Your Assignment Type: Standard Question
Currently Working in Childcare? No
Your knowledge: Beginner
Your Question?
Assessment Task 1
IC091- Making ethical decisions
CHCORG428A Reflect on and improve own professional practice
Effective leadership in early childhood services requires the application of ethical practices in what are sometimes quite challenging circumstances.
Cutting corners
Ellen is the Director of one of a small chain of privately-owned child care centres. The owners of the chain of centres are very profit driven. Ellen has just received a directive in relation to the implementation of cost-cutting strategies. The strategies include:
a. minimising the number of Diploma qualified staff and maximising the number of Certificate III staff
b. drastically reducing expenditure on play equipment and consumables such as paper and paint
c. directing staff to undertake extra cleaning tasks as part of their daily duties, including washing the floors– a professional cleaner will come in on Friday nights only
d. reducing waste in the kitchen by limiting a hot lunch to three days per week and substituting with sandwiches on the other two days
Ellen looks at the directive with a mixture of anger and disbelief. She had hoped to fill a staff vacancy with a Diploma qualified person but it looks like now she will have to employ another person at Certificate III level. This worries Ellen as most of her team are quite young and she was hoping to get a more experienced Diploma practitioner to provide leadership.
Ellen ponders the directive. On the one hand she really needs this job but on the other hand she knows that she must act as an advocate for the children and families using the service. She is also concerned about the increasingly unrealistic workload being expected of the team. She is adamant that the staff are not to be used as cleaners – surely this is an OHS issue. And what of the children – when do the staff spend quality time with them?
1. With reference to the ECA Code of Ethics, Children’s Services Regulations and Quality Assurance Principles suggest how Ellen could respond as an advocate for children, families and staff in relation to each of the directives:
A matter of ethics
Ellen meets with the owner of the service. Paul, to raise her concerns in relation to the directive. Paul is very dismissive of Ellen’s concerns. He has come up with yet more ‘great ideas’ to reduce costs:
a. His 18 year old daughter Gemma, will be employed as a Certificate III trainee so that she can fill absences as they arise. Ellen has met Gemma, and while she is a nice enough young person she has told Ellen she wants to be landscaper and doesn’t really ‘like little kids’.
b. Paul tells Ellen that if all of the infants and toddlers are kept awake and put to bed at the same time (instead of the current practice of individual sleep routines) then he can reduce the hours needed for a floater to cover meal breaks.
Paul seems very pleased with his ideas and cannot understand when Ellen becomes annoyed and upset.
2. In relation to the ECA Code of Ethics and Children’s Service Regulations how should Ellen address Paul’s ‘great ideas’.
3. For this task you need to refer to the ECA Code of Ethics VII. In relation to myself as a professional, I will..
Select one of the nine statements and describe how you could translate the concept to practice.
What is your answer so far or What have you done so far as an attempt to solve this question?
Please help me I'm really struggling on these questions
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