Birth to Five: What’s the Big Deal? Steps to Quality May 4, 2013

Birth to Five:What’s the Big Deal?

Steps to QualityMay 4, 2013

Virginia Star Quality Initiative

• The Virginia Star Quality Initiative is Virginia’s Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS). A QRIS is a method used nationally to assess, improve and communicate the level of quality of early care and education programs.

• Star Quality is voluntary.

• It was developed to provide a consistent method to distinguish and improve the quality in early care and education programs, empowering families to make informed choices about the care of their young children.

• In addition, Star Quality provides opportunities and incentives for early learning providers to continually improve the quality of their services.

National QRIS Status

Virginia Star Quality Initiative

Helping families identify high quality child care and preschool options for their young children

Assisting child care and preschool programs in providing high quality early care and education and

recognizing them for the services they provide

The Star Quality Initiative was designed with two primary purposes:

Partnerships

VDSS OFFICE OF EARLY

CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

Virginia Early Childhood Foundation

TheHub

• VDSS/OECD and VECF work in partnership to serve as the Hub and coordinate state-level activities

• VDSS contracts with 8 Regional Lead agencies to implement QRIS

• Local early childhood coalitions or organizations work with these regional leads and the Hub to recruit programs and coordinate activities locally

Eligible Participants• Private licensed child day centers (for-profit and non-profit)

• Religious-exempt child day centers

• Public programs, like the Virginia Preschool Initiative and Head Start

• Licensed Family Day Homes & Family Day Homes Regulated by Local Ordinance

Why Quality Matters

• Birth-five: Critical time for growth and development

• 75% of our brain develops after birth, most of which occurs in the first five years of life

• Early experiences are most critical in a child’s brain development

Source: http://www.ala.org/alsc/issuesadv/borntoread/resources

Brain Connections

What’s the Big Deal?

• 1 in 7 children in Virginia is not ready to enter school

• 9,000 children repeat a grade between kindergarten and 3rd grade, costing Virginians $80 million each year

• Of 50 children who have trouble reading in 1st grade, 44 will still have trouble in 4th grade.

• Only 7 out of 10 9th graders today will earn a high school diploma.

• Only 27% of the American adult population has earned a college degree.

Change the First 5 Years and You Change Everything

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbSp88PBe9E




How Can You Make Difference?

• Early high quality care means that children are engaging in meaningful learning and play, guided by qualified caregivers in an enriched educational environment.

• Children’s interactions with adults are important!

• Children with access to high quality child care programs are more likely to acquire the skills they need to enter kindergarten ready to succeed and adapt to new learning and social environments.

Star Quality

• Participating programs can demonstrate their quality at 5 different levels across 4 nationally recognized standards of quality

• Consistent method of documentation review is required at all levels; to reach the highest levels an on-site observation by a reliable and highly trained Star Quality Rater is required

• Each quality level includes improvement activities that build the foundation for success in the next level with FREE supports tailored to fit your program’s needs, like:

Online professional development series

Group Trainings and Learning Communities

Peer-to-Peer to Mentoring

On-site Coaching from highly trained specialists

Star Quality Standards

For Classroom-Based Programs and Family Child Care Homes: Education & Qualifications, and Training (assessed by documentation) Curriculum & Assessment (assessed by documentation & observation) Learning Environment (assessed by observation using ERS) Interactions (assessed by observation using CLASS)

Requirements Specific quality standards that must be met to achieve a particular Level within the Star Quality Initiative. Requirements define the quality Levels.

Activities Specific quality improvement activities that must be completed to progress to the next Level within the Star Quality Initiative. Activities build the foundation for success in subsequent Levels.

Assessment Instruments

Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS)

Environment Rating Scales (ERS)

For more info, go to: www.teachstone.com

For more info, go to: www.ersi.info

http://www.teachstone.com/

http://www.ersi.info/

LEVEL 1: Basic Health & Safety

Requirements: Early learning programs must be in good standing with all requirements of their regulating authority. “In good standing” indicates that while there may be noncompliance with one or more standards that represent a minor or minimal risk or violation, compliance clearly and obviously exists with the standards as a whole.

SAMPLE

LEVEL 2: Education & Qualifications

RequirementsEarly learning programs must meet all Level 1 requirements, register in the QRIS online system/Professional Development Registry, and complete a Health & Safety checklist.

Classroom or Center-based Programs At least one (1) Administrator/Director meets Level 6 on Virginia’s Early Childhood

Career Lattice1 OR has earned 24 child-related credits from an accredited college At least 50% of Lead Teachers meet Level 3 on Virginia’s Early Childhood Career

Lattice2 OR another approved credential, such as an American Montessori Society Credential

Family Child Care Homes The Family Child Care Provider responsible for the direct supervision of children and

delivery of the curriculum and instruction meets Level 3 on Virginia’s Early Childhood Career Lattice2 OR another approved credential, such as an American Montessori Society Credential

Alternative pathways are available at Level 2

1Associate degree in a relevant field with a minimum of 15 child-related credits 2National Child Development Associate Credential (CDA) OR 12 total child-related credits


Alternative PathwaysThere are two alternative pathways at Level 2 that programs may choose to use if they do not meet the requirements.

Professional Development Plan Submit a professional development plan via the QRIS website detailing how the

programs plans to support staff in reaching the education & qualification requirements

Online training is available on developing professional development plans and programs can request additional technical assistance from their local coordinator

Waiver Request a waiver to the education & qualification requirements To be granted a waiver, a program must meet all requirements of Level 3 and have

an on-site observation conducted where they demonstrate that they also meet the Level 4 or 5 requirements

Programs that have an on-site observation, but do not meet the Level 4 or 5 requirements will not be granted a waiver


Activities

Classroom or Center-based Programs and Family Child Care Homes Complete Star Quality Professional Development, available through the QRIS online system

or through the QRIS region, on:o Inclusiono Kindergarten transitiono Strengthening Familieso Cultural Competenceo Curriculum and Assessment using Virginia’s Milestones for Child Development and

Foundation Blocks for Early Learningo High Quality Interactions using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) o Play-Based Learning Environments using the Environment Rating Scales (ERS)o Creating Professional Development Plans (required for Administrators/Directors and

Family Child Care Providers who employ staff)o Conducting Employee Orientation (required for Administrators/Directors and Family

Child Care providers who employ staff)

LEVEL 3: Curriculum & Assessment

Requirements

Classroom or Center-based Programs and Family Child Care Homes

• Completion of curriculum & assessment checklist through the online QRIS

system, to demonstrate selection and use of curriculum or other teaching

framework aligned with Virginia’s Milestones of Child Development and/or

Foundation Blocks for Early Learning1

• Documentation of at least 8 hours of training on implementing the

identified curriculum or teaching framework

• Visit by an external validator to confirm accuracy of curriculum &

assessment checklist through on-site observation (must be completed

within 1 year of awarding Level 3 status)

1Alignment with the Foundation Blocks for Early Learning is required for all Virginia Preschool Initiative classrooms

Activities


• Participate in regional/locally supported activities on Curriculum & Assessment, ERS, and CLASS

• Complete Environment Rating Scale (ERS) self-study using the appropriate tool for the ages served and setting

• Complete Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) self-study using the appropriate tool for ages served or participate in the Effective Classroom Interactions online course, if offered

• Develop a quality improvement plan (QIP) based on the ERS and CLASS self-study (programs that have received an on-site observation using CLASS/ERS should develop a QIP using this feedback)

LEVEL 3: Curriculum & Assessment

LEVEL 4: Environment & Interactions

Requirements


• Achieve an average ERS score of 4 or higher across four subscales

(Language-Reasoning/Listening and Talking, Activities, Interaction, and

Program Structure)

• Achieve an average CLASS score of 5 or higher in Emotional Support &

Classroom Organization (Pre-K CLASS), Emotional and Behavioral

Support (Toddler CLASS), and Relational Climate & Teacher Sensitivity

(Infant CLASS)

• Achieve an average CLASS score of 3.25 or higher in Instructional

Support (Pre-K CLASS), Engaged Support for Learning Score (Toddler

CLASS), and Facilitated Exploration & Early Language Support (Infant

CLASS)


Activities


• Participate in regional/locally supported activities on CLASS and ERS

• Develop a quality improvement plan based on feedback from the CLASS and ERS observation


Requirements


• Achieve an average ERS score of 5 or higher across four subscales

(Language-Reasoning/Listening and Talking, Activities, Interaction, and

Program Structure)

• Achieve an average CLASS score of 6 or higher in Emotional Support

& Classroom Organization (Pre-K CLASS), Emotional and Behavioral

Support (Toddler CLASS), and Relational Climate & Teacher Sensitivity

(Infant CLASS)

• Achieve an average CLASS score of 4.25 or higher in Instructional

Support (Pre-K CLASS), Engaged Support for Learning Score (Toddler

CLASS), and Facilitated Exploration & Early Language Support (Infant

CLASS)


Activities


• Participate in regional/locally supported activities on CLASS and ERS

• Develop a quality improvement plan based on feedback from the CLASS and ERS observation

Importance of Interactions• Both CLASS and ERS scores determine whether programs reach

Level 4 or 5. However, the primary focus in these levels is the program's performance on the CLASS, due to the strong link between high quality teacher-child and peer interactions and the development of children's "executive function" skills

• Executive function skills are more strongly related to school readiness than IQ or entry-level reading and math skills (Diamond, Barnett, Thomas & Munro, 2007)

• Children with greater executive function skills:

– Perform better on early math and reading measures (Blair & Razza, 2007)

– Have better social emotional outcomes

(McClelland, Cameron, Wanless, & Murray, 2007)

– Develop critical skills such as teamwork, decision-making, working toward goals, and critical thinking (Harvard CDC, 2011)

Quality Assessment TimeframesLevel Timeframe Data Required

Level 1 Annually • Demonstration of good standing with regulatory authority

Level 2 Annually • Demonstration of Level 1 requirements• Update Staff Education & Qualification data online

Level 3 Annually • Demonstration of Level 1 & 2 requirements• Update Curriculum & Assessment data online• Curriculum & Assessment checklist visit

Level 4 Annually

Every 3 years

• Demonstration of Level 1-3 requirements

• CLASS & ERS on-site observation by a Star Quality Rater

Level 5 Annually

Every 3 years

• Demonstration of Level 1-3 requirements

• CLASS & ERS on-site observation by a Star Quality Rater

“They’re not here to grade us, they’re here to help us.”

Resources

Websites:

http://smartbeginnings.org/

(insert local website info)

For more information contact the Star Quality Hub:•VDSS/OECD – [email protected] •VECF – [email protected]

(insert Star Quality Coordinator contact info)



mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Documents

Birth to Five: What’s the Big Deal? Steps to Quality May 4, 2013