|
The tragedy of the Victorian bush fires is heartbreaking. It's unbelievable that some 200 people have been killed, thousands of homes and businesses destroyed and hundreds of thousands of animals burnt alive or suffering slow deaths from burns, dehydration and loss of habitat.
|
This was one of many milestones this year, one of many reasons we in early childhood have to celebrate.
Some of the dead and injured are our families, friends and colleagues and the children in our schools and early childhood centres. The deaths and destruction have touched us all in some way or the other – some more personally than others.
Families, homes and lives have been destroyed; schools and early childhood centres have been obliterated. It is a tragedy of unimaginable proportions.
The early childhood community extends its deepest sympathy to all who have been affected by the fires–whether directly or indirectly.
Hopefully, there'll be bipartisan approach to the bushfire relief and reconstruction effort. As in other disasters, educators have an important role to play in reassuring children and supporting families. At the same time, as some of the dead and injured are our colleagues, friends and families, we too need to take time to grieve.
The long term issues relating to building codes, land clearing, residential planning and emergency response strategies will impact on all involved in managing schools and early childhood centres. Fortunately, perhaps, the fires struck on a weekend when schools and early childhood centres were empty, so our emergency response plans weren't needed. Maybe though, less lives would have been lost if parents were at work and children in schools. We will never know.
Speculation aside, it is timely to revise emergency and evacuation plans and fire alert procedures and be clear about processes for contacting families in emergency situations.
On the national early childhood front plans are well in train for universal preschool for all four year olds and stronger quality assurance procedures for early childhood centres. There have been increased enrolments in most courses preparing people to work in the early childhood sector, helped no doubt by VET course fee reductions and waivers, and also by the generally positive view of early childhood education and its value to the community.
Never has early childhood education been so much in the news. As Parliamentary Secretary for Early Childhood Maxine McKew said recently, 'We recognise that those Australians who pursue a career in child care and early childhood education play a critical role in the important early years of Australian children.'
Qualified early childhood educators play a key role in providing quality learning opportunities for young children. Initiatives to support more practitioners gain qualifications help ensure that all our children have the best possible start in life.
Other early childhood workforce strategy initiatives that are beginning to make a difference include an additional 1,500 university places for early childhood teachers and significant reductions in the HECS-HELP debts of early childhood teachers who choose to work in disadvantaged areas, regional and remote areas or Indigenous communities.
Continuing with the quality improvement theme introduced by guest writer Maxine McKew, this issue of Every Child highlights ways of improving and strengthening our learning and developmental programs for young children–in both a practical and a policy sense.
Articles by Judy Radich on children's behaviour, Alma Fleet on advocacy, Alison Evans on engaging communities, and Margie Maher on culturally relevant maths materials all support the idea that day to day actions have both short term impacts on practice as well as longer term impacts on overall program quality.
But improvements will only come by bringing everything together – quality educators make quality programs. They go hand in hand in optimising experiences and outcomes for young children wherever they are located. Clearly, the biggest quality challenges are in developing workforce capacities, because without a qualified and competent workforce there is little chance of improved outcomes for children. Strong foundations in the early years set the scene for later social and academic successes.
Alison Elliott
Editor
Every Child magazine
Every Child magazine – vol. 15 no. 1, 2009, p. 2
Don't forget, Every Child is tax deductible for early childhood professionals
You can purchase this issue of Every Child magazine now.
If you liked this article, you can 'social bookmark' it with others who might be searching for good content on early childhood. This means you can share your favourite webpages with others, or just keep an online list of your bookmarks so you can access them on any computer.
Read more about social bookmarks
|
|
