Activity 1.1 | Exploring the System and Systems Thinking
| Site: | RRU Open Educational Resources |
| Course: | Leading and Innovating in the Early Childhood Education Sector |
| Book: | Activity 1.1 | Exploring the System and Systems Thinking |
| Printed by: | Guest user |
| Date: | Thursday, 21 November 2024, 9:17 PM |
Introduction to Activity 1.1
Exploring the Systems and Systems Thinking
In Topic One's first activity, you will explore the complex system you are a part of to gain insight and inform your strategies as an ECE manager and leader.
Furthermore, you will consider the impact of complex systems and the impact of developing systems thinking skills and how using scenario planning as a management technique can support aspirational goals and help you to navigate uncertainties and proactively address challenges.
After completing the various learning events within Activity 1.1, you will be able to:
- Define systems thinking, explain the various ECE systems you are a part of, and identify your role in those systems to advocate for change
- Explain the principles and processes required to support the operation of a quality, sustainable ECE program with well-cared-for ECE staff
- Readings
- Exploring a map of the BC Childcare landscape
- Engaging with visuals, such as infographics
- Watching Videos
- Self-reflections
- Asynchronous quizzing (immediate feedback)
- Analyzing a case study
The ECE System in British Columbia (BC)
Notably, British Columbia (BC) has four different types of child care: (1) licensed, (2) registered license-not-required, (3) license-not-required and (4) in a child's own home.
Read the following descriptions to identify the types of child care defined by the BC Government:
1. Licensed child care facilities
Licensed childcare facilities are monitored and regularly inspected by regional health authorities. They must meet specific requirements for health and safety, staffing qualifications, record keeping, space and equipment, child-to-staff ratios, and programming.
2. Registered license-not-required
These are unlicensed care providers. They must have registered with a Child Care Resource and Referral Centre. To register, operators must have completed:
- Criminal record checks (for everyone over age 12 living in the home)
- Character references
- A home safety assessment
- First aid training
- Childcare training courses or workshops
Registered care providers also have access to support, training, resources and group liability insurance.
3. License-not-required
These child care providers can operate legally in B.C. They are not registered or licensed and are not monitored or inspected. Unlicensed child care providers do not have to meet health or safety standards.
Legally, the child care providers can care for up to two children (or a sibling group) who are not related to them. They may be operating illegally if they have more than two children in their care.
Parents and guardians are responsible for overseeing the care and safety of their children in these care arrangements.
4. In-child's-own-home
This unlicensed care is when parents arrange for child care at home – like a nanny or a babysitter.
The BC government (n.d.) has developed an interactive Child Care Map to identify all BC's licensed and registered ECE providers. This searchable web map (using geospatial data) that allows those accessing it to search by program type, city, distance, or services offered.
Take a few minutes to explore the map before navigating to the next page of this activity.
ECE Registry
To work as an ECE or ECE Assistant in a licensed child care facility in B.C. you must be certified by the ECE Registry. On the BC Ministry's ECE Registry Website, you can access links to learn about the certificate types and requirements, how to become certified, how to renew your certificate, how to record your PD hours, validate other ECE certifications, and find ECE educational opportunities.
Access the BC ECE Registry Website for more information.
Contact the ECE Registry
PO Box 9961 STN PROV GOVT
Victoria, BC V8W 9R4
Duty to report
If you think a child is being abused or neglected, you have the legal duty to report your concern to a child welfare worker.
Phone 1-800-663-9122 any time.
Guidelines, acts, frameworks & calls to action
Beyond licensing requirements, ECE managers in British Columbia (BC) should look to various existing guidelines, acts, frameworks, and calls to action to broaden their lens and support their leadership decision-making responsibilities.
Take some time to visit each of the provided links to access and review vital text-based information, videos and multimedia resources from each of these critical lenses:
- BC Early Learning Framework
- Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act
- ECEBC Code of Ethics
- Indigenous Early Learning and Childcare Framework
- Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action
- United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
- The Science of Early Child Development (SECD) research portal
The ECE System in Canada
This activity (activity 1.1) will begin by supporting you in examining the ECE system in Canada broadly and then more narrowly within a British Columbia context.
To understand how the ECE sector is organized and managed in Canada, it is essential to note that Canada is a nation of 10 provinces and three territories. As such, ECE governance falls across federal, provincial and territorial authorities. Additionally, these levels of government work with Indigenous governments, organizations and communities to serve the needs of Indigenous peoples. Within the federation, provinces and territories have exclusive jurisdiction over education and responsibility for early learning and childcare programs, except those that fall under the scope of Indigenous governments.
Provincial and Territorial governments are primarily responsible for designing and delivering Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) programs and services in Canada.
Across Canada, these systems aim to be respectful of language and culture and recognize the unique needs of French and English linguistic minority communities, as well as of Indigenous peoples.
The Government of Canada provides support to Canada's Provinces and Territories in the provision of regulated Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) programs and services for children under the age of six.
ECEC in Canada is split between two main categories: (1) ELCC for children under age 6 (before a child enters the formal education system), and (2) kindergarten (the age at which a child enters the formal education system varies by PT but is typically the year before attending primary school)
Governance and provision of ECEC in Canada differs across its 13 Provinces and Territories and exists through a mix of:
- Public, private for-profit, and private not-for-profit
- Centre-based care
- Home-based care
- Regulated and unregulated
The Childcare Resource and Research Unit (CRRU), an independent, non-partisan, policy research institute focusing on ECEC and social and family policy, has published a recent report, curating and presenting cross-Canada, longitudinal data and information about regulated child care, kindergarten and parental leave. The "CCRU report series has reliably served as Canada's sole source of consistently collected and presented cross-Canada, longitudinal data and information about regulated child care, kindergarten and parental leave." (Beach et al., 2021, p. 6).
References
Beach, J., Friendly, M., Nogueira, P. B., Taylor, M., Mohamed, S., Rothman, L., & Forer, B. (2021). Early Childhood Education and Care in Canada 2021. https://childcarecanada.org/publications/ecec-canada/23/04/early-childhood-education-and-care-canada-2021
Employment and Social Development Canada (2019). Canada Country Background Report - Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care. https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/early-learning-child-care/reports/2021-canada-country-background-quality.html
Systems thinking
After examining the Canadian and British Columbian ECE systems more deeply, you will now begin to consider how Systems thinking can support you as an ECE leader and manager. Systems thinking is looking at the bigger picture and not simply focusing on one part of that larger system.
As you move through the content of this activity (activity 1.1), consider the following:
- How does the larger system impact you as an ECE manager and leader? In what ways do regulatory bodies, policy, and other systemic drivers affect your practice, inform your curriculum, and your bottom line?
- How does your role as an ECE manager and leader contribute to the overall well-being of the broader system?
- What connections exist between your decisions, the staff, and the children's experiences?
Defining Systems Thinking
Donella Meadows (2008) defined systems thinking as “an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something” (p. 4).
Watch this recent Tedx Talk by Willy Donaldson (2023), which provides a short introduction for leaders to systems thinking
Donaldson, W. (2023, November). Systems Thinking: A Defining Skill for Leadership [Video]. TEDx Talks. https://youtu.be/oF5fp8SOFX0?si=qYhWO7kDPc8AC7vs
[Optional] Recommended Reading
Meadows, D. H. (2008). Thinking in systems: A primer. Chelsea Green Publishing.
Systems thinking: Defining skills
Donaldson, W. (2023) argued that systems thinking becomes a defining skill for leaders.
As an ECE manager and leader, the skill of systems thinking might manifest in the following ways:
Systems Thinking Skills in Action
Self-assess your knowledge
Match the Systems thinking skills to their respective descriptions. As you engage in the activity, consider at least one way you have demonstrated each of the listed skills. You should also take this opportunity to consider how you could develop these skills in the future.
Scenario Planning
According to Ramírez and Wilkinson (2016), Scenario planning is "a methodology that uses the inherent human capacity for imagining futures to better understand the present situation and to identify possibilities for new strategy (p. 1). Scenario planning can be valuable for ECE managers and leaders in navigating uncertainties and proactively addressing challenges. By envisioning and preparing for different plausible future scenarios, you can enhance your decision-making and strategic planning processes.
Watch this TEDx talk in which Oliver Baxter (2019, June 21) discusses what scenario planning is and how it can be beneficial in personal and professional contexts.
References
Baxter, Oliver (2019, June 21). Scenario planning: The future of work and place. TEDx Talks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAFGRGm2WxY
Ramírez, R., & Wilkinson, A. (2016). Strategic Reframing: The Oxford Scenario Planning Approach. Oxford University Press.
Case Study
Read the following case study designed to help you consider planning for similar future scenarios and to help you begin thinking using a scenario planning approach.
As you read the case study, consider the following:
- How likely is this scenario to occur in your setting? Why?
- What assumptions might you make as a manager? Why?
- What external or internal factors impact this scenario?
- If this scenario happened today, how would it impact your ability to manage and lead? Why?
Case Study: Disharmony amongst complexity
Imagine you are managing and leading in an ECE setting where a diverse group of children with varying abilities and socio-economic backgrounds are enrolled. The curriculum emphasizes a personalized learning approach and supports creative expression.
One day, a new child joins the program, and shortly after, observation by staff reveals behavioural challenges arising in a group of children, impacting the overall environment. The child's parent shares with you that they have recently experienced a significant life event with the passing of the child's other parent figure. Since this event, the child has had occasional outbursts at home, but the parent cannot identify particular triggers.
At the same time, there is a shift in the overall curriculum framework due to updated Provincial standards. This change demands you attend to adjusting lesson plans, teaching methods, and assessment strategies to ensure alignment with the new guidelines while meeting the needs of each unique child. The parent is clearly still in grief and is not ready to discuss preventative strategies or individualized accommodations. You are empathetic to the situation but need collaboration to move towards solutions.
To add further complexity, you are facing budget constraints, limiting the availability of additional support staff or specialized resources.
What actions might you take to navigate these circumstances while ensuring the well-being and development of all the children in your care?
Recommended Resources
Activity 1.1 Recommended Resources
The resources provided in this section are recommended for those who would like to dig deeper into complex systems, systems thinking, scenario planning and other management techniques, essential business practices to support sustainable programming, and "Quality" in Early Childhood Education management and leadership.
The resources in this section include readings, videos, and other media.
- Agnello, S. (2019). Complexity explained. Github. https://complexityexplained.github.io/ComplexityExplained.pdf
- Caoili, A. (2019). Future Scenario Planning as an Essential Tool of Management. [Video].TED Talk. https://www.ted.com/talks/arianne_caoili_future_scenario_planning_as_an_essential_tool_of_management
- Chermack, T. J., & Coons, L. M. (2015). Integrating scenario planning and design thinking: Learnings from the 2014 Oxford Futures Forum. Futures, 74, 71-77.
- Holling, C.S. (2001). Understanding the complexity of economic, ecological, and social systems. Ecosystems, 4, 390-405.
- Ogilvy, J. A. (2002). Creating better futures: Scenario planning as a tool for a better tomorrow. Oxford University Press.
- Stroh, D.P. (2015). Systems thinking for social change: A practical guide to solving complex problems, avoiding unintended consequences, and achieving lasting results. Chelsea Green Publishing.