Blogs I have read in Module Two

I went to http://tennesseefan.edublogs.org/author/tennesseefan/ and read her blog about her observations. I noted that she was discussing the need for more qualifications for Early Childhood Teachers. She references DCFS qualifications being not enough. I know that in Illinois we have benefits for programs that have higher qualified staff and higher quality programing. One of the programs is becoming accredited through the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and the other one is the Quality Rating System (QRS). QRS allows us to receive more money back for the state on each child for through the child care assistance program. There are four star levels and we are a star level three. I think that these programs make for a more quality program as well as require teachers to be more qualified.

I also read Kristina Pearson’s blog on her observations. She mentions that there are a lot of steps in between noticing a child needs help and the child actually receiving the help.  I agree that there are a lot of hoops to jump through in order for a child to receive help. I personally believe that this has a lot to do with funding. It is all about having to justify the actual need for the child to receive services. This is why so many people are involved in the process and it takes a while to apply for the services to receive funding for the child. It can be very frustrating and it would be nice if there were ways to streamline the process. One way I think that they could speed up the process is to do assessments together. If you had a large group of the professionals all working as a team, you could get through a few steps at one time. I know that since funding has been cut in our area, there is more of the collaborative efforts in order to save time and money.