“It’s our polite nudge in the ribs to help you and your team stay organised and on task.”
This week’s subject is Parents views are respected
Element 6.1.2: The expertise, culture, values and beliefs of families are respected, and families share in decision-making about their child’s learning and wellbeing.
How does your service obtain and encourage family feedback and contribution and maintain a consistent record of it, contributing to continuous improvement and quality outcomes for children and their families?
Services should be proactive, innovative, and consistent in their efforts to obtain new information about children’s evolving preferences, routines, interests and experiences. Ensure educators collaborate with families about children’s individual needs on a regular basis and in a variety of ways, showing respect for the cultures and backgrounds of all families and recognising that families are children’s first and most influential teachers.
When educators communicate with families to find out about their child’s evolving preferences, experiences, and routines, and respect the expertise, cultures, languages, values, beliefs and child-rearing practices of families, they are able to:
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- better support each child’s learning, development, and wellbeing
- develop a tailored educational program that builds on each child’s background, strengths and promotes their development
- support families’ diverse parenting practices and approaches (Early Years Learning Framework; Framework for School Age Care).
To assist in meeting the individual needs and preferences of families, educators should implement a range of methods for obtaining information about children’s learning and wellbeing, as well as other aspects of the service operations, including transitions, routines, Service policies and the Service Philosophy. This can be done through:
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- parent surveys (specifically targeted to obtain information about individual preferences to assist in decision making and curriculum planning)
- suggestions box
- communication book
- child details form (updated regularly throughout the year)
- online polls
- online forum, inviting parents to provide feedback by asking specific questions.
- providing space on the program for feedback
- requesting feedback via the Service newsletter
- informal discussions (request parent permission to document information/feedback)
Ensure documentation of all family feedback and suggestions is consistently maintained, to provide valuable evidence for an Authorised Officer during the assessment and rating process.
Resources:
Information Sheet: Quality Area 6: Building Partnerships with Families
Building Partnerships Between Families and Early Childhood Staff
Policy Tip Sheet- Including family input
Build Strong Partnerships with Families
Within System7 go to Quality area 6/ Modules 7, 8, 9 to submit self-assessment notes and if required, open a QIP issue if you identify any areas of improvement.
The Childcare Centre Desktop has a range of resources to assist services with element 6.1.2. These include Parent Surveys, Family Communication Policy, All about Me- Child Introduction Form, Program Template and our monthly “done-for-you” Newsletter template.
Resources, NQS Element, Regulation and System7 links:
Childcare Centre Desktop – Childcare Centre Desktop
National Quality Standard – QA 6/ 6.1.2- Parents views are respected
National Regulations – 155, 157, 160
System7 Module – QA 6/ Modules 7, 8, 9
If you have any questions send us a note via the Contact page here!
