Who Are We?	What We Believe	Our Work
For You	Contact Us

Our Work

The work of our project has been divided into four areas and work groups were formed around these areas. The work groups are:

1. Work groups identified action steps necessary to accomplish our goals. The steps were approved by the steering committee.
2. Individuals from the steering committee and other professionals have committed to being members of the work groups and working on the action steps.
3. The action steps have been evaluated annually and updated. Steps have been added, deleted, and crossed off as the project moves towards the defined goals.

Definitions of Work Groups

Articulation Work Group
Objective: Design an articulated system of early care and education training/education in Iowa where individuals can articulate or transfer credits across educational systems, leading to credentials, certificates, and degrees. Issues for this group include; transfer of credit from one credit bearing institute to another, credit for prior learning, credit for life experience, portfolio development for professionals, and alternative schedules of classes as well as alternative methods of learning (i.e. distance learning opportunities like ICN and Internet classes).

Data & Information Collection Work Group
Objective: Collect information that presents a clear picture of professional development in early care and education in Iowa. Pieces that need to be identified are current training requirements for practitioners in early care and education, current wages, benefits, and education levels of individuals caring for children, positions or roles that individuals fill in early care and education agencies and organizations, what training is currently available to individuals, and what pathways of training and education are available. This group will draft a professional development framework that will recognize individuals experience, educations, competency, and professional commitment to the field of early care and education. The framework will facilitate career mobility within and between professional roles.

Core Competency Work Group
Objective: Identify a core body of knowledge for best practice for individuals working with young children. The work includes developing a list of knowledge and a set of observable indicators that practitioners would know and be able to do that would indicate quality caregiving practices. identify and describe quality performance. This core body of knowledge will enable professionals to assess their own competencies and plan their professional development. This tool can also be used, by administrators or directors, to evaluate other practitioners. The core body of knowledge will also be used to facilitate articulation, provide more consistent training in all competency areas, and provide better access to all types of training across all areas of the state.

Training Registry Work Group
Objective: Establish an early care and education computerized training registry that:

• documents pracitioners' education and experience,
• recognizes practitioners' competencies and awards certificates of achievement,
• documents training attained by practitioners,
• provides a state-wide training calendars from all sources providing training (for-credit and not-for-credit),
• enables tracking of demographic information on early care and education issues including need, turn-over, quality, and availability,
• provides career counseling and assessment to practitioners to facilitate their individual professional growth.
• registry would include all people in the early care and education field working with young children, including trainers.