On Monday last week (June 27) I participated in the Early Childhood Education 2019 Roadshow presented by the The Early Childhood Education Directorate (ECED).
I’ll be honest – I was hesitant to book in for the event at first as I thought it may be mostly directed at early childcare and not OSHC – but am so very glad I attended.
There was not a strong OSHC presence in the room however I felt the content of the whole day was very much relevant to the OSHC sector. OSHC was mentioned over and over – something we don’t normally get at these events, which was surprising and very much enjoyed.
I made sure, as one of the few OSHC people attending, to stand up and talk for our sector, as much as I don’t embrace public speaking – I love OSHC and I’m happy to talk about it.
“At no point did I feel it was an ‘us’ or ‘them’ situation, it was more like a feeling of unity. “
The day was positive with the ECED really reflecting on what they do, while their representatives were asking for our feedback to help with the next review. Every table was encouraged to write notes, share with the whole group, and then were collected by the ECED. It’s open forum’s like this that will ultimately lead to a higher level of care and service within the OSHC industry.
ECED representatives were moving around the room to tables to talk to us Educators. They were talking with us not at us. I really liked this approach. There were many questions asked by the ECED team when they came around, lots of reflective questioning on their side. It felt like everything that was being said in the room was genuinely being received by the ECED.
It was one group working together. It’s a session I’m very glad I attended. There can’t be change if we don’t get our voice heard, so we need to ensure we speak up.
I can’t wait to see what comes from the NQF review and urge everyone to complete the survey at… https://www.nqfreview.com.au/take-survey-now
From the website…
2019 Sector Roadshow
The Department of Education will be hosting the sector Roadshows in May and June 2019. Daytime sessions at each location will include sessions on policy, programs and a regulatory update, as well as a session on the NQF Review.
2019 NQF Review
The National Quality Framework (NQF) Review is now underway and the sector will have opportunities to contribute to the review process by attending a Roadshow session.
More information on the review can be found in EC Extra April 2019.
