million in funding cuts
push back against the cuts
After a two-month campaign, cancelled the 2019 cuts. Cuts were…..,
put on hold for a year.
Bill C-35
An Act respecting early learning and childcare in Canada
SUMMARY
This enactment sets out the Government of Canada’s vision for a Canada-wide early learning and child care system. It also sets out the Government of Canada’s commitment to maintaining long-term funding relating to early learning and child care to be provided to the provinces and Indigenous peoples. Finally, it creates the National Advisory Council on Early Learning and Child Care.
