early childhood sector - Australian Education Union, Victorian Branch

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Making a meal of itNew funding criteria, the Children’s Services Act and ournew agreements all have implications for timetabling mealbreaks in 2011.Shayne Quinn vice president, early childhoodWITH planning well underway for the 2011preschool year, our conversations withmembers about options for delivering the longerprogram time have increased.In all this, we have to consider not only the policydecision to increase child attendance time, but alsothe provisions of our new agreements, VECTAA andLGECEEA, and the Children’s Services Act.The Victorian Kindergarten Policy, Proceduresand Funding Criteria 2010–2012 states that inorder to be eligible for preschool funding:The qualified staff members who plan anddeliver the kindergarten program to each eligiblechild at each children’s service from which theprogram is offered must hold an approved earlychildhood teaching qualification.It also states that:From January 2011, the service provider mustoffer a minimum of 10 hours and 45 minutesper week.DEECD recently confirmed that when timetablingthe attendance of children (ie, establishing session/attendance period times) compliance with thefunding criteria requires that any period of childattendance time/program delivery must be staffedby a qualified early childhood teacher.This means the qualified teacher’s meal breakShare your great ideas!THE 2011 AEU early yearsconference will include a forum forteachers to share some innovativeaspect of their practice or thefindings of recently undertakenresearch.If you have an interestingidea to share or research you’dlike others to know about, pleasecontact Max at TLN on(03) 9418 4993 or mgrarock@tln.org.au.Presentations should be nolonger than 20 minutes. Thoseselected will be given free, fullregistration for the conference. ◆will not count toward the 10 hours and 45 minutesrequired by the funding criteria if they arereplaced by:• A qualified staff member who is not a qualifiedteacher, or• An unqualified staff member (in accordancewith the Ministerial exemption).The same applies where wraparound care isdelivered by a diploma-qualified staff memberbefore or after the session.If your timetable relies on a teacher taking abreak from the group, unless replaced by a qualifiedteacher, the child attendance time may need to beextended by the length of the teacher’s break.The “must do” list in our August Newsletterurged you to check the proposed timetable againstthe requirements of your new agreement —particularly those covering hours and breaks.Some employers have been attracted to theoption in the agreements which provides that“where an assistant may be required to supervisechildren during a meal break, such a meal breakshall be of 45 minutes duration and shall becounted as time worked and paid at ordinary rates”(clause 49 of VECTAA and 37 of LGECEEA).The attraction for them is obvious — there is noneed to bring in other staff to cover for the assistant’smeal break.However, some significant questions arise. WhatCERT III IN CHILDREN’S SERVICESFor those already working inkindergartenswould be the nature of the assistant’s supervision?What would be the impact on the program of avariance in the nature of the assistant’s supervisionin this time? How would staff and children respondto this? Would the changes to program, practiceand expectations (of children, families and staff) bepossible or acceptable?Furthermore, would the nature of supervisionmeet the requirements of the Children’s ServicesAct for children to be “adequately supervised”?Neither the Act nor the regulations defineadequate supervision. However DEECD PracticeNote 12 “Supervision” (May 2010) makes anumber of points which suggest that application ofthis provision is in practice impracticable. We havediscussed this with KPV, who have similar reservationsto ours.We have raised this with DEECD and await aresponse to our question of how, in the department’sview (as the licensing and regulatoryauthority), supervision of children during a staffmember’s meal break would sit with the requirementsof the Act for “adequate supervision”.We will advise members as soon as we receivea response. In the meantime, if your employer iscontemplating this approach, members should raisethe issues canvassed in this article and suggestthey discuss the proposal with KPV if the employeris a member. ◆TLN in partnership with Victoria University will offer a Certificate III inChildren’s Services in 2011, designed specifically for those alreadyemployed in kindergartens.The program will:• Recognise prior learning, ensuring knowledge you already have iscredited• Offer alternate methods for completing the 0–3 component — achildcare placement is not compulsory• Deliver most coursework via video stream over the internet• Give you access to full VU student support (including libraryaccess).An information session will be held at the AEU building in South Melbourne onNovember 19 at 2pm. To register, or for more information, contact Max at TLN on(03) 9418 4993 or mgrarock@tln.org.au. ◆2 Early Childhood newsletter | november 2010
Teachers are doing it for themselvesA new group is providing professional and personal support to preschool teachers in thenorthern suburbs. Preschool field officers Jenny Scammell, Maria Egzelos,Kylie Mack and teacher Jo Greaves explain how it came to be.L-R Julie Lees (Whittlesea Preschool), Jo Barker (Eltham Preschool), Dr Glen Hosking (The Cairnmillar Institute), Jo Greaves(Kangaroo Ground Preschool), Carol Doran (Yallambie Preschool) and Wil Coles (Greenhills Preschool).THE 2009 bushfires provided the final nudgefor a trio of preschool field officers to set upa dedicated support group for early childhoodteachers.Jenny Scammell, Maria Egzelos and Kylie Mack,who work for Broadmeadows UnitingCare in theWhittlesea, Banyule and Nillumbik area, had oftenconsidered such a move, inspired by the supportthey received from their own fortnightly groupmeetings.“The 2009 bushfires and the impact uponkindergartens, staff and families in our regionprovided us with the impetus to further investigateand establish an early childhood teacher supportgroup,” says Jenny.Jo Greaves of Kangaroo Ground Preschool,one of those who attends the new group, says:“The professional life of a preschool teacher isoften quite a solitary one, so this group provides avaluable setting for us to share some of the issueswe all face on a day-to-day basis in a supportiveenvironment.”The group aims to encourage participants to:• Consider the difficulties and additional needsof children in the preschool years• Explore parent and family issues that impacton family life and their child’s development• Consider the stresses and tensions that affectchildren’s services staff• Reflect on their own professional identity andtheir own aspirations and stresses in theworkplace• Realise how such a group can be a vitalsupport and a medium in which to exploredifferent perspectives in situations that areregularly faced in our professional roles.Maria says: “In the aftermath of the bushfireswe approached St Michael’s Uniting Church throughthe Cairnmillar Institute to facilitate a teachersupport group for early childhood teachers workingthroughout the Northern region who had beenimpacted by this event.”The church, in conjunction with the institute,funded the group on a fortnightly basis throughout2009, facilitated by experienced psychologist DrGlen Hosking, who works with children and familiesat Cairnmillar.It was Cairnmillar co-founder and psychotherapistDr Francis McNab who had facilitated thePSFOs’ own fortnightly professional and supervisionkindergarten field officer group that Jenny, MariaThis is a good example ofthe vision, commitment andcapacities of early childhoodstaff to support one another.We would like to hear fromother AEU members aboutthe ways in which they aresupporting one another todeal with day-to-day issuesand the changes, challengesand promise of the early yearsagenda.Contact Shayne Quinn on(03) 9417 2822 or emailshayne.quinn@aeuvic.asn.au.and Kylie had found so valuable.Early in 2010, Broadmeadows Uniting Care alsoacknowledged this need and supported the PSFOs’advocacy to DEECD for funds to continue to employDr Hosking to facilitate the group.Diamond Valley and Eltham KindergartenTeachers Association, together with WhittleseaKindergarten Teachers Association, have alsoprovided funding for the group to continue.The group meets every three weeks on a Fridayafternoon at a local venue, and all preschoolteachers in the Whittlesea, Banyule and Nillumbikareas are welcome to attend.“The group varies from 3 or 4 participants toup to 10 and a strong sense of camaraderie hasdeveloped in the group, as we support each otherand offer our own experiences and advice to thediscussions,” Jo says.“Dr Glen contributes a professional viewpoint,often encouraging us to address issues in a way wehad not previously considered, and his wisdom isvery much appreciated and valued.“The group has helped many of us work throughan issue that we have found difficult to deal witheffectively in the workplace, by offering strategiesor solutions, and Dr Glen has equipped us with skillsand a fresh outlook to enhance our own wellbeing,and to manage our work/home life balance.“It has provided an invaluable opportunity toestablish new friendships, form local networks,share information and skills with other professionalsin our local area and offer encouragementand camaraderie to each other, as we continue toprovide quality early childhood education to thechildren and families attending our preschools.” ◆www.aeuvic.asn.au 3
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