Keeping you up-to-date on early childhood... This month's first big ECA WebWatch begins with a brief overview of Early Childhood Australia's recent advocacy work. Also in this issue: Plus our usual overview of early childhood news, events and high-quality resources from Early Childhood Australia. Early Childhood Australia advocacy Highlights of our recent work include: The strong relationship with the LHMU on the Big Steps in Childcare campaign. The LHMU's Big Steps in Childcare campaign is based on a commitment to every child's fundamental right to care and education. The LHMU will continue to work with sector leaders and families until this right is realised. 'At our August 2007 National Council, the LHMU launched Principles for Quality Children's Services, placing every child's fundamental right to care and education at the centre of the union's work to reform Australian child care. 'Early Childhood Australia, Australia's leading advocate for social justice, equity and quality in the education and care of children from birth to eight, has been a key ally in determining the action needed to reform Australia's early childhood education and care services so that they deliver for children.' Big Steps in Childcare launch Early Childhood Australia's National President, Margaret Young spoke at the launch: 'International evidence shows that for young children in early childhood services stability of staff, high levels of staff qualification, good remuneration and sound career structures together are among the strong predictors of good outcomes for children. 'The steps towards improvements in qualification levels, remuneration and career structure in the union's proposal have the potential to be a great boost to staff stability in the sector – with related benefits for our young children.' Margaret's complete speech is available on the Early Childhood Australia website. ECA spoke at the following conferences: ECA met the Hon Maxine McKew, Parliamentary Secretary for Early Childhood Education and Child Care. Read Maxine McKew's latest speech, delivered at the 4th APEC Education Ministers Meeting in Lima, Peru. The speech provides an overview of the government's early childhood agenda. ECA membership ECA's work is dependent on the strength of our membership. If you are not already a member of Early Childhood Australia, join and be an advocate for young children. Members of Early Childhood Australia also receive discounted registration for our National Conference, 3–6 October 2008, in Canberra. Find out more on the ECA Conference website. ECA Conference awards ECA/McArthur Management Services Awards The Early Childhood Leadership Development Scholarship ($8000) supports the study of exemplary early childhood services or programs overseas or within Australia. The Early Childhood Student Encouragement Award ($3000) provides support and encouragement to younger members of the profession and promotes early childhood leadership and the profession. The deadline to submit your application is 4 July 2008. ECA preferred provider list Early Childhood Australia is developing a list of preferred providers. Its purpose is to enable us to quickly identify appropriately qualified people to undertake writing tasks for ECA which are not part of our regular publications program. Early Childhood Australia members interested in being on the list should download the selection criteria (PDF). Supporting friendships Peer interactions-friendships (Supporting Best Practice) Safety of children report Children's sense of safety: Children's experiences of childhood in contemporary Australia report (PDF) Quote of the month 'As a progressive, wealthy democracy, Australia should aim for so much more than just the basic minimum for our children.' Parents on leave survey Return to work questionnaire Supporting thinking Food for the brain Latest news Read the latest on Early Childhood Australia's news page. ABC Learning and child care in Australia The corporatization of child care in Australia: Not as easy as ABC (PDF) ECA events calendar Early Childhood Australia National Conference Hurry – Early Bird registration closes 31 July 2008! Australian Institute of Family Studies Conference A forum for debate on a wide range of family issues of relevance to researchers, policy makers and practitioners. It will provide a platform to report findings from family-related research, contribute to discussions and provide input on policy. National Aboriginal and Islander Children's Day A day to celebrate the importance and value of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people in families and communities. This year, the event will highlight the important role of families (and others) in providing a nurturing and responsive environment for children's welfare, development and learning. Visit Early Childhood Australia's online calendar – it's the easy way to keep track of important events, conferences and dates. Presentations from Growing Up in Australia Research Conference 2007 Longitudinal Study of Australian Children Research Conference Quality-assured books We understand that professional development is an important part of early childhood advocacy, and encourage all educators and carers to invest in their growth as professionals by using Early Childhood Australia's high-quality resources – all publications in our online book catalogue are quality-assured by early childhood experts. Getting on with others: How to teach your child essential social skills supports parents and carers in assisting children to develop assertiveness, reduce their anxiety and handle situations involving conflict – essential building blocks of children's development. There's more to food than eating: Food foundation for children birth to eight years is an indispensable source of practical food learning experiences for young children, as well as essential information about nutrition. Help us expand the ECA WebWatch community Early Childhood Australia's strength is determined by the strength of its members and supporters. It is only through your support that we can advocate for and on behalf of the sector. As a reader of ECA WebWatch you can make a big difference to the sector. By forwarding this newsletter to colleagues and inviting them to subscribe, you extend our advocacy chain – increasing our ability to communicate and work with the sector. Let us know what you think ... Past issues of ECA WebWatch are available on the Early Childhood Australia website. Subscribing (Please remember to add webwatch@earlychildhood.org.au to your safe senders list to ensure that you receive your copy of ECA WebWatch promptly.) ECA WebWatch - Issue 55, July 2008. © Early Childhood Australia. 
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—Big Steps in childcare: Education and care for the 21st century (PDF)
LHMU's Big Steps in Childcare campaign was launched on 20 June 2008 by Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
The deadline for the Early Childhood Australia/McArthur Management Services Awards is almost up! These awards are unique opportunities to support your growth as an early childhood professional.
In this new updated section of ECA's popular Supporting Best Practice web directory you'll find six helpful links that explore the diversity of children's friendships and suggest ways to support them.
Drawing on the responses of 600 children, the findings of this research suggested that although the vast majority of children surveyed believe Australia is a good place to grow up in, many of them have an undercurrent of worry and concern for their own safety and the protection of other children.
—Louise Tarrant, National Secretary of the LHMU at the launch of the BIG STEPS in Childcare campaign.
A researcher at the University of New South Wales is calling for parents who are currently on leave or have left work to care for their own children, to participate in a 20-minute online survey in order to facilitate a better understanding of what organisations can do to assist parents when they decide to return to work. Questionnaire participants will go into a prize draw.
Variety in a child's diet is an important factor for their health. Food choices not only influence a child's weight, they also have an impact on brain function. Recent studies have shown specific nutrients to have an effect on cognition, learning and memory, and may also be beneficial in treating childhood behaviour disorders.
ECA WebWatch readers may remember a news item on ABC Learning featured in issue 47, earlier this year. The news item looked at Professor Deborah Brennan's recommendations on how governments might increase the affordability of high-quality care, in light of the uncertainty about ABC Learning's future. This new document, also by Deborah, provides an overview of ABC Learning's Australia-wide influence on child care.
Children: A nation's capital – Investing in our children
3–6 October 2008
National Convention Centre, Canberra
Families through life
9–11 July 2008
Melbourne Exhibition Centre
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Families – Nurturing our children to flourish
4 August 2008
Across Australia
A number of the presentations from the inaugural Growing Up in Australia research conference, held in December 2007, are now available to download from the Growing Up in Australia website. They are important reading for all educators and carers.
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ECA WebWatch – Issue 55, July 2008
Early Childhood Australia's ECA WebWatch
Last updated: (May 16, 2013 at 11:50 am)
