Land-Grant Success Stories
in Competency Training
Child care programs improve competencies
of staff, quality of programs, skills of
families, and community resources and policies
for early care and education.
Child Care Provider Training
Parenting Education Related to Early Care
and Education
Child Care Provider Training
1. Title of Program:
Caring4Kids
State: University of Nevada
Cooperative Extension
Program Description: Caring4Kids
is a series of training modules that include
videos, self-study guides, and tests. The
modules, which count toward training hours
required by the state, are free and available
at 50 Nevada public libraries and Cooperative
Extension, university, and county child care
licensing offices. Interested child care
providers can check out the modules, read
the self-study guide, and watch a video at
their convenience. The study guide can be
downloaded from the Caring4Kids Web
site. A module on cognitive development is
available and approved for three hours of
child care training. The second module, Food
Safety in Child Care Settings, will be distributed
to the same locations as well as marketed
by direct mail to licensed caregivers statewide.
A third module, being developed as an Orientation
to Childcare in Nevada, introduces new caregivers
to licensing regulations, professional development
opportunities, and resources in early care
and education.
Accomplishments and Impacts: During
the first six months of the release of the
first training module, it was checked out
in the public libraries 110 times; during
the second month, 125 times. These figures
do not include multiple uses during the checkouts.
Nearly 100 phone calls on the child care
training were received during the first year
of release. One-third of the calls were from
home child care providers, more than half
from center-based providers, and 16 percent
from agencies. Comments from caregivers indicate
they appreciate being able to get their training
in an independent study environment because
it is difficult for them to attend formal
training sessions.
Contact: Crystal Swank,
Child Care Specialist
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
Mail Stop 140
Reno , NV 89557
Phone: 775-784-6490
Fax: 775-784-6493
E-mail: cswank@unr.edu
2. Title of Program:
The Better Kid Care Project-Satellite Training
Series
State: Michigan
Program Description: The
Better Kid Care Project has been offered
in 48 rural and urban Michigan counties since
1995. Within one eight- month period, 652
child care providers were trained.
As a result of providers attending this
free satellite training series, they obtain
knowledge and skills needed to provide high-quality
care for infants and toddlers. The public
receives the benefit of child care providers
who have gone through a quality training
curriculum.
Cooperative Extension staff used a variety
of educational techniques to meet the needs
of the local provider. In some counties,
the live broadcast of the session was shown.
Others used a recorded version at other times
and locations. Others partnered with local
agencies to create mini-conferences or retreats.
Accomplishments and Impacts: Facilitators
at the downlink sites reported that providers
learned appropriate child care practices
and increased awareness on a wide variety
of topics relating to the child care profession.
They have also gained a system of support
by creating a provider network among Better
Kid Care Project participants.
Contact: Lisa McGlone
Associate Program Leader
Michigan State University Extension
240 Agriculture Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824-1039
Phone: 517-432-7652
Fax: 517-353-4846
E-mail: mcglonel@msue.msu.edu
3. Title of Program:
GEMS: Growing through Education Means Success
State: Missouri
Program Description: With
funding support from the Missouri Department
of Health, Bureau of Child Care, a 36-hour
educational program was developed for entry-level
child care workers. The program is comprised
of a set of curriculum modules that address
child development (birth through school-age
and mixed-age groups), first aid and CPR,
positive guidance and supervision, working
with families, and accessing community resources.
The content was cross-referenced against
Child Development Associate functional areas
and Missouri 's recently adopted core competency
areas for child care professionals to guarantee
that program completion would count toward
other career development activities.
During pilot implementation, an extensive
program evaluation was conducted with the
84 providers enrolled in the program (43
center providers and 41 home providers; 42
program group, and 42 control group). Participants
completed an extensive written survey and
were naturalistically observed in their programs
before and after the educational program.
Sixty-six approved instructors were trained
with the GEMS Basic Early Care and Education
Orientation and provided input and
feedback on curriculum content and program
delivery. Additional GEMS modules
(including infant and toddler development,
partnering with parents, positive guidance,
and supervision) are planned.
Contact: Sara Gable, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor and State Specialist
Human Development and Family Studies Extension
306 Gentry Hall
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO 65211
Phone: 573-882-4628
Fax: 573-884-5550
E-mail: GableS@missouri.edu
4. Title of Program:
Child Care Provider Training
State: Maryland
Program Description: Each
year, Maryland Cooperative Extension (MCE)
conducts single workshops and conferences
for child care professionals across the state.
The workshops count for continuing education
clock hours. Training is available in all
county offices and the city of Baltimore
, but most child care training is conducted
by 80 percent of the county offices. Each
year, about 1,800 providers are reached through
training by MCE. Center and family child
care providers are reached, although family
child care providers are the biggest audience.
In addition to receiving clock hours toward
maintenance of regulated status, participants
can count their hours toward the Maryland
Child Care credential, which offers reward
and recognition to advancing levels of professional
development.
Accomplishments and Impacts: Evaluations
of individual workshops and conferences consistently
receive high ratings from participants for
satisfaction with the content and delivery.
MCE trainings are popular with child care
providers for their access, low cost, and
highly competent trainers. Assessments also
reveal individual workshops and conferences
to be rated by more than half of the participants
to be better than or much better than other
training in which they participate. Evaluations
show that most participants report expected
positive change in their interactions with
children and parents of the children in their
care; participants are also more motivated
to stay in child care and are interested
in taking additional training. Each of these
aspects is related to higher quality care
for children.
Contact: Susan Walker,
Ph.D.
Extension Family Life Specialist
Maryland Cooperative Extension, University of Maryland
1204 Marie Mount Hall
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: 301-405-8339
Fax: 301-314-9161
E-mail: sw141@umail.umd.edu
5. Title of Program:
Penn State Better Kid Care Program
State: Pennsylvania
Program Description: Designed
to meet the needs of rural and urban, home-based
and center-based child care providers,
the Penn State University Better Kid Care
Program has offered a variety of educational
opportunities for child care providers,
including direct trainings, distance education
via video and Web learning, newsletters
and other publications, and full-day conferences.
More than 50 satellite workshops have been
produced and broadcast in the past 7 years
on a variety of topics including child
development, curriculum planning, behavioral
issues, stress reduction, and management
for center directors.
The interactive satellite workshops feature
high-quality child care providers and experts
in the early education field. Video footage
from child care settings enables child care
providers to see the modeling of developmentally
appropriate practices. Handouts are developed
at the state level and distributed to local
Cooperative Extension offices for use at
each workshop. In a 2-hour period, the satellite
trainings include discussion and modeling
of best practices, on-site discussion facilitated
by local professional staff, handouts on
each workshop topic, live question-and-answer
period with workshop guests and, if needed,
follow up to questions via the Better Kid
Care telephone help line.
Five to eight satellite programs have been
offered each year since the program began
in 1995. Child care providers have consistently
given the Better Kid Care satellite workshops
high ratings. In the past year, more than
80 percent of the satellite participants
indicated the quality and usefulness of these
trainings was high to very high on a five-point
rating scale. Ninety-five percent of the
workshop attendees said they would recommend
these trainings to others.
Accomplishments and Impacts: Approximately
70 percent of the counties in Pennsylvania
downlink each satellite workshop to an audience
of more than 800 child care providers across
the state. Nationally, Better Kid Care satellite
trainings are downlinked in 46 other states,
with a viewing audience of approximately
50,000 attendees per workshop. Each broadcast
is taped and used by other institutions and
agencies, such as community colleges, resource
and referral agencies, extension offices,
school districts, and public television.
Contact: James E. Van
Horn
Professor of Rural Sociology
Penn State University
253 Easterly Parkway
State College, PA 16801
Phone: 814-863-0339
Fax: 814-865-7893
E-mail: jev@psu.edu
6. Title of Program:
First Steps: A Training Series for New
Child Care Teachers and Directors
State: Tennessee
Program Description: In
Tennessee all newly hired child care teachers
are required to participate in a 2-hour preservice
training within the first 30 days of employment,
and all newly hired directors are required
to take a 4-hour preservice training. The
University of Tennessee Extension Service
was asked by The Tennessee Department of
Human Services (TDHS) to develop and to teach
a curriculum to meet these requirements.
The 2-hour teacher curriculum has three
sections: Ages and stages of development
(infants through preschoolers), developmentally
appropriate practices, and health/safety.
The 4-hour director curriculum includes sections
on parent involvement, communication, staff/parent
relationships, conflict resolution, and interviewing
skills. The program is so effective, the
TDHS gives credit for the training to ALL
child care teachers and directors, not just
newly hired employees.
Accomplishments and Impacts: Over
a 1½-year period, more than 15,000
child care providers and 1,500 directors
were trained through the First Steps project.
Results via pre/post-tests show an average
knowledge gain of 45 percent for all participants,
and more than 90 percent reported the training
as “excellent” or “good.”
Contact: Dr. Matthew Devereaux
Assistant Professor/Child Development Specialist
The University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service
119 Morgan Hall
Knoxville, TN 37996
Phone: 865-974-7193
Fax: 865-974-3234
E-mail: mdevereaux@utk.edu
7. Title of Program:
The Best Care
State: Arkansas
Program Description: Child
care provider training that meets both the
minimum licensing requirements and training
criteria development by the Arkansas Early
Childhood Professional Development System
is conducted by the Arkansas Extension Service.
Teaching strategies include traditional face-to-face
workshops in the local community, compressed
interactive video (CIV), and Internet courses.
Extension faculty who train the trainers,
and those who deliver the training to providers,
are approved trainers of the Arkansas Professional
Development System.
The Best Care is a 10-hour
training program that uses a multidisciplinary
curriculum developed by a team of extension
specialists. It provides training in 1) resource
management, 2) nutrition, 3) health and safety,
and 4) child development.
Best Care Myths and Magic is
5-hour compressed interactive video (CIV)
training. CIV takes recognized experts in
child growth and development to multiple
rural audiences simultaneously. It also features
locally facilitated activities to engage
participants. Three 1-hour 40-minute modules
were presented, a total of 5 hours of instruction.
The sessions were: 1) “Principles of
Guidance,” 2) “Promoting Emotional
Health in Young Children,” and 3) “Environmental
Factors that Impact Children's Development.”
Best Care Connected is
a 5-hour program offered via the Internet.
The course focuses on the business management
aspects of operating a child care program.
The topics include: Selecting Professional
Advisers, Policies and Contracts, and Marketing
Your Child Care Program. Best Care Connected
has online activities and quizzes to ensure
child care providers are participating fully
in the course.
Accomplishments and Impacts: In
2002, Extension agents delivered the Best
Care training program in 82 sessions
totaling 277 hours of training to 1,820 child
care providers at 42 sites. Best
Care Myths and Magic was broadcast
to six sites and reached 241 child care providers. Best
Care Connected had 246 participants
enroll for the Internet course, and 79 completed
the course by the deadline. Combining all
delivery modes, a total of 2,307 child care
providers participated in The Best Care program
at 85 sessions totaling 297 hours of training
(the hours spent by those who worked individually
on the Web-based course are not included
in this total).
Contact: Traci A. Johnston,
Child Care Assistant
University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service
2301 South University, P.O. Box 391
Little Rock, Arkansas 72203
Phone: 501-671-2364
Fax: 501-671-2294
E-mail: tjohnston@uaex.edu
8. Title of Program:
The Whole Child
State: Wisconsin
Program Description: Approximately
170,000 children are in licensed child care
settings in Wisconsin , which range from
in-home family providers to large facilities
with numerous staff. Most of these child
care providers have high school diplomas
and have completed the state-mandated 40-
or 80-hour coursework. Child care personnel
must complete 25 hours of continuing education
each year. Completing this requirement is
a challenge, especially for providers in
rural areas.
The Whole Child video series was
highly rated by the participants, and evaluations
showed they gained knowledge. Child care
providers enjoyed coming together in 14 different
counties to view the videos and discuss child
development with each other.
Accomplishments and Impact: Using
a 5-point rating scale, they answered three
questions about each episode. Average scores
were consistently 4.0 or above, indicating
positive responses on each of the four episodes
for each of the three questions. Based on
caregivers' responses, this child care training
program probably had a direct positive effect
on the quality of care provided by these
individuals.
Wisconsin Public Television and UW-Extension
Family Living Programs teamed up to improve
the quality of child care by providing The
Whole Child to child care professionals
throughout Wisconsin. By working together,
child care professionals throughout Wisconsin
had the opportunity to learn up-to-date child
development information.
Contact: Mary Roach, Ph.D.
Child Development Specialist
Early Childhood Excellence Initiative
UW-Extension
432 N. Lake Street, Room 301
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: 608-262-6041
Fax: 608-263-7969
E-mail: mroach@facstaff.wisc.edu
Web: http://www.uwex.edu/ces/flp/ece
9. Title of Program:
New York State School-Age Care Credential:
Professional Development for SAC Providers
State: New York
Program Description: Cornell
Cooperative Extension (CCE), the New York
State Office of Children and Family Services
(OCFS), and New York State School-Age Care
Coalition (NYSSACC) have engaged in a partnership
to create, pilot, and implement the New York
State School-Age Care (SAC) Credential. They
are supported by Human Development faculty
from Cornell University . This credential
is a much-needed response to the lack of
long-term staff and career development in
school-age care and to help maintain the
idea that working in school-age care programs
requires a professional commitment to children
and families.
The New York State SAC Credential is a staff
development model that not only emphasizes
quality care and child development issues,
but also professionalism, communication,
and managerial skills. A typical preparation
program includes 120 classroom hours and
requires the participants to document their
competencies with a portfolio and resource
file. They are observed in their work setting
by an adviser who offers helpful feedback,
a parent representative, and the credential
endorser assigned to them. All of this information
is collected at a Local Assessment Team (LAT)
meeting at which the candidate, the adviser,
the parent representative, and the endorser
discuss and vote on each of the competencies
prescribed by the credential.
Accomplishments and Impacts: In
2000, several host agencies were selected
according to location and commitment to the
SAC Credential program. These agencies conducted
credential preparation classes under the
supervision of the credential team (CCE,
OCFS, and NYSSACC).
A corps of 48 SAC Credential Endorsers from
across the state was trained to observe and
conduct the LAT meetings. An endorser is
assigned to a candidate who applies for a
credential visit. The program hopes to add
another 15-20 endorsers to this group annually.
OCFS further increased the importance of
this credential by adding it to the list
of background requirements for site coordinators
in the most recent New York State School-Age
Care regulations.
Just over 100 candidates have earned credentials
through the Continuing Education Program
at Cornell University . There are 50 candidates
within the system, either working in a classroom
setting, through individual training, or
within a community college.
The need for more classes has expanded the
number of host agencies. This year the number
of hosts is expected to double and thus provide
more opportunities for individuals to participate.
Many graduates from the New York State SAC
Credential program became site coordinators,
OCFS registrars for their counties, and even
advisers and endorsers for new candidates.
Contact: Moncrieff Cochran,
Professor
Cornell University
Department of Human Development
MVR Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853-4401
Phone: 607-255-2260
E-mail: mmc6@cornell.edu
10. Title of Program:
Child Care Nevada: Training for Early Childhood
Caregivers That Works
State : University of Nevada
Cooperative Extension (UNCE)
Situation: Many Nevada
child care givers are undereducated and ill
prepared to deal with daily interactions
with children. University of Nevada, Las
Vegas ' Nevada Institute for Children, reports
that 41 percent of child care providers in
the state have a high school diploma or less.
A recent statewide survey of caregivers found
that less than 12 percent of class participants
had two or more years of child development
or early childhood education. Working Mother
Magazine ranked Nevada 47th in the nation
in the quality of child care. Children of
working parents are typically in the care
of others for the major part of each working
day, and research indicates the quality of
the care received is directly related to
the level of education and training of child
care providers. Quality care is vital for
healthy development of young children. Needs
assessment indicates a continued, and perhaps
increased, need for child care provider education.
Increasing the education of providers can
enhance the quality of care received by thousands
of children. In addition, people who work
with children, if properly trained, can help
stop child abuse, a major issue in Nevada.
UNCE is an integral part of increasing the
availability of caregiver education statewide.
Accomplishments and Impacts: In
the past 15 years, more than 6,000 caregivers,
each of whom provides care for from 4 to
17 children, have participated in 3-hour
workshops. Each of the more than 6,000 caregivers
received a certificate for 3 hours of in-service
early childhood education. Based on participant
reports, the potential number of infants,
toddlers, preschoolers, and school-age children
affected annually by the Child Care Nevada
workshops is 6,656. Pre- and posttests were
designed to measure changes in knowledge
for each workshop. Paired t-tests (N=2,720)
indicate significant gains in knowledge regarding
developmentally appropriate activities and
child development (p<.05 or higher) for
each of the workshops. A 1- to 2-month follow-up
evaluation has been done for three different
workshops. Participants were randomly selected
and completed a brief telephone or mailed
survey. Follow-up surveys (N = 250) indicate
that from 50 percent to 90 percent of the
participants have taught young children at
least one activity learned through a workshop,
indicating a behavior change for caregivers.
Almost half of those responding to the follow-up
evaluations have shared curriculum materials
with four to five other caregivers. Additionally,
in a recent independently conducted workforce
study, more than half the center and home
caregivers in Nevada reported participating
in UNCE workshops.
Contact: Jackie Reilly, Youth Development
Specialist
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
5305 Mill St.
Reno, NV 89520
Phone: 775-784-4848,
Fax: 775-784-4881
E-mail: reillyj@unce.unr.edu
Sally Martin, Ph.D., CFLE, Professor
Department of Human Development and Family Studies
University of Nevada, Mail Stop 404
Reno, NV 89557
Phone: 775-784-7009
Fax: 775-784-6493
E-mail: smartin@unr.nevada.edu
PARENTING EDUCATION RELATED TO EARLY
CARE AND EDUCATION
1. Title of Program:
Positive Parenting (MN-PE-1)
State: Minnesota
Program Description: The
primary components of Positive
Parenting are:
1) Positive Parenting and Positive
Parenting II —companion
video-based parent education curricula
of 12 lessons, for use with parents of
preschool and early-elementary age children;
2) Positive Parenting of Teens —an
eight-lesson, video-based parent education
curriculum for use with parents of early
adolescents (aged 10-15); and
3) The Growing Season: A Parent's
Guide to Positive Parenting of Teens —an
eight-unit guide, with a video and a booklet,
intended for at-home use by parents of
early adolescents. The curricula include
video segments, lesson guides, parent handouts,
learning aids, reference lists, and evaluation
tools.
4) A curriculum, called Love & Limits,
is designed for low-income parents.
Positive Parenting is
designed for use in parent education or parent
support groups and is flexible since each
lesson is an independent unit that can be
used alone and in any sequence. Positive
Parenting emphasizes both nurturance
and nonviolent, behavior-oriented discipline.
Nurturance involves love, warmth, interest,
involvement, and communication. Discipline
includes two components: 1) behavioral control—limit-setting,
monitoring, and limit-enforcement; and 2)
psychological autonomy—granting youth
respect, privacy, and individuality. Parents
are also reached through a series of recorded
telephone messages on positive parenting
topics (accessible through the University
of Minnesota Extension Services “Info-U” 880
number), a quarterly electronic newsletter,
and the dissemination of positive parenting
messages via the media, special campaigns, “no-hit” days,
grocery-cart messages, soda pop cans, displays,
and many other means.
Accomplishments and
Impact: Evaluation of parent education
classes using Positive Parenting curricula
shows high levels of satisfaction among
educators and parent participants. Nearly
90 percent of respondents report “significant” behavior
changes. In addition, community leaders
in an experimental county (Goodhue County)
indicate that the public awareness campaign
has resulted in increased awareness of
positive parenting messages, especially
the negative impacts of physical punishment.
As of Summer 2001, more than
3,000 Positive Parenting curricula
were distributed to 44 states and 4 other
countries. Based on random sample interviews
with participants, an estimated 300,000 parents
have been reached by programs using these
materials. Pre- and post-impact measures
from Positive Parenting and Positive
Parenting II show statistically
significant levels of change in the recommended
direction for 28 of 36 measures. The largest
changes were reductions in the use of physical
punishment and “scolding and yelling.” Increased
use of recommended nurturance and discipline
techniques was also reported—including
calming techniques, listening, modeling, “catching
child being good,” explaining, greater
patience, and redirection. In addition to
behavior change on the part of parents, data
indicate that children were better behaved,
more cooperative; more responsible and helpful;
happier, calmer; listening better; less aggressive
or violent; displaying a better “attitude”;
and more confident. Limited evaluation data
for Positive Parenting of Teens indicate
similar positive results, with statistically
significant levels of change in the desired
direction for 21 of 34 measures.
Contacts: Rose Allen Renee Obrecht- Como
Title: Extension Educator Curricula Coordinator,
Extension Youth & Family Development
Institution: University of Minnesota Extension
Service, University of Minnesota
Ramsey County College of Human Ecology
Address: 2020 White Bear Avenue 64 McNeal Hall
1985 Buford Avenue
City/State/Zip : St. Paul, MN 55109 St. Paul, MN 55108-6142
Phone: 651-704-2080 612-624-1791
Fax: 651-704-2081 612-625-6285
E-mail : allen027@umn.edu or robrecht@umn.edu
2. Title of Program:
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Implications
for Professionals and Agencies Video Satellite
Program
State: Wisconsin
Program Description: Grandparents
raising grandchildren face major changes
and challenges. Most professionals need more
information to better serve these grandparents
and address emerging social and educational
concerns.
In January 1999, UW-Extension, Family Living
Programs, Purdue Cooperative Extension, and
the American Association of Retired Persons
developed a video satellite program viewed
by more than 3,200 professionals from various
family agencies and organizations at 286
sites throughout the United States and Canada.
The satellite program focused on how communities
can work together to support grandparents
as they raise their grandchildren.
In Wisconsin, 219 participants explored
core issues facing grandparents at 26 different
sites. Nearly 9 in 10 (89.5 percent) participants
rated the program as excellent or good.
Accomplishments and Impacts: More
than 86 percent of participants said they
better understand issues and concerns facing
grandparents raising their grandchildren.
Eighty-four percent better understand programs,
resources, and services available to support
grandparents raising grandchildren.
- 71 percent plan to use resources mentioned
in the program.
- 64 percent plan to expand services or
programs for grandparents
- 30 percent plan to start a support group
for grandparents raising grandchildren.
The video conference showed how professionals
worked with grandparents to bring about change.
Nearly two-thirds (66 percent) of participants
in Wisconsin made a commitment to collaborate
to address local needs and concerns of grandparents
raising grandchildren. Thirty-eight percent
will provide educational programs, and 13
percent will seek funding for programs and
services. Seventeen percent of participants
planned to get involved in a statewide network
or task force, and eight people plan to work
on changing state laws that create barriers
for grandparents raising their grandchildren.
Contact: Mary Brintnall-Peterson,
Ph.D.
Program Specialist in Aging
University of Wisconsin-Extension
432 N. Lake Street, Rm. 301
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: 608-262-8083
Fax: 608-265-0787
E-mail: mary.brintnall-peterson@ces.uwex.edu
3. Title of Program:
Building Strong Families: Parenting Young
Children
State: Michigan
Building Strong Families: Parenting Young
Children is a parent education program for
diverse, limited-resource parents with children
from birth to 36 months. The curriculum includes
multicultural, cartoon-style flipcharts,
real-life videotapes, experiential learning
activities, recall concept sheets, and instructor
training manuals. It has four units: How
Kids Develop, Helping Kids Behave, Playing
to Learn, and Smart Living.
The curriculum is delivered by paraprofessionals
through home visits and small group sessions.
As a result of this program, it is hoped
that parents will learn to respond to children
in ways that are appropriate to their development
and create positive, safe environments for
children.
Program Accomplishments and Impacts:
There are 2,821 participants in the Building
Strong Families (BSF) evaluation database.
Pre-and posttest data on parenting behaviors
were collected using the Parenting Behavior
Assessment (PBA). The PBA uses parental self-report
to assess changes. Statistical analysis using
paired T-tests showed that parents made changes
in their parenting behaviors (p<.000)
after participating in the BSF program. Specific
changes were found in the following areas :
- Increased parenting behaviors related
to promotion of language development (p<.000)
- Increased parenting behaviors related
to social, cognitive, and physical development
(p<.000)
- Increased parenting behaviors related
to the development of child's self-help
skills (p<.000)
- Increased use of positive discipline
techniques (p<.000)
- Increased use of nurturing behaviors
(p<.000)
Contact: Dawn Contreras,
Ph.D.
Program Leader
240 Agriculture Hall
East Lansing , MI 48824
Phone: 517-353-9102
Fax: 517-353-4846
E-mail: contrera@msue.msu.edu.
4. Title of Program:
The Nevada Literacy Program
State: University of Nevada
Cooperative Extension (UNCE)
Situation: Reading to a
child is part of giving that child a healthy
start. If parents and caregivers can be educated
to establish daily reading-to-children activities,
it will promote school readiness and foster
positive parent/child and caregiver/child
interaction. Literacy is a major concern
in Nevada . One quarter of Nevadans, nearly
300,000 youth and adults, are illiterate.
They cannot read or write well enough to
do simple tasks, such as filling out a job
application or reading a newspaper. The foundation
for literacy is laid during the preschool
years by parents who read to their children,
who have books and magazines at home, and
who model reading and writing. A child between
ages one and six who shares a book with an
adult for 15 minutes a day will have had
455 hours of individual reading instruction
before entering school. This reading time
fosters children's interest in reading and
builds confidence, while at the same time
eliminating some of the consequences of poor
literacy skills including grade retention,
school failure, school dropout, delinquency,
unemployment, and underemployment. Parents
who speak Spanish as their primary language
cannot always teach their preschoolers English
because of limited language skills. Breaking
this cycle is important to ensure both Spanish-
and English-speaking preschoolers have reading
skills to succeed. A 1999 needs assessment
showed that more than 60 percent of vulnerable
parents in Las Vegas were not reading to
their children.
Program Description: Family
Storyteller is a multi-agency, family literacy
project aimed at increasing the amount and
quality of time parents and young children
spend together in literacy activities. The
program is designed for families with preschoolers
and beginning readers, especially parents
who may have limited language skills and
few children's books at home. The 6-week,
parent-child interactive reading program – first
developed by UNCE in western Nevada – includes
parent-child workshops, free books, and materials
to complete literacy-extending activities
at home. Curriculum materials include: (1)
introductory material and individual suggestions
for facilitators; (2) planning and marketing
guides; (3) detailed workshop lessons for
each meeting and handout masters, including
descriptions of take-home packets, leader
guides, home activity guides for families
(also available in Spanish); (4) forms and
suggested procedures for program evaluation;
(5) a videotape containing six segments – one
for each lesson – of parents reading
books with their children; and (6) one sample
set of home activity packets for families
(materials and information available through
contact persons).* In Las Vegas, UNCE built
on its successful Children's Books for Healthy
Families/Libros de Ninos Para Familias Saludables,
which developed family strengths by teaching
reading methods and providing culturally
appropriate reading books for vulnerable
Spanish- and English-speaking parents and
children. Staff was trained to present Family
Storyteller, with programs starting in summer
2001.
Accomplishments and Impacts: To
assess the overall impact of Family Storyteller,
seven new evaluation techniques were developed,
which require few reading and writing skills
to complete. In western Nevada , 525 parents
have rated the major components of the workshops
either 4 or 5 on a scale from 1 to 5 (extremely
satisfied). Pre- and posttest workshop assessments
conducted at sessions 1 and 6 revealed statistically
significant (dependent t-tests, p < .05)
increases in the: amount of time parents
read with children, number of days parents
and children read books together, number
of days children asked to be read to, number
of days children looked at books or magazines
alone, how much parents enjoyed reading with
children, and how much children enjoyed being
read to by their parents. In-depth pre- and
posttest workshop assessments were completed
with a selected number of participants ( N =45)
and revealed that children had significant
gains (dependent t-tests, p < .05)
in their understanding of basic book reading
skills (as measured by the Concepts of
Print ). Parents improved (dependent
t-tests, p < .05) in their reported
use of key interactive reading skills: letting
children pick out books, sitting close with
their children; talking about the cover of
the book; having children guess what happens
next; having children name pictures, using
expression in their voices, pointing out
new words connecting the story to real life,
reading slowly, asking children what happened;
having children retell the story; and setting
a regular reading time. More than 130 English
and 19 Spanish copies of the curriculum were
purchased by agencies outside Nevada . Family
Storyteller received an Outstanding Community
Literacy Program award from the Nevada Literacy
Coalition. An article on the program was
published in Journal of Extension and
various Nevada publications. In just six
months of Family Storyteller programming
in Las Vegas , more than 1,000 participants
(about one-third Hispanic) were reached,
and more than 3,000 books were distributed.
A final 2-year evaluation of nearly 2,500
families in Children's Books for Healthy
Families revealed: group classes that participated
in pre- and posttests showed 89 percent gained
significant knowledge; home visits showed
a significant improvement in “neither
slaps nor spanks child” as well as
an increase of children's books in the home.
More than 200 follow-up telephone surveys
showed results similar to the parent-child
reading impacts achieved by Family Storyteller
in western Nevada.
5. Title of Curriculum/Program:
The Lunch Box Program—Packing Healthy
Take-Along Lunches for Preschool Children
State: California
Situation: Approximately
6,000 parents with preschool children in
San Luis Obispo County enroll their children
in child care programs that require parents
to send lunches to school. A Cooperative
Extension observational study of 528 lunches
parents sent to school with their children
found:
Food Groups:
60 percent of the lunches contained three
or less food groups. Food groups were represented
in lunches as follows:
- 16 percent of the lunches included a
vegetable.
- 69 percent of the lunches included a
fruit or 100 percent fruit juice.
- 75 percent included a dairy product
(includes milk served at lunch by schools).
- 77 percent included a protein food.
- 91 percent included a grain.
- Low-nutrient Foods:
- 81 percent of the lunches contained low-nutrient
foods. The average lunch contained 1.4
low-nutrient foods. The most common low-nutrient
foods were:
- Fruit Drinks—in 44 percent of
lunches
- Jelly—in 36 percent of lunches
- Chips—in 20 percent of lunches
- Fruit Snacks/Fruit Rolls—in 17
percent of lunches
- Cookies/Granola Bars—in 15 percent
of lunches
Safety: 23 percent of the
lunches could become unsafe by lunchtime
from foodborne bacteria.
A written survey completed by 92 parents
who send lunches with their preschool children
found that 88 percent of parents believe
they pack nutritious, safe lunches. Parents
indicated challenges when packing children's
lunches including: 36 percent--honoring child's
food preferences, 35 percent--including variety,
21 percent--nutrition, and 20 percent--time.
These results suggest an educational opportunity
for parents to learn about nutrition and
food safety needs of their children and how
take-along lunches can contribute to children's
health.
Program Description: The
target population was parents who pack lunches
for their children to take to preschool.
This population closely represents the overall
demographics of San Luis Obispo County (77
percent white; 17 percent Hispanic, 3 percent
Asian, 2 percent black, and 1 percent Native
American). Participating preschools were
selected from throughout the county and with
different fee requirements in an effort to
reach most socioeconomic groups, with the
exception of very low-income families, who
would participate in government child care.
Most parents enroll their children in preschools
to provide care for their children while
parents are employed. Parents report the
many demands on their lives leave little
time to plan lunches for their children.
Yet parents want to provide for the health
and well-being of their children today and
as they grow. Therefore, educational information
that parents can read as their schedules
allow, that provides information on the nutritional
and food safety needs of young children,
and has easy ways to meet these needs would
be welcomed by parents.
Accomplishments and Impacts: A
3-month assessment was conducted at two preschools
in San Luis Obispo County to determine program
effectiveness in helping parents pack more
nutritious and safer lunches. Thirty-two
parents participated and signed a human subject
research consent form, but were not told
when the evaluation would occur or at what
point in the evaluation process lunches would
be assessed. The educational program consisted
of parents receiving a different brochure
from The Lunch Box series once
a week for 5 weeks at their children's preschools.
All parents at the preschools received the
brochures, but only the lunches sent by parents
who signed consent forms were assessed. Assessments
occurred at three points: before parents
received the brochures, 1 week after receiving
the fifth brochure, and 1 month after receiving
the fifth brochure. No other nutrition or
food safety information was provided to parents
by the preschools during the assessment period.
The following statistically significant changes
(p < .05) occurred in the lunches parents
packed for their children after receiving The
Lunch Box brochures: 1) more lunches
included whole-grain breads, 2) more lunches
contained protein sources, 3) more lunches
were packed safely, and 4) lunches contained
fewer low-nutrient foods.
Contact: Shirley Peterson
Nutrition, Family & Consumer Sciences Extension Adviser
2156 Sierra Way #C
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401-4556
Phone: 805-781-5951
Fax: 805-781-4316
E-mail: sspeterson@ucdavis.edu
6. Title of Curriculum/Program:
Fathers Reading Every Day (FRED)
State: Texas
Program Description: FRED
is a 4-week program developed by Texas Cooperative
Extension to encourage fathers, grandfathers,
and other positive male models to read to
their children daily. The program had two
goals: to increase father involvement in
children's literacy development and to improve
the quality of father-child relationships.
Expected benefits are consistent with these
goals. To implement the program, extension
agents partner with interested community
organizations. Participants completed the
program by:
- attending educational events,
- receiving program resources,
- reading to children daily (15 min./day
for first 2 weeks; 30 min./day last 2 weeks),
and recording information in a reading
log,
- attending events with their children,
and
- completing a pre- and posttest evaluation.
Accomplishments and Impacts: Results
from nine counties that have implemented
and evaluated FRED using the pre- and posttest
instrument show that participants completing
the program (N = 123) spent an average of
9.0 hours reading with their children and
averaged 39.6 books over the four-week period.
Paired t-tests indicate significant increases
from pre- to posttest in a number of areas,
including the amount of time fathers spent
reading to their children, t (122) = 10.08,
p <.001; number of books read during a
typical week, t (122) = 9.01, p <.001;
level of involvement in their children's
education, t (122) = 2.79, p <.01; amount
of time spent with their children, t (122)
= 3.74, p <.001; quality of time spent
with their children, t (122) = 3.05, p <.01;
quality of the relationship with their children,
t (122) = 2.18, p <.05; and level of satisfaction
with themselves as parents, t (122) = 2.20,
p <.05.
The following results were summarized from
fathers' post-only responses:
- 50.4 percent (62 out of 123) reported
that FRED “Got them reading to their
child every day.”
- 63.4 percent (78 out of 123) reported
that FRED “Increased the time I spent
with my child.”
- 62.6 percent (77 out of 123) reported
that FRED “Improved the quality of
the time I spent with my child.”
- 60.2 percent (74 out of 123) reported
that FRED “Increased my satisfaction
level as a parent.”
- 63.4 percent (78 out of 123) reported
that FRED “Improved my relationship
with my child.”
Fathers overwhelming indicated that the
program helped them to find time to spend
with their children in a productive and rewarding
activity. In open-ended responses, many fathers
indicated that they noted improvements in
their children's vocabulary, reading ability,
and interest in books as a result of participating
in FRED. Below are a few examples of open-ended
responses from participants:
“The thing I liked most about FRED
was the excitement my child had and anticipation
of the reading time.” “It created
an avenue for me to spend some quality time
with my daughter.” “FRED got
me more involved in their reading…the
discussions I had with them with reference
to the reading matter greatly improved their
comprehension of story plot and word vocabulary.”
Contact: Stephen Green,
Ph.D.; Assistant Professor & Extension
Child
Development Specialist;
Texas Cooperative Extension,
The Texas A&M University System;
311 History Building; 2251 TAMU;
College Station, TX 77845-2251
Phone: 979-458-4224
Fax: 979-845-6496
E-mail: s-green@tamu.edu.
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