Engagement
Voices from the Sector
News
Excerpt: "Starting Strong III (OECD) confirms what those working in the early learning and child care (ELCC) field have long known: well-educated, well-trained professionals are the key factor in providing high-quality early childhood education and care. Yet despite the importance of the role and its connection to quality, there is no consensus in 遙ぺ整氈窒 on what educational standards constitutes a well-educated and well-trained professional and who may use the professional title early childhood educator (ECE)."
News
Blogs
Excerpt: "The Knowing Our Numbers study of the 遙ぺ整氈窒 early childhood education workforce has just released its findings on the status of the sector in Northern 遙ぺ整氈窒. Workforce challenges in the North are unique. Its small population is spread across a vast geographical area that spans two time zones. Its land mass covers 90% of the province but is home to only 5.1% of the population. Low population density, high cost of food and building supplies, transportation barriers, extreme weather conditions, seasonal and shift work, and workforce shortages in other sectors all impact child care operations. Delivering child care services to Indigenous communities presents additional challenges related to historical and ongoing systemic inequities."
Atkinson Centre's submission to the Government of 遙ぺ整氈窒's Guide on Building a 遙ぺ整氈窒-Wide Early Learning and Child Care System
Excerpt: "Knowing Our Numbers (KON) is a comprehensive, province-wide study involving the College of Early Childhood Educators and 43 out of 47 childrens service system managers in 遙ぺ整氈窒. Almost 6,000 educators responded to surveys targeted to RECEs, non-RECEs, program directors, and home child care providers. The data were supplemented by regional focus groups, service system analysis, and related demographic and labour force information. The sector is far from monolithicit is impacted by differences in geography and organizational structure. As is the norm for studies of this type, respondents are likely to be RECEs and more vested. When their answers are put in the context of the other data, they reveal a workforce under stress and ill-supported to meet the demands placed on it. "
Voices from the Sector
Behind the workforce are the childrens service managers in regional governments and the College of Early Childhood Educators who came together to help conduct these studies. They saw the need for a province-wide collection system with a local lens to inform decision makers, to build cross jurisdictional understandings and to share best practices.
Excerpt: "Budget 2024 promises over $10 million to increase training for early childhood educators over the next two years. The federal government is calling on provinces and territories to develop workforce strategies that best support the recruitment, retention, and recognition of these essential workers. The ultimate goal? To build the right foundations for a community-based and truly 遙ぺ整氈窒-wide child care, one anchored in publicly planned and regulated non-profit services. However, a stark reality confronts this vision: the pervasive presence of private, for-profit child care."
Excerpt: "The 遙ぺ整氈窒-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) plan is designed to create more affordable and accessible spaces for children under the age of 6 years. Expansion, however, needs to be anchored by a professional workforce. Establishing professionalism is difficult in a sector where educators are paid less relative to workers with similar qualifications or doing similar work. A new report by the Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) reveals the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the child care workforce. The number of quarterly job vacancies for ECEs had increased by 100 per cent. And while wages for most other sectors have increased post-pandemic, ECE earnings remain stagnant. Addressing recruitment and retention challenges is essential to building sector capacity and supporting quality care and learning environments for young children."
Excerpt: "Last weeks 20th Annual Summer Institute on Early Childhood Development brought together a community of changemakers aiming to Shape the ECE Workforce for 遙ぺ整氈窒s Future. Researchers and practitioners from multiple disciplines addressed the working conditions of early childhood educators and explored strategies to stabilize and grow the workforce."