BIG
STEPS
In childcare
Education and care for the 21st Century
1
BIG STEPS in childcare
The Childcare Union
Contents
Introduction to the BIG STEPS in childcare campaign ............................5
The LHMU......................................................................................7
The Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector...............9
Quality ECEC for children .................................................................11
Quality ECEC for families .................................................................13
ECEC and women’s workforce participation...........................................13
LHMU 2008 survey of parents long day care usage .................................13
Barriers to delivering quality ECEC in Australia
The childcare skills crisis ...................................................................15
Turnover in the ECEC workforce .........................................................16
The first BIG STEP: government support for sector reform........................19
LHMU support for sector reform: a solution to the ECEC skills crisis..........21
Upskilling the existing ECEC workforce ...............................................23
Articulation between ECEC training courses ...........................................25
Recognition of Prior Learning ..............................................................27
The way forward: BIG STEPS in childcare campaign as a
vehicle for sector reform ......................................................................29
ISBN 978-0-9804694-0-0
Printed by Printcraft 23 Links Rd Eagle Farm, Queensland 4009 Australia.
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BIG STEPS in childcare
Foreword
Australia is about to embark on long overdue reform of the nation's early childhood
education and care system.
The LHMU, the national early childhood union, embraces the Australian
Government's commitment to bring this sector into the 21st Century.
Decades of neglect by government have created a crisis in care and education
for young children despite the best efforts of workers in the sector. There are no
national quality standards. There's a chronic shortage of workers. The work is
notoriously low paid and lacks career paths.
The existing system fails to consistently deliver basic quality, affordability and
accessibility for families. As a progressive, wealthy democracy, Australia should
aim for so much more than just the basic minimum for our children.
Australia needs a newly conceptualised early childhood education and care (ECEC)
system that reflects cutting edge research on children's development and meets
the contemporary needs of working parents, Australian business and sector workers.
Parents are clear on what they want for their young children - a caring, supporting
and stable environment integrated with appropriate quality education programs.
Without well-trained professionals it is impossible to deliver on government
promises to working families. Key to achieving this is a national workforce
strategy to formally qualify the existing early care and education workforce and
create career paths needed to retain professionals.
The LHMU's BIG STEPS in childcare campaign is based on a commitment to
every child's fundamental right to care and education. The LHMU will continue
to work with sector leaders and families until this fundamental right is realised.
LOUISE TARRANT
National Secretary
LHMU – The Childcare Union
www.lhmu.org.au
www.bigsteps.org.au
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BIG STEPS in childcare
The Campaign
Australia needs to take Big Steps in childcare. The first big step in the campaign will be
LHMU’s Big Steps in childcare campaign is workforce reform. While research on ECEC
about thinking in new ways to create the best quality and surveys on what parents need both
early childhood education and care (ECEC) indicate that staff are crucial to the provision
system for children, families and the of quality ECEC services, low pay and poor
Australian economy. career prospects have created a serious skills
For too long, there have been no agreed crisis in Australia’s early childhood workforce.
outcomes for children who attend childcare, A national workforce strategy which includes
parents have been confronted by a patchwork new approaches to articulation and recognition
of services with different quality regulations of prior learning for the early childhood
and childcare workers have faced poor pay and workforce will be necessary to deliver on the
no career path. steps the Australian and State and Territory
LHMU is working in coalition with Early Governments have already taken towards
Childhood Australia (ECA), the National sector reform. It will also fit neatly with the
Association of Community Based Children’s Australian Government’s Skilling Australia
Services (NACBCS), the Children’s Services initiative.
Policy Taskforce, the Community Services and By upskilling existing Diploma holders in the
Health Industry Skills Council and Sydney early childhood workforce to deliver fifteen
University’s Workplace Research Centre to hours of preschool education to four year olds,
create best-practice ECEC services for the Australian Government can contribute to
Australia. creating a career path for childcare workers
At our August 2007 National Council, the and ensure that Government childcare reforms
LHMU launched Principles for Quality aren’t sidetracked by skills shortages in the
Children’s Services, placing every child’s early childhood sector.
fundamental right to care and education at the Making this increase in early childhood
centre of the union’s work to reform teacher numbers sustainable will require the
Australian childcare. Early Childhood support of a workforce strategy that recognizes
Australia (ECA), Australia’s leading advocate the skills it takes to work with young children
for social justice, equity and quality in the in all formal care settings. LHMU is
education and care of children from birth to developing a workforce model that will
eight, has been a key ally in determining the formally qualify the entire early childhood
action needed to reform Australia’s ECEC workforce and create the career paths needed
services so that they deliver for children. to retain professionals in the sector.
In partnership with ECA, the Big Steps in In partnership with the leaders in Australia’s
childcare campaign will be based on the advice early childhood sector, the LHMU’s Big Steps
of ECEC experts, childcare professionals, in childcare campaign will contribute to taking
parents and business leaders about what all Australia’s ECEC services into the 21st
sectors of the Australian community need from Century.
a quality ECEC system.
4
BIG STEPS in childcare
The Union
The LHMU is Australia’s childcare make further progress within a childcare
union. We cover over 95,000 workers in system that is essentially broken.
long day care, family day care, out-of- LHMU’s Big Steps in childcare
school-hours care and preschools in all campaign is a firm commitment to
States and Territories. working to reform the childcare sector in
In 2006 the LHMU won pay equity cases the interests of children, families and
that delivered wage increases for childcare professionals.
childcare workers nationally and
provided the first official recognition that 1LHMU has coverage of childcare professionals
childcare workers are professionals. In in preschools and long day care centres
nationally. The Australian Services Union
the same year LHMU negotiated a represents workers in local council owned and
collective agreement with Australia’s operated childcare centres. The Australian
largest long day care provider, ABC Education Union and the Independent Education
Learning, to secure wage increases, free Union also represent teachers in preschool
training and above award programming settings in some states and territories.
2Rooney and Whitehouse, Recent Child Care
time for ABC workers. Worker Pay Cases in Australia, 2006. Lyons and
In 2007, LHMU childcare professionals Smith, Gender Pay Equity, Wage Fixation and
made the decision that they couldn’t WorkChoices: Forward to the Past? 2006.
"I work in the babies’ room and I love it. I know what I need to do there. It also really
helps that I have a very supportive boss who gives me time off when I need it to do my
studies. I'm studying for a diploma and have almost finished it. I really like the idea of
having teachers in centres full time because that way you'd get constant mentoring and
encouragement. I have a teacher who helps me now, outside of work, but having someone
to go to everyday at work would be great. I'm sure more people would take on study if
that was the case."
WASIMA RASOOL
Long Day Care Centre childcare worker Upgrading from Certificate to Diploma.
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BIG STEPS in childcare
The ECEC sector
Australia offers a diverse range of In 2001 and 2006 the OECD reported that
education and care services for the early Australia’s ability to provide quality
childhood years. Education and care ECEC was compromised by:
(ECEC) services can be accessed through • Lack of a clear vision about what ECEC
schools, local government, charities, services should achieve
employers, community-based • A multilayered system of policy
organizations, private owners, and development, funding and regulation that
corporate providers. Services include prevents system coherence
preschool, long day care, family day care, • Low pay, status and training levels of
mobile children’s services, outside of ECEC staff
school hours care, and home-based care.3 • The lowest spending of any OECD
In June 2005 1,553,400 children, forty six nation on preschool programs5
percent of children aged 1-12, attended a Structural problems in Australia’s
formal childcare service. The most childcare system have prevented
commonly used services were long day consistent delivery of high quality,
care and out of school hours care, attended accessible and affordable ECEC services
by ten percent and seven percent of to Australian families.6
children aged 1-12. Thirty seven percent
of 0-5 year olds in formal care attended 3 Harrison and Ungerer, What can the Longitudinal Study of
long day care services.4 Australian Children tell us about infants’ and 4 to 5 year olds’
experiences of early childhood education and care? Family
A diverse range of services is what a Matters No. 72 Summer 2005.
mature ECEC system needs to cater for a 4 ABS, Child Care, June 2005.
5 OECD, Starting Strong II, Country Profiles, Australia.
diversity of children and families. What September 2006.
shouldn’t fluctuate is the quality, http://www.oecd.org/document/63/0,3343,en_2649_39263231_
37416703_1_1_1_1,00.html
accessibility and affordability of ECEC 6 LHMU, Establishing child care as an essential service: The
services offered to children and families. LHMU’s 10 Principles to improve Australian child care.
November 2006.
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BIG STEPS in childcare
Quality ECEC for children
Some 1.5 million children attend sector. In New South Wales centres with
children’s services in Australia. That twenty-nine places or more are required
means children’s services have a crucial to hire a teacher.
role to play in upholding our
community’s commitment to the rights
of children in Australia. 7 ABS, Child Care, June 2005.
8 McCain and Mustard (1999), Doherty, Lero, Goelman,
There is clear agreement in local and Tougas, and La Grange, 2000, Love, Schochet and
international ECEC research about what Meckstroth, 1996, NSW Curriculum Framework, Calvert,
2003, Siraj-Blatchford, 2002, Whitebrook, Howes and
children need to grow and learn. Secure Phillips, 1989, Lally et al. 1994; Mooney et al. 2003; Cited in
attachments and developmentally- Press (2006) What about the kids? Policy directions for
improving the experiences of infants and young people in a
attuned interactions with primary carers changing world. Cleveland and Krashinsky, 2005; Fenech,
consistently emerge as the foundation of Sumison and Goodfellow; Ghazvini and Mullis, 2002;
Phillips et al, 2000; cited in Allison Elliot, Regulating for
quality ECEC.8 Quality: Registration, standards and accreditation, 2006.
There are three main predictors of a Rush, Child Care Quality in Australia, The Australia
Institute, 2006.
childcare professional’s ability to 9 Ibid.
interact with children in a formal care 10 For current staff-child ratios see LHMU, Establishing
child care as an essential service: The LHMU’s 10 Principles
setting: the amount of time a primary to improve Australian child care. November 2006. Early
carer has to develop individual Childhood Australia’s Recommended ratios, reflective of
international best-practice, are 1:3 for children under 2, 1:5
relationships with each child, the for children aged 2-3 and 1:8 for children over 3 years of age.
stability of those relationships over time 11. 2008 Report on Government Services: Children’s
Services. Productivity Commission, 2008. National
and the qualifications that inform carers’ Children’s Services Workforce Study, Community Services
understanding of early childhood Ministers Advisory Council, July 2006.
development and learning. ECEC
programs with high numbers of qualified
staff, low staff turnover and high ratios
of staff to children, consistently deliver
improved cognitive and socio-
behavioural outcomes for children.9
Australia currently has different ECEC
quality regulations in every state and
territory. Despite the fact that ECEC
research consistently shows staff-child
ratios and childcare workers’
qualifications are the most important
indicators of quality care, Australia’s
staff ratios are well below local and
international best-practice.10
Nor does Australia have a national
mandatory minimum qualification for
childcare workers. Thirty to forty-five
percent of the ECEC workforce have no
formal qualifications. Queensland is the
only state with a compulsory entry-level
qualification, where childcare workers
need an AQF Certificate III in
Children’s Services to work in the
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BIG STEPS in childcare
Quality ECEC for families
Quality ECEC services are a crucial support concern that parents’ voices are under-
for families, particularly families where both represented in the childcare debate –
parents work. balancing work with the demands of raising
Australia ranks poorly compared with other young children leaves little time for
OECD countries on labour force advocacy work and there is currently no
participation rates for mothers and potential national organisation representing parents
mothers. A December 2006 report by the who use childcare.
Productivity Commission found that if The survey found that ninety percent of
Australia matched Canada’s participation children use LDC for between 7 and 11
rates for potential mothers, an extra 209,000 hours per day. Parents say they need this
women would enter the workforce. The length of time to support their workforce
report determined that: commitments. "Caring staff" are the most
“There is significant scope to increase important criteria for ensuring parents are
participation rates by making changes to happy to have their children in care for this
policy settings that inadvertently discourage length of time. Quality education programs
or create barriers to participation”. are also a priority for parents when choosing
In June 2006, sixty-three percent of the a LDC centre, but parents believe LDC
237,000 mothers who wanted more work workers are more qualified to provide care
couldn’t actively seek employment because and education programs than they actually
of problems with childcare, according to an are.
ABS survey on Barriers to Labour Force A summary of the survey results are listed in
Participation. figure 2. The main picture that emerges from
So what do parents want from childcare? In the survey is that parents want integrated
May this year, LHMU released the first care and education programs delivered by
comprehensive national survey of what qualified workers, with hours that support
parents want from long day care (LDC). their work commitments.
LHMU commissioned the survey because of
Figure 1. OECD workforce Figure 2. LHMU May 2008 survey of parents’ LDC usage, key findings.
participation by age 2005 Key findings of the parent survey:
• Parents are very satisfied with LDC, with 85% ranking their satisfaction as 8 out of 10
or higher
• Caring staff are the main reason for parent satisfaction (45%); child loves the LDC
(22%); good environment (16%)
• 59% want LDC to focus more on early learning activities for all age groups
• Only 1% think of childcare as “just a babysitting service”
• 90% of respondents' children spend between 7 and 11 hours per day at LDC, with the
average being 8 hours
• 71% of parents work more than 21 hours per week; 80% of their partners work more
than 36 hours per week
• 32% of parents use other types of care including grandparents in addition to LDC. The
main other type of formal childcare used is preschool.
• Parents chose a specific LDC centre for quality of care (68%); close to home (46%);
close to work (42%)
• Only 1% of parents are not “at all satisfied” with their LDC (ranked 1 out of 10), the
main reasons being poor planning of care and development programs; lack of qualified
staff and high staff turnover
• 35% think childcare is affordable with the Government childcare rebate
• Most parents over-estimate the qualifications of LDC staff: 62% believe, falsely, that
1 in 4 or more staff at their centre have a university degree;
• 20% believe, falsely, all childcare workers have a relevant degree or diploma
12 Abhayaratna and Lattimore ‘Workforce
Participation Rates – How Does Australia Compare?’ , Productivity Commission, December 2006
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BIG STEPS in childcare
Barriers to delivering quality ECEC for
families - childcare skills crisis
“The workforce issues currently facing the education sector. A January 2008 survey by the
childcare sector are serious and complex, and Australian Council for Educational Research
there is a role for all levels of government, and showed that nearly half of the school principles
the sector itself, in dealing with them. Of surveyed had difficulties attracting suitable staff.
immediate concern is the difficulty that services Significant concerns exist about replacing the
experience in recruiting and retaining qualified large numbers of teachers expected to retire
childcare workers.” during the next ten years.16
(Report of National Childcare Workforce Think Research indicates the mismatch between
Tank, 2003, 3) workers status and wages, compared with the
While research on ECEC quality and surveys on high levels of responsibility and workload
what parents need both indicate staff are crucial demands in the early childhood sector, is the
to the provision of high quality ECEC services, main reason for the childcare skills crisis.17
low pay and poor career prospects have created a Low pay and lack of a career path have also
serious skills crisis in Australia’s early childhood created serious levels of turnover in the early
workforce. childhood workforce.
Full-time early childhood Diploma holders earn
just $19 per hour or $37, 500 per year. ECEC
teachers earn twenty-five percent less than their
counterparts in the primary school sector.13
While approximately ten percent of ECEC 13 LHMU National Children’s Services Award Conditions,
2008.
workers have a teaching qualification, between
14 2008 Report on Government Services: Children’s
thirty and forty-five percent of ECEC workers Services. Productivity Commission, 2008. National
have no formal qualification.14 Children’s Services Workforce Study, Community Services
The 2006 National Children’s Services Ministers Advisory Council, July 2006.
15 National Children’s Services Workforce Study,
Workforce Study predicts there will be a
Community Services Ministers Advisory Council, July 2006.
shortage of 7,320 childcare workers nationally 16 Simon Lauder Teacher Shortage Needs Urgent Attention,
by 2013. Thirteen percent of staff vacancies were Survey Shows, ABC News. McKenzie et al Staff in
not filled in the year prior to the survey. In Australia’s Schools 2007, 2007.
17 Commonwealth Childcare Advisory Committee Childcare
addition to this, just over 3,000 positions for
Beyond 2001; cited in Press (2006) What about the kids?
qualified staff were filled by exemptions.15 Policy directions for improving the experiences of infants
Future childcare skills shortages may be and young people in a changing world.
exacerbated by teacher shortages in the broader
Figure 3. Turnover by jurisdiction, from the National Children’s Workforce Study,
(Community Services Minister’s Advisory Council) July 2006
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BIG STEPS in childcare
“Burnout is a major problem in childcare. This is my eighth year and I’ve seen numerous
staff leave – brilliant workers, but they were burnt out by what was expected of them in
terms of work with children, observations and paperwork. When staff suddenly leave it’s
upsetting for children, because children and parents get attached to them.
I’ve stayed in childcare because I get such a buzz from helping young children grow and
evolve into confident, extroverted, independent people. I’m really excited to be part of the
campaign and it’s great to see the government giving early childhood the attention it
deserves. More encouragement and support for childcare workers would really help stop
the burnout I see so much of.”
Kylie Schneider, Diploma holder and leader in the Big Steps in childcare campaign.
“Children and families must be able to build secure relationships with staff. In turn this
helps the early childhood program to be responsive to the individual needs of each child
and family. Trust and responsiveness are critical elements of an appropriate nurturing
and educative environment for children. Relationships develop over time and with
familiarity. Staff turnover is disruptive and potentially damaging.”
Fran Press,
Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education, Charles Sturt University and author
of ‘What about the kids? Policy directions for improving the experiences of infants
and young people in a changing world.’
Turnover rates range from twenty-six percent (New South Wales) to sixty percent (South
Australia) per annum. In 2005 the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
estimated that around fifty percent of job openings for childcare workers and eighty
percent for coordinators resulted from staff leaving their occupations. Such high levels of
turnover are extremely costly for childcare operators, but more importantly, threaten the
continuity and therefore the quality of care and education offered to children.
18Press (2006) What about the kids? Policy directions for improving the experiences of infants and young
people in a changing world.
10
BIG STEPS in childcare
A solution: the first BIG STEP
In December 2007 a new Federal to combine maternal and child health
Government was sworn in. Federal and welfare, child care services and
Labor’s election promises and May 2008 preschool at the one location.20 The
Budget demonstrate an understanding of proposal was endorsed by State and
what children and parents need from Territory Governments at the April 2008
Australia’s ECEC system. joint meeting of the Ministerial Council
The Federal Government has committed on Education, Employment, Training
to reform of Australia’s early childhood and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) and the
sector. To meet this commitment the Ministerial Council for Vocational and
Australian Government has announced: Technical Education (MCVTE).21
• Funding of $10 million in 2007–08 for State and Territory Governments are
projects to improve access to early also currently working to restructure
childhood education programs preschool education, following
• 15 hours of government-funded, commitments given at Council of
teacher-led early education for all Australian Government meetings in July
children in the year before school by 2006 and April 2007. This will build on
2013 existing State and Territory government
• A National Early Years Workforce initiatives for improving coordination of
Strategy which includes: services for young children, such as
– additional early childhood education Families NSW in NSW, Best Start in
university places each year from 2009, Victoria, the ACT Children’s Plan,
increasing to 1500 places by 2011 Putting Families First in Queensland,
– removing TAFE fees for Diplomas and Our Kids Action Plan in Tasmania,
Advanced Diplomas of Children’s South Australia’s Every Chance for
Services and the creation of 8000 new Every Child and the Vision for Territory
VET places Children in the Northern Territory.22
– a fifty percent HECS-HELP remission This level of Federal and State
for early childhood education teachers Government leadership and cooperation
who are willing to work in rural and provides an unprecedented opportunity
regional areas, Indigenous communities to reform Australia’s early childhood
and areas of socio-economic sector.
disadvantage
• National collaboration in the
development of a national Early Years
Learning Framework emphasising play- 19 Australian Parliamentary Library, Preschool
based learning, early literacy and Education in Australia, May 2009.
http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/bn/2007-
numeracy skills and social development. 08/PreschoolEdAustralia.htm
This Framework will be linked to new 20 K. Rudd, Press Conference with Maxine
National Quality Standards for Child McKew, Sydney Day Nursery, Sydney, 17 April
Care and Preschool.19 2008.
21 Australia 2020 Summit: Initial Summit Report
Before the Australia 2020 Summit, the
p.8.
Prime Minister announced his proposal
11
BIG STEPS in childcare
LHMU: supporting the first BIG STEP
The LHMU has chosen to support strategy to improve training and
Federal and State Government early retention in the early childhood sector,
childhood sector reform by modeling a Federal and State Governments will be
solution to the largest barrier to delivery unable to deliver on their promises to
of quality ECEC for families – the skills Australian children and parents.
crisis in Australia’s early childhood The Australian Government has taken a
sector. firm step towards addressing skills
LHMU’s Big Steps in childcare shortages in the early childhood sector,
campaign will involve ongoing work committing to provide an additional
with sector leaders to improve staff-child 8000 VET places and 1500 university
ratios, embed key quality indicators in places by 2013. To ensure this
the Quality Assurance system and commitment is sustainable and provides
address the ongoing problems of fee enough teachers to deliver 15 hours of
inflation and service availability. preschool to all four year olds, the
However a national workforce strategy provision of training places needs to be
for the early childhood sector must be a linked to a whole of workforce strategy
priority. Without a comprehensive for the early childhood workforce.
“I enrolled in an early childhood teaching degree because I wanted to further myself. My
own personal development, more than the need to gain recognition, was the main reason.
It was the obvious next step for me in providing ECEC.
The course costs between $1,500 - $2,000 per semester, which I’m putting on my credit
card. Then there’s the uni fees and textbooks, which adds about another $300 a semester.
It’s really hard financially. It’s also hard in terms of time. In long day care you work
longer days, and it’s hard getting home and opening a text book after a ten hour day.
I know that if I was training to move to a primary school I would get more money. But
working with the 0-5 group is where I want to be. You get to have an impact on the very
first years of a person’s life.”
Natalie Sarapuk,
Long Day Care centre director, ECEC university student and Big Steps in childcare
campaign leader.
12
BIG STEPS in childcare
Upskilling the existing ECEC
workforce
“C&K believes it is disingenuous to separate quality early childhood education from
care and vice versa; the effectiveness of each is interdependent. For this reason, and
despite the fact there is no regulatory requirement to do so, C&K has employed
university qualified teachers as both directors and preschool group leaders to ensure that
children attending a long day care service are not disadvantaged when compared with
their counterparts in C&K kindergartens. We also believe the experiences a child enjoys
in long day care is significantly influenced by staff stability and well being and for this
reason C&K has introduced several additional conditions for all its staff including paid
paternity leave, free PD, free first aid certification for all staff, external study support,
counseling for staff and families, birthday leave days and subsidised immunisation. All of
these initiatives, combined with the career path C&K provides for our workforce,
contribute to our very low staff turnover rate of 2%”
Barrie Elvish,
CEO, C&K community-based early childhood association.
LHMU is working closely with leading ECEC worker who is already employed full-time
stakeholders in the early childhood sector on a in a long day care centre, kindergarten or
strategy to address skills shortages by upskilling preschool, the Australian Government’s training
the existing ECEC workforce. This approach fits dollar will go further, delivering early childhood
neatly with the Federal Governement’s Skilling teachers who are attached to a service full-time,
Australia initiative, which commits two-thirds of rather than for just fifteen hours per week.
Labor’s new 450,000 training places to training Having an upskilled ECEC worker attached to a
people who are currently employed but need to service full-time means that preschool programs
upgrade their skills.23 can be delivered ‘across the long day’. This
LHMU partners include Early Childhood approach will suit working parents, who say they
Australia, the Children’s Services Policy need 7-11 hours of care and education services a
Taskforce, Sydney University’s Workplace day to support workforce commitments. A full-
Research Centre and the Community Services time teaching resource will ensure four year olds
and Health Industry Skills Council. have access to a teacher-led program regardless
Upskilling the existing ECEC workforce is the of the hours they attend long day care, preschool
most efficient and equitable way to provide the or kindergarten. It will also provide services with
teachers needed to deliver 15 hours of preschool access to the benefits of the pedagogical
to all four year olds by 2013. Upskilling existing leadership teachers provide, allowing teacher
AQF Diploma holders to degree level will shape mentoring on program planning for 0-5 year
the beginning of a career path for the early olds.
childhood workforce and prevent the Australian Preliminary modeling indicates Australia will
Government’s preschool commitment from need an additional 2641 teachers by 2012 to
being sidetracked by skills shortages in the early deliver 15 hours of preschool to all four year
childhood and broader education sectors. olds at a ratio of one teacher to twenty four year
Providing a career path for ECEC workers will olds, supported by the existing ratio of childcare
also improve retention in the sector, addressing professionals.24 These figures can be broken
the causes of the childcare skills crisis. down by state and territory and broadened to
Upskilling existing ECEC Diploma holders to include projected teacher requirements for all
deliver improved preschool education will also children in the year before compulsory primary
provide benefits for children. By upskilling an schooling.
13
BIG STEPS in childcare
Articulation
“Any national upskilling program needs to have as its outcome a quality teaching force
capable of being successful teachers of infants and young children no matter what
service or community they work with. To do this we need collaborative partnerships
between the VET and University sectors around new thinking on qualification pathways,
and new ways of working on curriculum design at both the VET and University levels.”
Professor
Toni Downes,
Dean of the Faculty of Education, Charles Sturt University.
A successful articulation program between VET and university early childhood
qualifications will be crucial to the success of upskilling the existing ECEC workforce.
LHMU is working with leaders in the field, including Charles Sturt University,
Macquarie University, the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council and
Sydney University’s Workplace Research Centre to develop a best-practice model of
articulation for the early childhood workforce.
Recognition of prior learning
Thirty to forty-five percent of the ECEC
workforce currently have no formal Barriers to the success of current
qualifications.25 To create a career path Recognition of Prior Learning initiatives
for childcare workers and sustain an are well documented.26 RPL works
increase in early childhood teacher poorly when responsibility for enrolling
numbers in the early childhood with training providers rests solely with
workforce, a national workforce strategy unqualified workers who have little
must begin to formally recognise the experience dealing with the VET sector.
skills of the existing childcare LHMU is working with leaders in the
workforce, and set workers without ECEC and training fields to develop a
formal recognition of their skills on the best-practice pilot RPL program for the
path to gaining formal ECEC early childhood workforce.
qualifications.
Without a nationally coordinated 25 2008 Report on Government Services:
program of Recognition of Prior Children’s Services. Productivity Commission,
2008. National Children’s Services Workforce
Learning (RPL) in the early childhood Study, Community Services Ministers Advisory
sector, the gap between investment in Council, July 2006.
university trained teachers and the 26 Bowman, Clayton, Bateman, Knight,
qualifications of the remaining majority Thomson, Hargreaves, Blom, Enders,
of the workforce will widen, moving the Recognition of prior learning in the vocational
education and training sector. NCVER, 2003.
sector even further from the creation of a Bateman and Knight, Giving Credit: A review of
career path for early childhood workers. RPL and credit transfer in the vocational
This will create ongoing problems with education and training sector. NCVER, 2001.
retention in the sector and compromise Watson Pathways to a Profession: Education and
the quality of ECEC programs services training in early childhood education and care,
Australia. 2006.
can offer children and families.
14
BIG STEPS in childcare
BIG STEPS in childcare
“The community services and health industry workforce will need to grow faster than
workforces in any other Australian industry over the next five years. The vocational
- a vehicle for sector reform
education and training (VET) sector trained workforce, representing almost 80% of the
Community services workforce, will continue to play a major role in provision of services.
Training alone, however, is not sufficient to address the workforce challenges faced by the
early childhood sector. Other crucial inputs include establishment of new and expanded
classification structures, better articulation between VET and university careers across the
Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), and new approaches to workplace training
and assessment.“
Di Lawson,
CEO, Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council.
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BIG STEPS in childcare
BIG STEPS in childcare – a vehicle for
sector reform
“Early Childhood Australia is firmly committed to strategies which will build on skills
and significantly increase the number of degree qualified early childhood teachers
working with young children in the sector. The research that shows the key significance
of qualified staff and intentional teaching in delivering quality experiences and good
outcomes is consistent and telling.
Further, strategies that use established infrastructure and develop existing staff
resources will be an important step in improving career paths, addressing other
workforce issues and bringing greater stability to the sector. ECA also supports the move
to pay parity with teachers in schools, and recognises that further salary increases will
be necessary in the early childhood sector.”
Margaret Young,
President, Early Childhood Australia.
By uniting experts in the ECEC sector behind federal and state government initiatives for
sector reform, we can capitalise on a once in a generation opportunity and progress
Australia’s ECEC system to deliver best-quality outcomes for Australian children.
LHMU’s Big Steps in childcare campaign will provide a vehicle for sector collaboration
on early childhood workforce reform, in the interests of children, families, the Australian
economy and childcare professionals.
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BIG STEPS in childcare
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Abhayaratna and Lattimore, Workforce Participation Lyons and Smith, Gender Pay Equity, Wage Fixation
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December 2006 LHMU, Establishing child care as an essential
service: The LHMU’s 10 Principles to improve
ABS, Child Care. June 2005. Australian child care. November 2006.
ABS, Barriers to Labour Force Participation. LHMU, National Children’s Services Award
February 2006. Conditions. 2008.
Australian Parliamentary Library, Preschool LHMU, What parents want from long day care. May
Education in Australia. May 2008. 2008.
Australia 2020 Summit: Initial Summit Report p8. McKenzie et al Staff in Australia’s Schools 2007,
April 2008. 2007.
Bateman and Knight, Giving Credit: A review of RPL OECD, Starting Strong II, Country Profiles, Australia.
and credit transfer in the vocational education and September 2006.
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2001. Fran Press What about the kids? Policy directions for
improving the experiences of infants and young people
Bowman, Clayton, Bateman, Knight, Thomson, in a changing world. 2006.
Hargreaves, Blom, Enders, Recognition of prior
learning in the vocational education and training Productivity Commission, 2008 Report on
sector. NCVER, 2003. Government Services: Children’s Services.
Brennan, The Politics of Australian Child Care. 1998. Rooney and Whitehouse, Recent Child Care Worker
Commonwealth Childcare Advisory Committee, Pay Cases in Australia. 2006.
Childcare Beyond 2001.
Rush, Child Care Quality in Australia. The Australia
Community Services Ministers Advisory Council, Institute, 2006.
National Children’s Services Workforce Study, July
2006. Simms, The determinants of quality care: review and
research report. July 2006.
Elliot, Regulating for Quality: Registration, standards
and accreditation. 2006. Skilling Australia – Federal Labor’s plan to fight
inflation by closing the skills gap. November 2007.
Harrison and Ungerer, What can the Longitudinal
Study of Australian Children tell us about infants’ and Smith and Ewen, Changes to childcare funding and
4 to 5 year olds’ experiences of early childhood women’s labour force participation in Western
education and care? Family Matters No. 72. Summer Sydney. March 2001.
2005
Watson, Pathways to a Profession: Education and
K. Rudd, Press Conference with Maxine McKew, Training in Early Childhood Education and Care,
Sydney Day Nursery, Sydney, April 17, 2008. Australia. 2006.
Lauder Teacher Shortage Needs Urgent Attention, Wise, Childcare Choices project. Australian Institute
Survey Shows. ABC News. January 16, 2008. of Family Studies, January 2004.
Published by the LHMU – The Childcare Union
187 Thomas Street Haymarket, NSW Australia 2000
P: 02 8204 3000 F: 02 9281 4480 E: lhmu@lhmu.org.au W: www.lhmu.org.au or www.bigsteps.org.a
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BIG STEPS in childcare