For this weeks blog, Research Around the World I chose to look at Early Childhood Australia at http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/. This Australian website is equal to that of the United States version of the NAEYC. I found so many interesting topics to read but the one that fascinated me is the news article Mixed blessings from new childcare rules. I have included the link to the Australian broadcast. This article discusses how their Federal government new rules demand childcare centers employ more staff and that these staff members are better qualified. Early Childhood advocates agree that it is a huge step forward towards a brighter future. In this article some feel that this will become a financial hardship and the price increases will create problems for parents and ratepayers. Others disagree as they say it will only increase to 3 dollars a day which is less than a cup of coffee and the better care out weighs the hardship. I also was interested in another argument presented and that is with more care providers the stress on the current staff is decreased. I will be interested d to see how this all pans out in the future it might be something the United States could examine and implement if it is a successful plan.
Resources:
Early Childhood Australia: http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/
Mixed blessings from new childcare rules: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2011/s3401029.htm
I really like the discussion about increasing the requirements for early childhood care givers. Better service and increase of price always go together but children deserve the best quality care...
ReplyDeleteMelanie,
ReplyDeleteI also chose Australia to focus on for this assignment. I think that some of the programs that call for accountability of the caregivers and educators would work well here in the U.S. I love that the federal government there places such importance on education.