Annual Learning is Growing Conference

Learning is Growing Conference is held annually each Fall in Stratford

This year's theme for the conference is FUNdamentals. Participants were invited to come and explore our “inner child” and reflect upon the FUNdamentals in teaching children. To reflect on what attitudes we hold about the value of fun, why is fun necessary, and how does having fun impact learning?

Key note speaker was Marc Battle who spoke to us about reflecting on why childcare programs seem to place so much focus on 'measurable' indicators of success such as checklists for the ability to recite the ABC, 123 and matching of colours. That despite years and years of existances childcare programs today seem to be more mediocre than ever before and places of stress and discomfort for both children and staff.  To reflect on the reality that we seem to see the lack of value in the most important part of child development and why we chose to enter the field in the first place - our desire to have fun with children and to support the healthy development of the whole child in regards to self while instilling a sense of a joy of learning and having FUN in their early years!

My morning workshop a Beginner's Mind: Finding Fun and Zen

The workshop was a reflection on the 'rules' we have in childcare and how sometimes they distract from the overall purpose of our role as educators which is to ensure that children have fun in their early learning journey because when we enjoy ourselves while learning we are more likely to retain the knowledge! We need to constantly reflect on 'rules' as our practice evolves and changes and ensure that our rules evolve along with our increasing knowledge of how children learn and what they need in order to truly thrive. 

We started the workshop getting silly and having fun with some music.

 We than delved into memories of our own childhood and play and what use to be 'typical' in our play.

 Marc shared a story around the benefit of 'risky play' and allowing children opportunities to play in risky spaces.

 Expanding more on the role of 'fun' in learning ...

 What we know know about the 'brain' and the role of fun.

 

 Defining fun.

We looked at the history of early learning programs from way back to now and reflected on how little so many things have changed despite how much more we know about brain development and how children learn!

 Marc shared a story about how sometimes we need to push back around some of the 'rules' because children do not need to spend their days all day everyday in the 'institutionalization' that photos like these represent .... they need to be free to move and to be close and to interact with each other. One of the things he use to do in his program with preschoolers is instead of using the cots that were spaced so many feet apart at quiet time he would allow the children to grab their blanket and pillows and come to the carpet area. To lay down and snuggle up and he would read to them and they would fall asleep in a little 'fox huddle' of warmth and comfort soothed to sleep by the sound of a loving adult reading ... it created a sense of connection in the group and the children often slept longer than on the days they were kept separated as the 'rules' required. For Marc in his practice the benefits of this little 'huddle' in the quiet room far outweighed any concerns over head lice or germs or whatever rationale is around the rules of having so many feet between resting children as they lay perfectly still on cots lined up around a room.

 We talked about how children 'learn' and the joy and excitement that comes with having a 'beginners mind' when looking at the world around us.

 We reflected on the 'rules' around gun play in the early years as Marc shared his story of a project he engaged with with school age children around their desire for gun play in the childcare setting.

I will admit that while the documentation of the learning and collaboration that unfolded when they embraced children's interest in gun play I still REALLY struggle with allowing this in the preschool age groups when the children do not have the same level of understanding between fantasy play and real life. When we live in a culture with so many accidental shootings by children who pick up a real gun and play with it and end up harming or killing someone. Guns are not 'toys' they are tools that are used to hunt or hurt and I struggle with wanting to embrace such tools in an early learning program when we have no need to 'hunt or hurt' it just seems like there is no place for guns in education setting that is not a extra curricular firing range or other venue around hunting. I understand that children need a chance to explore concepts of good and bad and gun play can be an avenue for that however I feel that there are other ways to explore these concepts while still standing by the value that guns are not toys, they are not something we play with and we do not need to encourage young children to do this it just does not feel developmentally appropriate in the preschool years.


My afternoon workshop Waterfalls in your Playground 

This workshop was AWESOME ... a very hands on opportunity to explore how easy it can be to create moving water walls with children that they can create using simple everyday items in a way that the water wheel can be constructed and reconstructed with ease. 

Have an amazing day

Margaret

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much

Be Totallyawake4-life

Why do ECE engage in Continued Professional Learning?

 

Read more on CPL  here

Reading lots of comments in groups on FB lately that seem to imply that many believe that the College had choice in the current reality of the CPL mandate for members - the reality is that in 2007 the Liberal government made it LAW for the College to be developed in order to be a stepping stone for the implementation of Full Day Kindergarten and having ECE working along side Teachers in the school board. Part of that law included them ensuring members engaged in ongoing professional learning.

For almost a decade the College felt that doing that on on voluntary basis was enough to meet their mandate. 

In 2016 the Liberal government changed it from a blanket 'members must engage in continued professional development with a voluntary process for documenting that to it being LEGALLY REQUIRED for the College to ensure we are all engaging in CPL and that the college has a measurable manner in which to ensure that members are accountable to the pubic that it is being done. The program we have now and all the mandated steps of it are laid out in the regulations by the government - it is no longer just a College policy but LAW that we engage in this process! 

And members should be aware if you are clicking YES in your renewal box and than are sharing on public social media in groups like this that you are actually NOT doing you CPL and refuse to and what not than sadly you are admitting publicly to not only in violation of the Code of Conduct for ECE but you are admitting to breaking the law and with that submission of your renewal form you are basically committing fraud by way of lying on a legal document. 

This is the Internet and sadly there is nothing to prevent employees of the College from being one of the 9,000 plus members of this particular group. Employees of the College who may be reading your public declarations of defiance to both the Code of Conduct and the Law. So many members of this group seem to believe that the College is a power tripping money grab out to get them and if that is true reality is there is nothing to prevent them from using that public declaration to figure out what name you are registered under with the College and AUDIT every member who is claiming not participate - and even if you submit on time than you are in the difficult position of having to explain to the College disciplinary panel why you were lying to other professionals about ones CPL conduct ... which is a catch 22 in regards to professional misconduct
 
Attaching the link to the law so no one feels they need to just take my word for it being legally binding requirement to participate in the CPL. https://www.ontario.ca/laws/regulation/150359

Also wanted to add because I am sure people will comment with the 'but teachers do not have to do this' .... my guess is that the challenge with a voluntary process that the College initially had as a policy is that it is hard to show accountability to the public and government
 that as ECE we are engaging in it. Reality is that unlike teachers, who are also required to engage in continual professional learning to be members of their College, most RECE are not public employees with one employer mandate in regards to professional development that is also inline with the OCT.
We need to STOP comparing ourselves to TEACHERS because while we do similar roles we are uniquely different in so many ways! The biggest one being this one that they are public servants with one collective employer - The Ministry of Education and the division of the School Board and most RECE are NOT!

RECE are employed in a wide range of settings with a wide range of employers all who have very different supports in place for professional development and different funding models - so my guess is that our CPL is unique in that the College needed a process were they would be able to tell the public that YES all RECE regardless of where they are employed are engaging in CPL so here is the process they ALL undergo to document their CPL and than members are randomly audited to ensure they are doing it and disciplinary processes in place for those who are not engaging in the process.

Personally I think the College has great potential to improve the quality of work environment for early childhood educators, raising the bar and standards of our profession and therefore better serving the public. 

I have engaged in continuous professional learning for my entire 30 year career in one manner or another and I actually love the idea that with the development of the College we now how a process that ALL RECE can engage in that has the same standard process while also allowing it to be flexible to each educators journey.

Change is hard. It brings fear of the unknown for many but change can also be GOOD for us. Without change there would be no butterflies! 

Have an amazing day

Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Be Totallyawake4-life