	Early Childhood Education

Introduction

Administration and Management

Service Delivery Administration Standards

Service Standards

PA-ECE 3: Parental Involvement and Support

Parents are active participants and partners and receive the support and information needed to promote healthy child development.

Research Note: The research on early childhood education demonstrates that teacher-family partnerships are a key indicator of quality and a strong predictor of positive developmental outcomes. Quality programs view parents as the child’s primary caregiver with a critical role in the child’s healthy development; tailor the program to meet families’ emerging needs to the greatest extent possible; encourage maximum family involvement; and support, educate, and empower families.

PA-ECE 3.01

Parents have access to daily schedules and other classroom information.

Interpretation: The agency may use classroom bulletin boards, newsletters, a webpage, or email to provide parents with consistent access to classroom information. Information on daily routines should include the menu if meals are provided.

PA-ECE 3.02

Parents are encouraged to be actively involved in the program.

Interpretation: Active involvement in the program can include participation in classroom activities as an aid or volunteer, parent education meetings, parent advisory boards, regular parent meetings, or sitting on the agency’s governing body. Having an open-door policy is one effective method for encouraging parents to visit the program, meet with their child’s teacher, and participate in daily activities or special events.

PA-ECE 3.03

Parents are helped to understand and be actively involved in their child’s development and education through:

participation in decisions affecting their child;
daily updates and two-way communication of information;
parent-teacher conferences that are held biannually, or more often as needed, given the child’s progress;
assistance with recognizing developmental, health, or behavioral issues that may require additional services or support; and
visits to the program.

Interpretation: Teaching staff should have a system for documenting daily events, accomplishments, or concerns to share with parents.

Interpretation: Parents should be encouraged to share information on the child’s behavior and development at home to ensure assessments are comprehensive and reflective of both the home and classroom environment. See PA-ECE 7.03 and PA-ECE 7.04 for more information on involving parents in assessments.

Interpretation: Health resources can include hearing and vision screenings, resources for immunizations and well-baby check-ups, and the state and local health department.

Research Note: The early detection of vision and hearing deficits is critical to limiting any developmental delays that could result.

PA-ECE 3.04

Teaching staff discuss cultural values and beliefs with parents and:

adjust caregiving practices, daily routines, and classroom activities as appropriate; and
approach differing points of view respectfully and in an empathetic manner.

Interpretation: Providing culturally responsive care that reflects the care provided at home can be comforting to the child. Daily routines that may be adjusted based on a family’s belief system include potty training, feeding, and napping. However, not all cultural practices should be supported in the classroom as they may cause harm to children or contradict developmentally-appropriate practice. Teaching staff should discuss with their supervisors how parental preferences can be appropriately incorporated into the child care setting.

Research Note: A study that reviewed cultural conflicts between teaching staff and parents found that conflicts tended to fall into three categories: (1) daily childrearing practices such as feeding, gender roles, sleeping techniques, and discipline; (2) specific cultural customs such as the celebration of holidays, ceremonial clothing, and hygiene; and (3) biases or preferences toward specific cultural groups such as parents’ preferences for same-race teaching staff or the use of their native language in the classroom.

PA-ECE 3.05

Information is available to help parents cope with child-rearing responsibilities.

Interpretation: Information should address the needs and interests of parents and can include topics such as:

child development;
child health issues;
transition to school; and
nutrition.

Information can be provided through:

pamphlets;
brochures;
relevant publications;
newsletter;
bulletin boards;
seminars;
parent support groups;
referrals to outside providers; or
other programs or media appropriate to the size of the service.

PA-ECE 3.06

The agency is flexible and responsive to the changing needs and unique circumstances of families served.

Interpretation: Changing needs or unique circumstances can include job loss, military deployment, the birth of a sibling, a death in the family, family violence, or divorce.

Examples of how an agency can demonstrate flexibility and responsiveness include:

adjusting operating hours to accommodate changing work schedules;
providing flexible care on an hourly or daily basis to facilitate job searches;
referring families to local resources; and
incorporating activities into the daily schedule to help children cope with stressors.

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	PURPOSE: Early Childhood Education facilitates appropriate child development and ensures the health and safety of children in care.

RELATED FILES


	PARENTS Parents can include: birth, foster, kinship, and adoptive parents. Please see service standards for more specific information about use of this term.


	RESEARCH For purposes of COA accreditation, all forms of internal or external research involving persons served except internal program evaluation and outcomes research, or educational projects performed by students and interns that are part of their professional training.


	FAMILY Two or more people who consider themselves family and who assume obligations, functions, and responsibilities generally essential to healthy family life. Child care and child socialization, income support, long-term care, and other caregiving are among the functions of family life. The definition of "family" will rest with an individual's indication of who plays a family member role, including current or former foster family, adoptive family, extended family members, fictive kin, or significant others. Organizations that believe family is the central constellation in a child's life, and that family attachments are of primary importance for human development, will strive to work with professional staff to develop a common understanding of "family."


	INDICATOR A described activity, event, outcome, or benchmark used for measurement in monitoring the quality and outcome(s) of service.


	QUALITY In this context, the extent to which contemporary and generally recognized standards for professional practice are met and exceeded, and desirable service outcomes achieved.


	PROGRAM A system of services offered by an organization. For example, an organization providing a mental health service may offer several mental health programs to different populations, e.g., a mental health program for adolescent teens. The word "program" can be used interchangeably with the word "service" or to describe specific programs.


	CAREGIVER The provider of physical, emotional, and social needs to another person, often dependent and unable to provide for his or her own needs. Caregiver is the generic term used for the direct service providers in Community Care and Support Services (CCS).