Assessing Quality of Early Care and Education: Lessons Learned from San Francisco’s Gateway to Quality

Abstract

This 10 year overview of a citywide program implemented to improve the quality of childcare and education in San Francisco provides a description of critical issues related to implementation of an assessment process as well as factors that influence success related to initiating and sustaining quality improvement efforts in early care and education (ECE). The population of interest included all licensed childcare programs and family childcare homes in the city and county of San Francisco receiving public funding and those serving families with subsidies. The assessment tool chosen by city childcare leaders was the Environmental Rating Scales (ERS) for preschool, infant toddler and family childcare sites. Quality improvement plans were developed based on the results of the assessment of each classroom or family childcare home, followed by technical assistance targeted at improving the quality of the environment and teaching practice. Because assessment scores are currently tied to city funded subsidies, motivation for participation in the program becomes a critical factor for those programs that depend on the subsidies. Lessons learned can support other endeavors to improve the quality of childcare and education and include engaging ECE teachers in intentional dialogue that results in internal motivation to improve the quality of their teaching, along with systemic supports that include teachers, families and funding streams to sustain quality care.

Quality of Child Care Using the Environment Rating Scales: A Meta-Analysis of International Studies

“…Third, in some parts of the USA, ERS have been seen as important tools for the evaluation and improvement of quality of care (e.g., Park et al 2012). Although studies that specifically targeted centers involved in quality improvement programs were not included in the meta-analysis, it is conceivable that the expectations for child care organizations to meet the ERS criteria are more common in the USA than in other countries.…”

A comparing key performance indicator and benchmarks of quality pre-school among the agency in Malaysia

“…While the best pre-school practice is to provide 120 titles of children's books, the average of the best book titles among MOE pre-schools is only 78 titles and followed by KEMAS 77 titles. This situation certainly constrains a child's potential to achieve best practice benchmarks, where every child has to read a book of 3,000 words per day [38]. The use of technology in teaching and learning (computer, audio visual, projectors, and smart boards) in some pre-schools helps teachers teaching and learning become more engaging, thus engaging children, however not all pre-schools use this facility.…”