The Early Education Show

Expert Insights from UOW Early Start

Listen to three fantastic conversations that are part of University of Wollongong Early Start’s Expert Insight series, facilitated by Leanne Gibbs. The discussions include:

• Dr Gai Lindsay on children and the arts
• Associate Professor Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett and Professor Marc de Rosnay on how to support children’s emotions when the world is changing
• Dr Lyn Cronin on school transitions during COVID-19.

 

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

What does the history of advocacy for early education tell us about today? (with Eva Cox)

COVID-19’s impact on the early education sector has meant that we’ve been having advocacy conversations that we didn’t expect to be having in 2020. The Government implemented free early education - for a short time. Early childhood educators were seen as frontline workers - but not supported properly. Will this be a brief moment before we get back to normal, or have things changed for good? Australia has had lots of changes to our early education system before, thanks in no small part to advocates and feminists who pushed for fairer and more equitable policies and systems. What does that history tell us about what’s happening today?

To discuss that question, Lisa and Liam are joined by one of Australia’s leading advocates for social reform - Eva Cox.

 

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

Early education is “snapping back”. What does it mean for children, educators and families?

The Federal Education Minister has announced that the Child Care Subsidy system will be back on Monday July 13, along with a number of other new measures. From the Government’s perspective, the economy is getting back to normal, and the early education sector is first cab off the rank for “snapping back”. But the Government’s planned transition is complex and will require an already-strained sector to once again adjust to significant changes. What does this all mean for children, educators and families?

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

How do families and the sector work together for a better ECEC system?

This episode, we’re bringing you the audio from an online Town Hall Meeting conducted by parent advocacy group The Parenthood on Tuesday the 26th of May. Lisa was invited to speak on the panel, alongside Danielle Wood, an economist from the Grattan Institute; Polly Dunning, a teacher and writer; and Jay Weatherill, the CEO of Thrive by Five.

 

The event was hosted the Parenthood’s campaign director Georgie Dent, and tackled a variety of important questions - including how families have been affected by the funding changes to the sector, what free ECEC would mean for Australia, how educators and the sectors can be better valued, and what we all need to do to work together as advocates during this time.

 

We’d like to thank The Parenthood and Georgie Dent for allowing us to re-broadcast this event - we think it’s great advocacy.

 

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

How do educators support children during times of change and uncertainty?

Like the rest of Australia, the early education sector has had to significantly change the way we operate over the last two months to managed COVID-19 risks. A lot of this time has been spent worrying about funding and financial security, but it’s also opened up opportunities for experimenting with new ways of working. This episode, we wanted to turn the conversation back to children and educators and hear from early education professionals about how children are responding to these changes.

We’re bringing you a conversation with six people from the Northside Community Service team Liam works with, discussing the operational changes they’ve made and some of the unexpected results. That conversation is facilitated by psychologist and consultant Beth Macgregor.

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

How do we advocate for free ECEC after COVID-19?

Australia’s early education sector has been given a huge shake-up during the COVID-19 outbreak. The Child Care Subsidy system was replaced with a Government Relief Package that provided centres with 50% direct Government funding, and eliminated the usual gap fee paid by parents. In effect, children are now getting their early education for free. But the current funding system is short term and doesn’t fit all centres. This episode, we’re going to ask the question - how do we advocate for properly-funded, permanent, universal and free early education after COVID-19?

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

Why have ECEC services and schools been treated differently during the COVID-19 crisis?

The COVID-19 health crisis continues to affect the entire world. Governments have had to respond to the effects of this crisis in different ways, as we have seen right here in Australia. For those of us who work in early education, we’ve seen some stark differences between how ECEC services and schools have been treated when it comes to health advice, closures, funding and more. This episode, we look at those differences, think about why they’ve appeared, and how we respond as advocates both during and after this crisis.

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

How has COVID-19 changed the early education sector so far?

The COVID-19 health emergency has changed so much of our society, and for the early education sector has overturned almost everything about how we operate. Over the last 6 weeks we have seen an increased focus on infection control and hygiene practices, the sector nearly collapse as enrolments dropped, educators and teachers start to think about how to work with children remotely, and the Government implement a completely new funding model over a single weekend. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

In this episode, we’re taking a step back, and taking a breath. We’re going to reflect on what this intense period of change has meant, what’s stood out for us, and what we’ve learned. To do this, we’re also joined by a special returning guest to the podcast - advocate, software developer and policy expert Karl Hessian.

Did the Government just announce universal free access to ECEC in Australia?

“As of Sunday night, What we will be doing is turning off the old system and going to a new system.” Those were the words of the Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan earlier today, as he stood next to the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and announced wholesale and immediate changes to how Australia funds early education. It’s hard to underestimate what this will mean, but what we know is the sector has four days notice that the Child Care Subsidy system - which took over nearly 3 years to develop and legislate - will be gone, and a new system of direct Government funding of services will be in place on Monday. And the Conservative Prime Minister of this country stated that ECEC will be free. 

Lisa, Leanne and Liam try to wrap their heads around what this announcement means for the sector.

 

Disclaimer: This episode was recorded at 7PM on Tuesday 2 April 2020. Information may have significantly changed since this time. Please check official Government sources for updated information.

 

Find the shownotes for this episode at earlyeducationshow.com.

How can we stay connected to children and families during isolation?

The COVID-19 situation remains the biggest issue facing Australia’s early education sector. Although the Government is saying that early education services should remain open to support the economy, children are leaving services in droves. It seems likely that at some point services will be directed to close. What does this mean for young children and their learning? What does “remote learning” look like in the early years? How can we stay connected to children and families during a period of isolation?

To help us discuss these questions, we’re joined by Jo Grimmond and Martha Johnson from the University of Wollongong’s Early Start team.

Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.