Assessing Child Care Environments

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Assessing Child CareEnvironments

• Bethany Geldmaker, PNP, Ph.D.
• Program Director
• Early Childhood Health

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Assessing Child Care Environments

• Understand the use of tools in assessing child
  care environments
  
• Review the Infant Toddler Environment Rating
  Scale
  
• Use the ITERS in the child care site visit

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Environment Rating Scales

• Why are the assessment scales needed?
• To assess process quality in child care

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Process Quality

• Assessed primarily through observation
• Interactions between children, staff, parents,
  other adults
  
• Interactions of children with materials and
  activities within the environment

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Process Quality

• More predictive of child outcomes than structural
  indicators such as staff to child ratios, group
  size, cost of care, and type of care (e.g. center
  care versus family day home)

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Environment Rating Scales

• A quality program must provide for the following
  basic needs of all children
  
• protection of health and safety
• building positive relationships and
• opportunities for stimulation and learning from
  experience.

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Environment Rating Scales

• There are 4 rating scales, each designed for a
  different segment of early childhood care
  
• Infant/Toddler
• Early Childhood
• Family Day Care
• School Age Care

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Environment Rating Scales

• Each of the scales has items to evaluate
• Physical Environment
• Basic Care
• Curriculum
• Interaction
• Schedule and Program Structure
• Parent and Staff Education

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Environment Rating Scales

• The scales are suitable for use in evaluating
  inclusive and culturally diverse programs
  
• Have proven validity and reliability

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Environment Rating Scales

• The scales define environment in a broad sense
  and guide the observer to assess
  
• arrangement of space
• materials and activities
• supervision and interactions
• support offered to parents and staff and
• schedule, routines, and activities.

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Environment Rating Scales

• View simulation video and practice using the
  infant/toddler and early childhood scales
  
• You will be going into child care sites and
  practice using select scales

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Resources

• www.fpg.unc.edu/ecers
• Caring for Our Children Health and Safety
  Standards