January 2012
In this Issue: From the Director :: Ready Families Update :: Ready Schools Update :: Ready Professionals Update :: Partner Updates :: Professional Development Corner - The Importance of Feedback
As many of us have already heard, Washington State is one of nine states to receive the Race to the Top funds. The Department of Early Learning’s website provides the following information:
“The Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge grant competition focuses on improving early learning and development programs for young children by supporting states' efforts to:
- Increase the number and percentage of low-income and disadvantaged children in each age group of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers who are enrolled in high-quality early learning programs;
- Design and implement an integrated system of high-quality early learning programs and services; and
- Ensure that any use of assessments conforms with the recommendations of the National Research Council's reports on early childhood.
Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge grants were awarded to states that are leading the way with ambitious yet achievable plans for implementing coherent, compelling, and comprehensive early learning education reform.”
To view more information about Washington’s Race to the Top application, visit http://www.del.wa.gov/government/racetotop/Debbie Ham
Director of SELF
Ready Families met on January 9th and discussed action steps toward their strategic plan goals. Reconvening the Home Visiting Network is part of the strategic plan and members will form a work group to explore ways we can resume that learning and support group. For upcoming meetings, the group discussed speakers and topics of interest to Clark County. Suggestions include The New Heights Clinic and the Partnerships for Healthy Neighborhoods study, being led by the Clark County Health Department in partnership with Vancouver Housing Authority and several apartment complexes in the Heights and Burton area. If you have specific topics or resources to share or about which you'd like to get a 20-minute presentation, please contact Wilma Jackson.
The Ready Schools group did not meet during the month of December, choosing instead to focus on outreach efforts to encourage people who had been involved with the Kindergarten Transition Summary Form pilot process to provide feedback about their experiences. The group met on Monday January 9th to review survey results from child care/preschool providers and kindergarten teachers. These results, along with other key considerations, will help guide and inform next steps that strengthen the kindergarten transition process.
In addition, SELF was recently awarded $15,000 from Thrive by Five to support early learning collaboration connected to the WaKIDS kindergarten transition process. SELF's regional team, comprised of preschool teachers, child care providers, kindergarten teachers, principals and district administrators from Saint Helen's Elementary School in the Longview School District and Orchards Elementary in the Evergreen School District, developed a plan that will promote collaboration among child care/preschool providers and kindergarten teachers. Implementation timeline runs from January through June and includes:
- Convene data analysis meetings to review TS GOLD child assessment results and identify strengths as well as gaps
- Based on this information as well as other pertinent community data, a School Readiness Report will be generated that will describe the community strengths, gaps and priorities for moving forward to address challenges
- These reports will be shared with district administrators and the larger community.
- Early learning programs and kindergarten teachers will meet with their program or school staff to identify how this data and information could be used to inform their instructional and programmatic practices. This information will be shared with program, building and district administrators who can use this information when making decisions about professional development.
- A list of brainstormed suggestions will be prioritized and implemented as resources are available
In June, SELF's regional team will again participate in a state-wide meeting to share information about our local early learning collaboration work, our lessons learned, and future goals. This process will encourage communities across the state to continue to build on successes and strive for quality and continuity for young children and their families.
Ready Professionals wants to see you at our Professional Learning Community events! The PLC meets the second Tuesday of each month at various locations. The PLC is a facilitated discussion for anyone working with children 0-5. We reflect on our practices, engage in dialog with other professionals, share and experience new viewpoints within early learning, and align practices. The next PLC will be held at WSU-Vancouver on February 7, from 6:30-8 pm.
If you would like to become involved in the work of Ready Professionals and support high-quality professional development opportunities for early learning professionals in Clark County, please come to our Preview Tea on Monday, February 27, from 1:30-3pm. We will be sharing the work of Ready Professionals and opportunities for you to get involved.
Professional Development Opportunity: Enhancing Parent Connections: Facilitating Supportive Group Conversations, presented by Lawrie Williams and Lyn Kratz
This 5-6 hour workshop is designed for parent leaders who have a range of experiences with groups - from beginners to more experienced. It is focused on basic skills training in group facilitation. Topics include elements of supportive group conversations, stepping into the facilitator role, skills for facilitating supportive group conversations, common group challenges, and more. The workshop includes time for self-reflections, small and large group discussion, videos, mini-presentations and opportunities for practice.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
9:00 am-3:00 pm
The ARC of Southwest Washington
6511 NE 18th St.
Vancouver, WA 98661
MAP
Light breakfast provided by Parent to Parent SW Washington; lunch provided by Lawrie and Lyn. Please RSVP to Brenda Tyrrell at (360) 953-1597.
If you would like to provide an update on your organization to be included in the monthly SELF Partner Updates, you can email Holly King at holly@kingtlc.com by the 5th of the month for inclusion in the newsletter.
Professional Development Corner - The Importance of Feedback
"Feedback is the breakfast of champions." -- Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
Last month, we took a look at goal setting for the new year. This month, we are focusing on using feedback to help us stay on track toward goal achievement. Feedback is sometimes a scary concept, because we tend to really only like positive feedback and be afraid of hearing negative feedback. However, negative feedback is very important as it gives you valuable information about how to stay on course toward your goals. One of the best things you can do for yourself is change your response to negative feedback, turning it into something that helps you rather than something to be avoided at all costs.
According to success author, Jack Canfield, there are several ways of responding to feedback - some that work and many that don't. Here are some of the responses that don't work:
- Caving in and quitting. When receiving negative feedback, one reacts as though they are a failure and simply gives up.
- Getting mad at the source of the feedback. Reacting with anger and defensiveness pushes people and the feedback they are giving away.
- Ignoring the feedback. One may tune out everyone's point of view but their own, and refuse to hear anything else.
Some more effective ways to respond to feedback are to treat is as simple information, rather than criticism. You can use this information to help you adjust what you are doing and get to your goal faster. And, feedback can transform our lives if we only listen!
Here are some tips for effectively using feedback:
- Ask for feedback. Most people will avoid giving feedback if not asked, because they are as uncomfortable with possible confrontation as you are. To get useful feedback, you will need to ask for it, and make it safe for the other person to give it to you. Make a list of things you would like feedback on, and who you might ask, and start asking!
- Use a scaling question. Jack Canfield suggests consistently using this type of question to gain valuable feedback: On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate the quality of ______________ (our relationship, our service, our product) during ______________ (the last week, quarter, season)? Any answer less than a 10 gets the follow-up question: What would it take to make it a 10?
- Be willing to ask. Many people don't ask for feedback because they are afraid of what they might hear. You are better off knowing the truth than not knowing it, because once you know the truth you can do something about it. You can't improve if you don't have feedback.
- Listen to the feedback. Feedback can come in various forms and it's important to recognize and listen to feedback however it comes. Listen externally to what others are telling you, but also listen internally to your body, your feelings and your instincts.
- Learn from feedback. Whether you have positive or negative feedback, take the time to reflect on what you've learned. If the feedback indicates that you've had a failure experience, acknowledge that you did the best you could with what you had at the time and write down what you learned so you can use this information in future work. Take time to also write down successes that you've had and review those regularly - you've done many more things right than you've done wrong!
Above all, stay focused on your vision and goals. Incorporate the lessons you've learned, and then get on with your plan.
For more on this topic, check out:
The One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell
The Art and Science of 360° Feedback by Richard Lepsinger and Anntoinette D. Lucia
The Success Principles by Jack Canfield