Our Approach
We strive to support quality improvement through partnerships with the program administrators and teachers, in which the Infant/Toddler Specialist serves as a facilitator of change but the program participants direct the path of success.
Our Infant/Toddler Specialists work side by side with directors and teachers to help develop a service plan that meets the individual needs of each program and builds on the strengths of each provider.
Our delivery model is unique in that we move with participants from training, into the classroom where we can help put knowledge into action. We also provide opportunities for teams of teachers to meet with the Infant/Toddler Specialist when they are not responsible for the children, so they can reflect on the changes they’ve been working to implement, discuss challenges, and celebrate successes. Each of the service plans we offer is customized to meet the individual needs of each program and build on each provider’s strengths.
Interactive
The SC PITC Network training is presented using a comprehensive series of videos and active adult learning strategies. They are designed to help child care administrators and infant/toddler teachers become sensitive to infants’ cues; connect with each infants’ family and culture; and develop techniques to provide responsive, relationship-based care.
Built on Partnership
The SC PITC Network recognizes that a program’s capacity for change is tightly bound to the leadership of its director. Our Infant/Toddler Specialists offer guidance to support that leadership and facilitate the achievement of goals. The impact of the SC PITC Network services in a program is directly linked to the commitment and participation of the director. We seek to support change through the establishment of strong partnerships in the program.
Reflective
Reflection is a powerful tool that can enhance program quality and enrich the experiences that directors have with their staff and that teachers have with the children and with each other. The Infant/Toddler Specialists will support reflection at multiple levels:
- Reflective Action Planning sessions will be held on a regular basis. During these meetings the Infant/Toddler Specialist will come together with teachers and, under the guidance of the director, set goals, develop strategies to achieve goals, reflect on successes and challenges in meeting goals, and develop new strategies to meet those challenges. This ongoing process will support the program’s implementation of the program polices that are core components of high quality care.
- Team Teacher Reflection Meetings will be facilitated by the Infant/Toddler Specialist. During these meetings teachers who work as a team in the same classroom will come together to reflect on their observations, examine their current practices, and generate new ideas to meet the ever changing interests, needs, and development of the individual children in their care. The reflective process will be used to guide the adoption of a responsive curriculum.
- The Reflective Process is a continuous cycle of inquiry that supports a responsive curriculum. The cycle moves from observation to documentation to reflection & planning to implementation of curriculum. In order to provide responsive care, teachers need to be thoughtful and purposeful in the choices they make about all aspects of the care they provide to young children. The reflective process provides teachers with a method for reflecting on the development of each child individually and the group of children as a whole. Investing in the reflective process also helps keep the job of the teacher interesting. They become researchers in their classrooms observing the children to decipher the meaning behind their play, uncover their interests, and determine developmental progress. In doing this the teacher acquires a deep understanding of the individual children in her/his care and can use her/his focused observations to inform her/his preparation of new learning experiences for the children that are appropriate and personalized. This continuous cycle allows the teachers to remain in tune with the ever changing interests, and development of the children.
