Summary Report, Good Start, Grow Smart, State Early Learning Guidelines Roundtable
From Blueprint to Reality: Early Learning Guidelines Implementation
Index: Preface, About The GSGS Initiative, Overview of the GSGS Roundtables, Summary of Key Points: Effective Collaboration; Infrastructure for Support; Dissemination of Information; Integration of ELGs into the Professional Development System; Assessment and Evaluation, Conclusion/Acknowledgements, Appendix: Agenda, Participant List, Work Group List | (This document is also available in 
PDF format.)
OVERVIEW OF THE GSGS ROUNDTABLES
Toward the first GSGS goal, Partnering with States To Improve Early Childhood Education, a consortium of Federal agencies has hosted two Good Start, Grow Smart State Roundtables. The first, in September 2002, focused on the development of ELGs, including coordination across child care, Head Start, and State education agencies in ELG development. Based on insights gained at this meeting, the Child Care Bureau, through the Child Care Technical Assistance Network, delivered training over the past 2 years to assist States with research, strategic planning, and other efforts designed to ensure that ELGs are of the highest quality and are linked to coordinated systems of professional development. (The Summary Report from the 2002 GSGS Roundtable is available at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/law/guidance/archives/acf118/summary.pdf.)
On October 13, 2004, a second GSGS Roundtable was held in Washington, DC, focusing on the implementation of ELGs. This meeting highlighted the expansion and extension of working relationships across Federal agencies, including the formal establishment of a Good Start, Grow Smart Interagency Work Group with representation from many offices in HHS and ED. (See Appendix for a membership list, 2004 Roundtable agenda, and participant list.) Ten States2 (some of which had been present at the first meeting in 2002) shared their experiences in implementing ELGs across early childhood programs, described how they have integrated ELGs into their training and professional development systems, and explained how their evaluation and assessment efforts are providing outcome results. These insights into States’ experiences will inform the work of Federal agencies as they continue to develop strategies to support State and local communities’ efforts to implement the priorities of GSGS.
This summary report presents a brief overview of five key themes that emerged in the 2004 GSGS Roundtable:
- Effective Collaboration
- Infrastructure for Support
- Dissemination of Information
- Integration of ELGs with the Professional Development System
- Assessment and Evaluation
Content shared within these five themes builds upon the lessons learned in the first Roundtable, and reflects the growing knowledge in the States about how to effectively implement national goals in the context of State-specific needs and resources.
For example, effective collaboration has been a key element in developing ELGs. Collaboration among all early care and education stakeholders within a State builds a coherent vision for young children and garners support for the value of the efforts to build or strengthen the infrastructure for quality early care and education. This report elaborates on the necessary elements of building effective collaboration to implement ELG, such as taking time to build relationships across agencies, linking to the private community as well as the legislature, and developing structures to encourage leadership and institutional support.
As States have continued their efforts to disseminate and implement ELGs, the necessity of building an infrastructure for support has become more urgent. Similarly, integration of ELGs with the professional development system is imperative. As noted in the 2002 Roundtable, to effectively disseminate ELGs, the early education workforce needs training and structural supports within licensing, higher education, and training organizations to build providers’ skills and knowledge in supporting young children’s learning.
These and other lessons learned by the States since the launch of GSGS in 2002 are captured below. Please note that this summary is based on meeting minutes and is an attempt to share key points made within these five themes. State-specific information provided may not be comprehensive or all-inclusive and is not fully developed in this report. It is offered to alert the field to the kinds of State activities that are ongoing, and to provide interested parties the opportunity for possible follow-up with State representatives. All information presented here was current in October 2004. For additional information, readers are encouraged to contact Roundtable participants directly.
2States represented at the meeting included Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island,and West Virginia. (States in bold were also present at the meeting in 2002.) 