• 11.9.20

Early Childhood Education Webinar Recordings

Part 1: Continuous Learning (April 2, 2020) 

This webinar presents Kansas' policies and guidance on working with district early learning programs. NIEER (National Institute of Early Education Research) provides an update on the coordination with national partners regarding the federal funding crisis and its impact on childcare and PreK. 

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Part 2: Remote Learning (April 16, 2020) 

This webinar examines West Virginia's efforts to provide guidance on remote learning and how to plan for summer programming. Further, the Department of Child Study and Human Development at Tufts University discusses best practices when using technology and online learning programs with young learners. 

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Part 3: Summer Learning and Student Learning Loss (April 30, 2020) 

In this webinar a national, state and district panel highlight state planning for summer learning and addresses learning loss faced by students. Further, the panel discusses the stabilization of PreK after the COVID-19 crisis and the transition process in the fall for young learners.

Part 4: COVID-19 Crisis and Early Learning (May 14, 2020) 

This webinar creates an opportunity for national, state and local agencies’ to share their efforts in addressing early learning during the COVID-19 crisis.

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Part 5: Early Learning COVID-19 Crisis: Opportunities for Summer Learning (May, 28, 2020)

This webinar highlights national and state agency efforts in addressing summer learning during the COVID-19 crisis.

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The Promise of the Preschool Development Grant Birth to Age Five Renewal Funding – to Build Better Early Care and Education Systems (June 18, 2020)

This webinar provides an overview of the Preschool Development Grant Birth to Five (PDG  B5) renewal application, including trends and innovations state's hoped to implement (pre-pandemic). In a panel discussion, states examine how the grant helps build strategic capacity and test new innovations to address the needs of children, including how they address the impact of the pandemic.

Unifying Framework for the Early Childhood Education Profession and Elevating Nebraska’s Early Childhood Workforce (June 25, 2020)

This webinar discusses an overview and update of the Power To The Profession Initiative, and features a detailed report from Nebraska's ECE Workforce Commission.

Assessing and Evaluating P3 Systems (July 9, 2020) 

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Kindergarten Entry Assessments: Considerations for Fall 2020 (August 18, 2020)

This webinar is co-sponsored by CCSSO, WestEd, and NIEER highlights the use of Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) data and how Ohio and South Carolina are planning to implement a KEA in the fall 2020.

Webinar 1: Collaborate to Improve Teaching and Learning (November 11, 2020)

This webinar focuses on the following topics:

  • Aligning curriculum and instruction pre-K through elementary school 
  • Ensuring successful transitions to kindergarten 
  • Promoting professional learning across communities 

Webinar 2: Coordinate Comprehensive Services (November 19, 2020)

This webinar focuses on the following topics:

  • Providing children and family supports
  • Organizing school-based and community-based hubs of health and social services 
  • Supporting trauma-informed practices 

Webinar 3: Partner with Families (December 3, 2020)

This webinar focuses on the following topics:

  • Meeting the needs of culturally-specific groups
  • Connecting to families through play and learn groups and home visiting
  • Deepening family engagement to family partnerships

Webinar 4: Lead Strategically and Continuously Improve (December 10, 2020)

This webinar focuses on the following topics:

  • Scaling comprehensive approaches
  • Building capacity 
  • Providing state, school district, and nonprofit leadership

 

 

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  • 11.9.20

Early Childhood Education - Past Projects

Chiefs Promoting High-Quality Pre-K

Through the launch of the Chiefs Promoting High-Quality Prekindergarten Network, the Council supported chiefs and their lead staff to promote the consistent implementation of high-quality prekindergarten at a time when many states were expanding access to prekindergarten programs. Quality benchmarks from the National Institute of Early Education Research (NIEER), supported by latest research, suggested improved effects on mitigating the achievement gap by third grade. 

Throughout the course of this project, CCSSO worked with nine states, and two territories to leverage their role as state K-12 leaders to improve the funding, access, and policies that supported state-funded preschool programs for all students. The network included the following states/territories: Colorado, Delaware, DoDEA, Guam, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

An invaluable part of this project was the establishment of a Teacher Practitioners Advisory Board of six outstanding prekindergarten and early childhood teachers who were named or nominated for National Teacher of the Year. These state teachers of the year advised the state teams on effective teaching practices in PreK and served as spokespeople for other prekindergarten teachers across the country. The board members were:

  • Georgia - Nathan Leatherwood and Jodi McNamara
  • California – Ginger Brown
  • DODEA- Sarah Loomis
  • New Jersey- Mark Mautone
  • Maine – Vicki Grotton

An additional component of this network were the opportunities to visit programs of excellence in order to gain insights on program implementation with high standards. States reported site visits were very useful, and as team members were able to see high-quality practices taking place in a classroom it helped bring alive the quality components discussed in theory and research throughout the network meetings. The programs that the network visited included:

These site visits were made possible by Trust for Learning.

A final report on state progress and policy implications was published in September 2019. To read more about the outcomes and impact of this Network, please check out the report here.

State Consortium on Family Engagement

Early learning is greatly influenced by a child’s family, community, and surroundings. State and federal education agencies recognized the importance of family engagement in the educational process. State policies on parental involvement and support structures for families are prevalent, as is federal policy through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Cohort I and Cohort II implemented family engagement strategies and elevated the outreach to early childhood providers and local districts by developing a Birth to Grade 12 Family Engagement Framework. Each framework offered a strategic approach to engaging families with early childhood providers and schools.

The Consortium’s key partner was the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) as the fiscal agent of the Consortium activities. In addition, the National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement (NAFSCE), the Mid-Atlantic Equity Consortium, Inc. (MAEC), and the Campaign for Grade Level Reading (the Campaign) supported the Consortiums' activities, providing ongoing technical assistance to states. The Policy Equity Group, LLC served as a key advisor to the project.

Cohort I (click the state to view their completed framework)

Cohort II (click the state to view their completed framework)

  • Colorado
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Michigan
  • Nevada
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Wyoming
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  • March 2018

States Leading: Early Childhood Education

image of early learner

A child’s first years form the foundation for future learning and development. States have a critical role in providing children with access to high-quality early learning opportunities during the early years that can increase educational equity and have long-term benefits for children.

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