Page 90 - Gateways for Early Educators

Gateways for Early Educators
Learning Environments and Curriculum, Health, Safety and Nutrition, and Child Observation and Assessment were the training strands that received the lowest overall ratings relative to the other strands. Nevertheless, 102 of 103 (99.0%) participants rated these trainings as good or excellent. It is possible that because the topics covered in these strands is so complex that it may have contributed to the lower scores. Participants expressed that extending the length of the training sessions, offering more training topics within the strand, or providing more printed materials would help improve the trainings. This was especially true of Child Observation and Assessment where participants requested more training on the DRDP, practical use of the ASQ, parent conferences related to the DRDP and DRDP and other observational tool trainings in Spanish. The Needs and Inclusion training strand was rated the highest this program year. However, only two surveys were collected for this strand. Given that Special Needs and Inclusion training strand received one of the lowest rankings the past two consecutive years it may be beneficial to conduct more training in this strand. In fact, training participants across all strands expressed interest in attending more Special Needs and Inclusion trainings. This may signal a greater depth of information needed in this area. Furthermore, participants who provided comments about what would make the trainings across all strands better indicated that they wanted more trainings, longer trainings, and the opportunity to share their experiences with each other. Special Needs and Inclusion, Promoting Diversity and Community were two of the trainings strands with the lowest number of trainings offered in 2015-2016, it may be important for the R&R agencies to explore and consider the possibility of conducting more trainings in these strands. The program may also consider the possibility of providing workshops within these strands as series of trainings in order to be able to delve deeper into the material.
2016
Box 1. WHAT GATEWAYS PARTICIPANTS LEARNED IN GATEWAYS TRAININGS
“[I learned] to validate or recognize the needs and feelings of each child.” -Positive Interactions and Guidance Training Participant
“Learned to use more physical activities to stimulate the brain, and to introduce new vocabulary and movements. “
-Learning Environment and Curriculum Training Participant
“To identify sugar in foods, and new ways to eat fruits and vegetables.” ~Health, Safety, and Nutrition Training Participant
“Local community resources and about the community resources that are available online.”
~Families and Community Training Participant
“Understand the importance of sensitivity, and the intent of the questions on the ASQ-SE. The ages and their stages.”
~Child Observation and Assessment Training Participant
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