Guest Posted October 10, 2003 Posted October 10, 2003 I would like to know whether other people have the same problem as me with professional development courses in the Foundation Stage. In our LEA we have to attend 4 days of Early Years courses per year but I find that the courses run are mainly aimed at Private nurseries, TAs or playgroups and are an insult to the intelligence of a qualified teacher (sorry nurseries, TAs and playgroups) The last one I went to on Emergent writing asked us to write down the 6 areas of learning in the ELGs and most are just to read through pieces of paper which would take us approxiamtely 10 minutes if left to our own devices.
mundia Posted October 10, 2003 Posted October 10, 2003 Id love the opportunity to go on more prof, dev. days- I havent been on a course of any sort for over 2 years- there's never any funding. I know it can be difficult if you feel that you know everything already and the course is not aimed at you, But I find it great to have time to network and share ideas with other people as I find nursery teaching especially very isolating. Most course also give the opportunity for feedback, so do you ever make your point, and do others on the course feel the same as you?
Steve Posted October 10, 2003 Posted October 10, 2003 That's a good point Mundia - I know Helen and others come away frequently thinking that they've spent an evening watching their granddaughers attempting to show them how to suck eggs. ) practitioners. It can be difficult to pitch courses at the right level - but of course this is part of the trainers role. They need to come up with course descriptions which indicate who the course is pitched at. And if they don't the feedback, as Mundia says, should let them know this! You could also approach your LEA with ideas for subjects you'd like to see! They are after all only employed in the first place to look after people like you...
Guest Posted October 10, 2003 Posted October 10, 2003 Hi Susieb I was quite insulted, and angered, by your inference that courses should be aimed at playgroups, private day nurseries TAs OR qualified teachers. I know you apologised but that sort of remark does annoy somebody like me who is teacher qualified and had 16 years experience in early years!! We struggle hard in pre-schools to prove that we work hard and provide a good, and more often than not, excellent standard of care and education for the children we work with. I attend courses where all settings attend, and yes I sometimes feel that I could have spent my time better. But that is the case whether you are from a school, nursery or pre-school/playgroup. I will not apologise if this seems a tad over the top-I have struggled for a long time now to make some people realise that what I have to provide is educational, stimulating but most importantly FUN!!!! Linda
Guest Posted October 10, 2003 Posted October 10, 2003 And by the way, not only do I have to provide education and care I also run this as a business, so I have to pay wages, do PAYE, pay bills, order supplies and keep the books. I am a carer, an educator, a secretary, a book keeper and a shopper. I think I need a modicum of intelligence to do all of these!! Linda
Guest Posted October 11, 2003 Posted October 11, 2003 Apologies I did not mean to imply that your intelligence was any less than mine, I do think that most people who work in early years are dedicated and hard working and my dissertation was about the people like TAs and others in the profession who have to do so much work and are paid so little, lets face it people who work in playgroups are now expected to do the same work that teachers do for a lot less pay. However I have recently undertaken a four year degree course and I find the courses I attend are saying the things I have already covered, I need to find out more! For example the Literacy courses I attend are inspiring and change my practice almost instantly, the Early Years courses don't.
Guest Posted October 11, 2003 Posted October 11, 2003 Hear, hear, Linda. I have often found that courses I have attended have been more suitable to reception classes who have the facilities, equipment, resources, etc. rather than pre-school settings who have to work in village/church halls and set up and pack away each day. I don't complain though but reap what I can from the training and adapt it to my own purposes. Susieb, if you feel you are wasting your time at LEA training you should speak to the 'powers that be' or do another degree course - but please don't take it out on us very hard-working, dedicated pre-school workers!
Helen Posted October 11, 2003 Posted October 11, 2003 This is a really interesting topic, with some relevant points being made here. Susie, I understand your frustration at attending courses which have not been suitably designed. We all have different strengths and areas for development, and it is the responsibility of the course organisers and presenters to adapt their course appropriately. Our LEA/ School Improvement service/EYDCP send out leaflets detailing all courses for early years issues, which also state who the course would be most useful for, eg reception/year 1, practitioners new to reception, pre-schools, all Foundation Stage practitioners, etc. You've made me think further along these lines, and perhaps course organisers should also consider putting a statement about how much training and experience they assume you have. That way, you would clearly see if a course was "suitable for those just starting out in FS work", or "suitable for those with limited experience/three years experience/ NVQ levels", etc. Of course, I wouldn't want to segregate all courses, as I particularly enjoy the cluster group meetings we have where ALL FS practitioners, wherever they work, come to share ideas and support each other. What do other LEAs do to present their courses to the appropriate audience?
Guest Posted October 11, 2003 Posted October 11, 2003 In Stockport we have two means of accessing training. One is through a training directory from the EYDCP-this is usually things like first aid, child protection, working with special needs, manager training and the list goes on. This is only accessible to people who are providing childcare-ie childminders, private day nurseries, out of school clubs and pre-schools with extended hours, although our training officer is very kind and lets all pre-schools access the training. The education department also provides courses and these are for settings who are in receipt of the nursery grant and maintained settings. Recent training has been observation, assessing, setting up child profiles, managing the foundation stage and more. Most of these tend to separate the settings into like for like although occasionally we are mixed. I attended one on observation recently which had pre-schools and LEA nursery practitioners attending. It was a good mix, there were only four of us, two from each, and we had two good sessions with a lot of interaction. The cluster group for our area is quite well attended with staff from all different settings attending. We usually chose a topic for each meeting and go along with ideas. It's very useful and we tend to rotate around the settings so it is good to see how other people work. But I do know that we are the exception and a lot of pre-schools and private day nurseries don't attend because they feel that teachers from maintained schools and nurseries treat them as second class citizens and are not taken seriously. It's quite sad really because I'm sure that they all have something to offer and everbody misses out because of attitudes. I have to be honest, this is one of my "soap box" topics and Susieb hit a sore point last night. I feel very strongly that pre-schools offer an alternative to mainstream nurseries, something that some parents want for their children. Let's celebrate diversity!!! Linda
Guest sophie Posted October 12, 2003 Posted October 12, 2003 Hi after just reading this topic I felt I had to reply to Susieb You may feel that after 4 years at university you cannot learn more. Try listening to the pre-school members that like myself are almost self taught we have a lot to offer. I have spent years researching my profession reading early years book etc, voluntarily working in a number of settings to gain information. I have been to the university of life.
Steve Posted October 12, 2003 Posted October 12, 2003 OK friends! Susie made a remark which she apologised for - it's easy sometimes to say something in a way which unintentionally sounds offensive. When you do so in a forum like this it's visible for ever, so unless we're all going to have to be extremely inhibited about what we say, let's be a little bit forgiving. Linda made her point very well, so can we not have a poll here about how many people agree with her please?? (that's supposed to be a persuasive smile...) Susie made an important point which I think Helen picked up on, which is that one size doesn't fit all in Foundation Stage training. If we can help bring this to the attention of all our LEAs and EYDCPs, this can only be a Good Thing? After all, practitioners and teachers are busy people, who often attend these courses in their own time (and frequently pay for the privilege!). So we're customers - so we need to be clear about what sort of service we want. What do people think?
Guest sophie Posted October 12, 2003 Posted October 12, 2003 thank you steve I'm sorry i added my point of veiw won't be visitiing again.
Steve Posted October 12, 2003 Posted October 12, 2003 Hi Sophie - I'm sorry you feel that way. My post wasn't directed at you or any of the others, but was asking for others in the future to consider that the point had been made. I hope you'll re-consider coming back again - we have valued your contributions in the past and would like to think you'll remain a member of the community! If people would like to disagree with me and take me to task, please feel free to PM or email me. I'll be hiding behind a virtual sofa somewhere! In the meantime, I'd love to hear comments about the need for better directed training...
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