High­-quality early care and education (ECE) relies on teacher training. However, state policies require that the ECE workforce attain only minimal preservice credentials, and the field needs more information about inservice professional development models that might effectively train teachers, no matter what their prior experience or education…

The authors report on a project in which a new experiential form of professional learning combined ethical thinking processes with a collaborative meeting technology known as the Zing team learning system (ZTLS). A new software program called "Working Wisely" was built by the completion of the project. The ZTLS in combination with…

This directory includes lists of people, agencies, and organizations that represent many of the key stakeholders in early childhood education career development and training work. It is intended to give activists from all walks of the early care and education field a place to start and a way to know to whom they should be talking both within and…

Training is often difficult to acquire for family day care providers because most training initiatives are workshops or seminars, which require a specific time frame and which are frequently scattered and lack continuity. A practicum project developed and implemented one unit, or module, of a 13-module self-instructional training program using an…

Last in four-part series on infant and toddler development, discusses professionalism in the context of required caregiving beliefs and practices in working with infants and toddlers. Presents four "common threads" of professionalism that transcend level of education and experience--specialized knowledge of children's development,…

Examines tasks for aging policies, programs, and practitioners: (1) meeting needs of elders from diverse groups; (2) managing a diverse elder care work force; and (3) supporting economic achievements of younger people while promoting their sense of solidarity with elders. Discusses the challenges for policy and program development and…

Notes that the environment in early childhood should be educational for students and their teachers. Stresses the need for improved staff-development opportunities. These sessions should mirror the caregivers' realities in who they are and how they see the world. Suggests that a way of seeing and respecting the lives of others should be offered…

An evaluation of an interdisciplinary team approach to the delivery of childcare provider training revealed that the 171 participants increased their knowledge in four key content areas. A statistically significant change occurred on all 16 content areas. The team approach can serve as a model for other collaborative efforts by extension…

Presents suggestions for early childhood teachers and caregivers to make the most of professional development opportunities. Recommends setting goals for training, determining one's learning style, identifying one's stage of professional development, and selecting the appropriate type of training. Presents specific guidelines for program-based…

Reviews Bassett's work intended to provide information to people training to be caregivers to infants and young children. Notes the clear presentation, wide coverage, and skill checklists. Recommends the book for parents and infant and child caregivers. (JPB)

Surveyed in-home child caregivers and employers about their child care environments. Found that the caregivers were mostly young, well-educated, hard-working, committed; typically, they showed child-related coursework in high school and were poorly compensated. Parents employing the caregivers were relatively affluent and satisfied with in-home…

The number of individuals diagnosed with autism has risen at an alarming rate. Expanding services should be a primary consideration of programs for children and their families. This article presents outcome data from a week-long parent education program for families of children with autism to suggest that parents can learn not only how to…

This DVD (duration: 1 hour 53 seconds) features 30 video vignettes that show parents and children--aged birth to 3 years--interacting during everyday play and routines. These vignettes, some in English and some in Spanish, are designed to be tools for professionals to use both in direct work with families and for training other early child…

The aims of this study were to examine effects of on-the-job feedback after conventional analog staff training and to corroborate earlier findings of competent performance maintained without feedback from others. The study took place in a nursing home with four staff participants and a resident with problem behaviors. A multiple baseline design…

Women's care work sits on the boundary between unpaid work in the private domain and poorly paid, low-status work in the public sphere. It continues to be a site for the expression of complex, high-level knowledge and skills, and of ongoing gender oppression. The aged-care industry is a particularly salient example of such work. It is a…