The Early Education Show

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.

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.

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.

“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.

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.

Early education services and professionals have not had detailed advice from Health Departments or Education Departments about exactly what infection control processes services should be following during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. As Leanne, Lisa and Liam are not infection control experts we decided to ask someone who is. Kylie Warren Wright is Goodstart Early Learning’s National Safe Work and Wellbeing Manager, and she’s responsible for giving health and safety advice to over 650 early education services. Lisa chatted with her to discuss how we can stay healthy at work during a pandemic.

After an unprecedented summer of fire and smoke, communities around Australia are facing yet another emergency situation. Coronavirus, or COVID-19, is spreading around the world, with the World Health Organisation officially declaring it a pandemic. Although the risk to most people is minimal, countries - including Australia - are having to take significant steps to try and minimise its impact. These measures will have a big impact on early childhood services, and the children and families they work with. This episode, we’ll try to provide as much facts and clarity as we can about the situation we’re all facing. Disclaimer: This episode was recorded on Tuesday 17 March 2020. Information may have significantly changed since this time. Please check official Government sources for updated information.   Episode links Coronavirus (COVID-19) current situation and case numbers (Department of Health) Coronavirus (COVID-19) health alert (Department of Health) Coronavirus (COVID-19) information for schools and early childhood centres, students and parents (Department of Health) Coronavirus (COVID-19) information sheet for child care providers and services (Department of Education) Coronavirus (COVID-19) Webcast for Child Care Providers and Services 19 March 2020 (Department of Education) Affected by coronavirus (COVID-19) (Services Australia) Coronavirus (COVID-19) and children in Australia (Raising Children Network) Cash flow assistance for businesses (Australian Government) Coronacast with Dr Norman Swan (ABC Podcast) COVID-19: Implications for business (McKinsey & Company) ‘It’s okay to be scared’: Norway holds children-only COVID-19 press conference to allay growing fears (SBS News)

Australia has just come out of a terrible summer of unprecedented bushfires. According to the Australia Institute, More than half of all Australians have been directly affected by bushfire crisis, including millions suffering health effects. This includes young children and their families, as well as educators and services. Entire communities will be dealing with this summer for years to come. This episode, Lisa and Liam discuss what working with young children now means as we face an ongoing climate emergency that will affect the children we work with long into the future. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

The inaugural National Children’s Commissioner Megan Mitchell has released her final report on children’s rights in Australia. It’s described as a “full and frank look” at how Australia is faring on a range of areas related to children and young people, and makes over 80 recommendations to improve our record. This episode, Lisa, Leanne and Liam have a discussion about how the early education sector is engaging with issues of children’s rights, before we hear from an interview Liam conducted with Megan Mitchell on her report and her time as the first Children’s Commissioner. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

It's the end of another year, which mean's it's time for our annual Year in Review episode! We look back on the year that's been for early education, look ahead to 2020 and answer some listener questions. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

6000 children under 5 live in Mt Druitt in NSW. 33% of those children are considered ‘developmentally vulnerable’ when they start school. The Hive is an initiative started in 2015 by the Ten20 Foundation, United Way Australia, and NSW Family and Community Services to ensure that all children in the 2770 postcode start school well. This episode features voices from the graduation ceremony of the Collaboration 4 Learning (C4L) project, a unique professional development opportunity established for educators to engage in their own research projects. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

The NSW Government has announced that services in NSW will be required to display a star rating alongside their usual National Quality Standard rating, in an apparent bid to help families better understand ratings. The star ratings have had a very mixed response from the sector, raising issues of professional identity, the marketing of the NQF to the community and how well services are being supported to improve quality. Lisa, Leanne and Liam discuss this new initiative before Lisa chats with presenter and researcher Anthony Semann. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

Christmas, Anzac Day, Melbourne Cup, Mother's and Father's Days, Australia Day - celebrations have become a controversial and challenging topic for many in the early education sector. This episode, we take a look a like at why celebrations are so contested and how educators can explore different perspectives on commonly-held celebrations. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

This episode, we’re spending some time thinking about educator and teacher practice in the first three years. There’s a huge amount of advocacy out there for the importance of the first five years, but plenty of research points to the idea that the first three years are even more important for children. Yet infants and toddlers practice in the sector often receives far less attention than the years just before school. To look at this area from two different perspectives, Leanne and Liam spoke separately with Dr Andi Salamon, an early childhood teacher, researcher and advocate, and Lauren Hibberson, an Infants Team Leader with Northside Community Service. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.

This week, SNAICC and Family Matters have released a Position Paper endorsed by more than 80 organisations and individuals calling for the establishment of a national commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. Liam talks with SNAICC CEO Richard Weston about why this position is needed and what a commissioner could achieve. Find the full shownotes at earlyeducationshow.com.