Working effectively with three educators

//www.youtube.com/embed/7RyBrni8iV8?autoplay=0&start=0&rel=0

Emily (Educator): [0:11] I think working as a team with the three of us in the room is giving us ways to broaden our ideas and share each other’s knowledge. Whether you’re a teacher, the Diploma, or the Certificate III, everyone is valued as a team member and the work together that we’re doing, you can see success out of it. Whether it’s one child that needs attention, you still know that there’s two people in the room, they can work with the other children and while you comfort, or assist, or support that child and their needs.

Karina (Educator): [0:30] It means all three roles have had the opportunity project work. So the Cert III is definitely up-skilling, because she’s now wanting to work with this project work. The diploma has just loved having the opportunity to really develop her skills, and it’s been a great way for us as individuals to get to know the children.

I would say having a meeting at the start of the year and really discussing expectations, like, “What do you feel your workload should be and what I feel your workload should be?” Have those difficult questions answered, because we come in with different expectations. So have that clear and make it specific.

Rose (Educator): [1:10] We’re not specific to our environment. If I’m outside, I don’t have to be explicitly outside. I can move inside, because there’s three of us.

Yes, saying - I feel that I’m not specific zoned to outside or inside. The children can freely move and choose which area they want, and then if they’re all outside and three are inside, that’s okay because there’re still two staff outside, and then the person inside gets to spend quality time with those three children. They don’t have to pack up because majority of the children are outside. We still are in ratio there.

Karina (Educator): [1:34] Children are able to choose more freely between the two spaces, and that third staff member is able to float between the two spaces easily. So it has also meant too, because there’s three staff, the three educators can move between the spaces a bit more.

Also, the opportunities for staff to call parents, particularly those hard-to-reach families, that’s working really well this year. We’re touching base more with families that we tend not to see.

Loretta (Educator): [1:57] So we plan as a team, altogether. We divide the children into focus groups, I’ve said before. But we will sit down as a team, look at what’s happening in the room, reflect on the observations of the children, change things that we need to change but we’re always mindful of the time that people have.

Rose (Educator): [2:22] There’s more ideas going into the planning, and I feel that the planning is more - is definitely high quality because there’s three staff looking at the program, there’s three of us collaborating together, there’s three of us building the team for the children, and working on the program together. It’s not just myself doing the planning. It’s three of us doing it.

Maria (Educator): [2:43] We actually get a bit of planning time in the morning session, before class. So we make a point of where the three of us, we stop putting out the … we stop whatever we’re doing in the room, and we have a group discussion about what activities, what resources, what kind of focus groups we need for observations. We basically just discuss everything at the beginning of the day.

Emily (Educator): [3:09] The opportunity with the additional educator is that we’re able to meet with the families at drop-off and pick-up. We’re able to speak to them through drop-off and pick-up time, and also having the additional programming time with our diploma staff is actually discuss what’s going with the families, and have that effective communication. But also to meet with the families and support them more if we need to.

Updated 30 September 2022

Economic Growth Statement

Mini vic.gov.au

Working effectively with three educators

About the VIC Government

Grants and programs

Jobs and careers

Arts, culture and heritage

Business and the workplace

Communities

Education and training

Environment, water and energy

Finance and economy

Housing and property

Law and justice

Safety and emergencies

Science and technology

Sport and recreation

Traffic and transport

Working in the Victorian Government