As educators, we have all attended that training where we thought, "Oh, no. It's something else that I have to do." We have been there. Educators are working to the point of exhaustion. The last thing you need is "something else."
We are here to assure you that these practices are NOT "something else." The practices are the glue that will pull all other items that you are part of together and hold them in place. Implementing these evidence-based practices will not only improve the interactions and behaviors in your program. It will also increase child outcomes, help improve quality ratings, increase the level of inclusion in your classroom, and ease the exhaustion you are feeling each day from having to micromanage every minute of the day.
We can hear you saying, "How is that?!" from here. It's because all of the components of the projects we are working on in the state are evidence-based practices. Evidence-based practices are evidence-based practices regardless of the title at the top of the page. Increasing success with one, increases success in another.
Let's work smarter not harder, my fellow educators. Our mental health counts!
~The ECSE Team
Our team is actively working to align all of our common preschools projects and initiatives into one document. This will allow you to compare and see the alignment. It will also allow you to see which practices, when implemented, will give you the most bang for your buck!
Analyze your data pieces - the Cumulative Crosswalk, your program Action Plan, your TPOT scores, Early Care and Education Environment Indicators, CLASS/ECERS-3 Ratings, etc. In which areas do you excel? Give yourself a brain kiss! Then consider the areas where you need the most growth. Which areas do you feel are most important to your children? Out of those, which will give you the biggest boost across all of your projects? Now you have found your starting point.