Sharing Web Resources

            The organization I chose was Early Childhood Australia.  Their link is

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/  I spoke about their focus on my last blog but I will briefly restate it so you do not have to re-read it.  It is an early childhood advocacy organization much like NAEYC.  I am assuming it is similar to NAEYC because it appears that way from looking through the website and it has some links to NAEYC articles.  I like how it is a resource for providers, professionals in the field, and families. 

            The major newsletter published is called Voice and its latest issue came out in mid February and it can be accessed online at

http://earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/ECA-flipbooks/voice/ECA_Voice_1401/#/0

The current issue happening in Australia was on the front page and it caught my eye.  To sum it up, the government is looking at ways to create a more productive economy and is looking at early childhood as a place to put funding for that reason.  The two main reasons they are looking at more funding into early childhood is that it has better outcomes for children, which last into adulthood.  Also by children have access to quality care, the parents can feel better about putting them into care and re-enter the workforce.  Early Childhood Australia (ECA) is advocating for funding in the following ways.  They want 90% of 3-5 year olds to have access to quality care by 2020.  The are advocating for a new investment model that would allow low-income families to have 90% of their out of pocket costs of child care paid for and for the government to fund subsidies for low-income families.  Finally they are advocating for professional wages and further government support for other workforce development and training.  I about fell out of my chair when I read this article because these are things we are fighting for here in North Carolina and the United States.  I loved how the Australian government recognizes that investing in early childhood has economic benefits.  In North Carolina, we have an organization spreading that information to government officials and business people.  It is called the First 2000 Days.  Check out their website!  I also liked how ECA is asking for money to increase teacher pay and help further professionalize the field.  I know one issue in America is that centers are not able to pay the staff a lot of money and therefore the staff do not have the money for additional schooling without going into debt.  If our government helped, I know it would be a huge incentive for our teachers to get more schooling and degrees.

            What stood out to me the most from the newsletter coincides with a demographic issue:  socio-economic status.  It is hard for children from low-income families to have access to childcare much less have access to high quality care.  But in Australia, it is being advocated that at least 90% of children from low-income families have access to care by 2020, which is only 6 years away.  What surprised me even further is that subsidy for middle-income families is also being advocated.  In America, low-income families have to fight to receive subsidy and even then there is not enough money for all the families.  Middle-income families are not able to receive help.  It is enlightening that Australia is trying to help out other socio-economic classes.  I consider my family barely middle class and it is a struggle to pay for things.  One reason I started in early childhood is so I would not have to pay full price for childcare.  Otherwise, my family would not have been able to afford it.  I joke that I have to work hard to be poor.  But everyday I see families that make too much money to receive aid struggle to make ends meet and send their child to childcare.  Yet a parent cannot afford to quit work and be a stay at home parent because the family needs both incomes.  I commend Australia for recognizing this struggle and ECA for advocating on their behalf.