With staff shortages, a growing concern in the early childhood industry, the Carmicheal Centre from the Australia Institute have developed a detailed report with 10 recommendations to overcome the current shortages the industry face. Some recommendations include: Prioritising ECE as an essential public service, providing universal ECEC to all Australian preschool-aged children, conversion of casual, contract-based, and temporary staff to permanent and direct employment, Lifting minimum qualification standards for new ECEC workforce entrants, and TAFE should be the primary provider of foundational education and training for ECEC careers.

The way early childhood education and care is provisioned by the government at local, state and national levels deeply impacts society. Issues range from sector-specific matters like childcare regulations, subsidies and fees to wider dynamics of social equity, workforce participation, children’s development, gender equality and response to global crises like COVID 19 pandemic. In the lead up to the Federal Election on 21 May 2022, here is a breakdown of the position of three major political parties – the Liberal/National Coalition, the Australian Labor Party and The Greens - on policy decisions crucial to early childhood care and education sector.

Early Education Service providers are suffering from the ample shortage of childcare staff. It has been said that there are more than 6000 job vacancies across the country as of March.

Hiring overseas educators can not only bring a service the benefits of a diverse, multicultural workplace but also address staffing shortage issues. However before an overseas candidate can be recognised as an early childhood educator under the NQF, their qualification will have assessed for equivalence by ACECQA.

Even for the most accomplished of new graduates, the transition from educational to professional context can be challenging. Not only is the new educator thrust into the hurly-burly of everyday teaching, but is expected to adjust to an entirely unfamiliar ecosystem of the service. If you are facing a similar prospect, here are a few strategies for a new educator starting in early childhood services, to help you give your professional best.

Anecdotes are the most commonly used tool in gathering information about children.

Conducting performance reviews is an effective way to recognise and reward individual educators contributions within the service.  The purpose of performance reviews is to assess the performance of individual educators and to improve communication between Educators and management.

When working as a Diploma Qualified Educator your pay rate is from the Children's Services Award 2010. This Award states your minimum rate of pay based on the completion of your Diploma Qualification. The following will provide information for Diploma Qualified Educators on minimum wages including full time and casual, job responsibilities and more.

Policy and Procedures are an integral part of the documentation that is required to meet legislative requirements. They prevent uncertainty about how particular situations are handled and support Educators to understand their roles and responsibilities. The following article provides information on What Should Policies Include, Testing Your Policy (Case Scenario), Successful Policies, Policy Pitfalls, Policies In The National Regulations and more.

For Educators, one of the hardest tasks is getting children to listen. It may be easier for some but for others (especially Educators who are casual) it can be difficult to get the children to pay attention and to listen to your instructions.