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Massachusetts Birth to School-Age Task ForcePhase 1: Pre Birth to Age Three

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Task Force Charge

To put forth recommendations to the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) and the Executive Office of Education (EOE) to strengthen supports and services to effectively meet the needs of children birth to school-age, their families, and other significant caregivers to ensure continuously improving development and learning outcomes for children in the earliest years.

The work will be accomplished in two phases:

1.Phase I began in March 2009 and will focus on children pre-natal to three years.

2.Phase II will build on the work of Phase I and will focus on linkages across the broader age range of birth to school entry and beyond; the time period and membership will be determined as Phase I concludes.

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Task Force Charge

Advise EEC in articulating a statewide vision & a framework for the positive development & early learning of children pre-natally to age three in MA;

Serve in an advisory capacity to EEC & EOE on the development of short, mid- & long- term goals & strategies for achieving the vision & institutionalizing the framework;

Gather, analyze, & report on current data/research & resources;

Identify strengths of the current system & unaddressed needs & gaps in infrastructure, programs, & services;

Identify & build on research-based practices, promising practices, & ‘what works’;

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Task Force Charge

Provide a basis for continuous improvement by articulating desired outcomes for children prenatally to age 3 & their families, identifying indicators to track & measure progress & where possible, tools to measure the success & impact of strategies & interventions;

Inform EEC of ready-now opportunities within the scope of the agency’s ongoing work & responsibilities;

Provide expert feedback/ refinement on proposals developed in partnership by EEC & EOE; and

Identify areas for interagency & inter-initiative collaboration.

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Task Force Values

We value & respect all children, parents & families.

Learning starts before birth.

All children can succeed & adults have the responsibility to ensure they do.

Parents are children’s 1st teachers. Nurturing interactions that build consistent responsive relationships for children with parents, families, & caregivers- as well as among these significant caregivers- are integral to children’s healthy development & learning & are of particular importance for children pre-birth to 3.

Parents, families & caregivers are integral to the healthy development of children & must be engaged as equal partners. Family choice is honored & respected.

Providing culturally appropriate services is critical to being effective in the lives of children, their parents & their families.

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Task Force Values

Our system must provide services to meet the individual needs of children, their parents & their families.

We support the continuum & continuity of every child’s education & care. Transitions between systems for children, parents, families & professionals should be smooth & seamless.

Promotion, Prevention & Intervention are integral components of our service delivery system.

Children & families live within communities & must be reached & supported in ways that maximize accessibility.

Community disparities, including geographic, demographic, environmental, & access to services & outreach, should be recognized & addressed.

We believe priority in access to & delivery of services should be given to children with the greatest educational & care needs & multiple risk factors.

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Task Force Values All practitioners who provide services to young children are

the backbone of our system; we value & support their diversity, ongoing PD, & fair compensation.

Systems should be adaptable & responsive to changing times.

Accountability at all levels is important & we will work together to measure, recognize needs & develop the assets of the field. We are committed to promoting evidence-based programs, the use of evaluation & informed use of best practices.

We are committed to working proactively across systems that service the pre-birth to 3 age group & their parents & families- including the pediatric community- in order to integrate & coordinate services & leverage opportunities.

Sustainability is a key consideration for any program, service or initiative in which we feel it is worthwhile to invest.

Our advocacy efforts & messages should be coherent & coordinated.

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Unified Task Force Vision

All Massachusetts infants and toddlers will be emotionally and physically healthy and will have optimal opportunities to experience consistent, nurturing care-giving and learning in the context of strong families living in supportive communities with culturally competent systems that deliver high-quality, comprehensive services focused on promotion, prevention, intervention, and evaluation.

Infants and Toddlers in MA

The National Center for Children in Poverty reported that:

Massachusetts is home to approximately 230,000 infants and toddlers (2009)

In 2007: 26% of Massachusetts children under 6 experienced 1 or 2

demographic risk factors for poor educational and health outcomes

(e.g. living in poverty, linguistically isolated, parents have less than a high school education, parents have no paid employment etc.)

7% experienced at least 3

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Center of the Developing Child

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/library/briefs/inbrief_series/

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Birth to School Age Task Force, Phase I: Pre Birth to Age Three

5 TASKFORCE SUBCOMMITTEES

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Good Health Subcommittee

Physical Health Including adequate health care coverage

Mental Health (Social and Emotional)

Parental Health/Mental Health

Developmental Screening Premature infants Early intervention for abused and neglected

children

Environmental (including facilities)

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Strong Families/Communities Subcommittee

Basic Needs Income Security

Home Visiting/ Family Access Child Welfare

Preventing child abuse and neglect Ensuring safety and permanency Infant-toddler court teams

Paid Family Leave Parent Education Child Care

Healthy and safe environments Access to quality options Nurturing responsive providers and caregivers Parents, providers and caregivers linked to community

resources Safe and Nurturing Families

Economic and parenting support13

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Positive Early Learning Experiences Subcommittee

Child Care Access to quality

Birth to Three (e.g. Early Head Start) Expand access

Early Intervention/ Special Needs Early identification, assessment, and appropriate

services for children with special health care needs, disabilities, or developmental delays

Safe and Nurturing Environments Family and Community

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Strong Systems Subcommittee

Governance/ Leadership Set the policy direction for comprehensive system

Quality Improvement Standards that reflect effective practices, programs, and

practitioners and are aligned across the system

Accountability and Evaluation Monitoring and tracking program performance and

results based on standards

Financing Sufficient to ensure comprehensive quality services

based on standards

Public Engagement and Political Will Building Communication to inform and engage families,

providers, and the public

Regulations and Standards15

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Diversity Subcommittee

Responsiveness to issues of diversity, including: Cultural and ethnic Geographic Diverse learning needs

Works across the other 4 subcommittees, with representation from each, to inform the recommendations of the other subcommittees

Mapping of settlement patterns across the State.

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Birth to School Age Task Force, Phase I: Pre Birth to Age Three

PRELIMINARY OUTCOMES DEVELOPED BY

TASKFORCE

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PRELIMINARY OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN

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Summary of Outcomes Developed by the Taskforce - Children

Basic Needs Infants and toddlers are safe in their home, care, and community setting. Infants and toddlers are receiving adequate nutrition.

Health and Well-Being Infants and toddlers are physically and mentally healthy. Infants and toddlers have quality primary care.  Infants and toddlers have access to quality health and dental care coverage.

Development and Learning Infants and toddlers are on track for their optimal development. Infants and Toddlers are entering school “ready to learn” and are performing well by

the third grade. Infant and Toddlers have access to high- quality, affordable Early Education and Care Infants and toddlers have high-quality learning experiences with their families/

primary caregivers.

Relationships Infants and toddlers have consistent, stable, responsive, and nurturing relationships in

their out of home care settings that are culturally responsive. Infants and toddlers have consistent, stable, responsive, and nurturing relationships in

their family settings.

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PRELIMINARY OUTCOMES FOR PARENTS / FAMILIES

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Basic Needs Parents/Families have adequate, stable and affordable housing options. Infants and toddler have adequate and stable housing. Parents/Families of Infants and Toddlers are economically secure. All parents/families of infants and toddlers have stable work that generates a livable wage to provide

for their infants and toddlers. All parents/caregivers of infants and toddlers receive sufficient paid leave to care for sick children. /

All parents/caregivers receive adequate paid family leave to care for newborn or adopted infants and toddlers.

Health and Well-Being Families have access to & are informed consumers of health care & receive consistent, coordinated

health, dental & mental health services. Pregnant women, receive comprehensive pre and postnatal health care and support. Pregnant women are physically and mentally healthy during and after pregnancy.

Development and Learning Parents/Families are competent  in their role as their infant and toddler’s first teacher. Parents/families of infants and toddlers have the knowledge and resources (or capacity?) to support

the optimal development of their infants and toddlers. Parents/families have meaningful choices in services for infants and toddlers and are supported in

accessing services and supports.

Relationships All families of infants and toddlers have informal and formal support networks.

Summary of Outcomes Developed by the Taskforce - Parents/Families

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PRELIMINARY OUTCOMES FOR COMMUNITIES / PROGRAMS

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Summary of Outcomes Developed by the Taskforce – Communities/Programs

Basic Needs Infant/toddler caregivers/ educators receive respect, support, and adequate compensation

for their work.

Relationships Parents/families of infants and toddlers are actively involved in leadership, advocacy and

governance. Programs work to foster consistent, stable, responsive, and nurturing relationships in the

families they serve and in their care-giving settings. Infant and toddler caregivers/ educators see and treat parents as the children’s primary

teachers and partner with them in their children’s care and learning Families of infants/ toddlers at risk for out of home placement have: 1) access to strength-

based family support services that work together to prevent disruption, provide permanency if needed, 2) access to pre & post-permanency supports & 3) access to a coordinated system for visits b/w children, placement, & families as often as possible.

Development and Learning Programs ensure that Infant/Toddler educators are competent, knowledgeable, and

confident in supporting the optimal development of children in their care and have a commitment to ongoing high quality professional development opportunities.

All communities have the capacity to strengthen families and support the healthy growth and development of its infant/ toddlers

All communities have a coordinated network of high-quality, accessible services and resources.

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Example of a Strategy and Potential Next Action Step to Achieve an Outcome

POSITIVE LEARNING EXPERIENCES SUBCOMMITTEE

OUTCOMES:a.Infant and Toddlers have access to high- quality, affordable Early Education and Care

b.Programs ensure that infant/toddler educators are competent, knowledgeable, and confident in supporting the optimal development of children in their care and have a commitment to ongoing high quality professional development Strategy

Establish Learning Guidelines for Infants and Toddlers (that guide professional development activities)

Potential Next Action Step(s):

develop guidelines that includes balanced representation from all settings, including mixed-age family child care homes and EI; expedite work by drawing upon guidelines developed by other states

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EXAMPLES OF STRATEGY RECOMMENDATIONS

Examples of Strategy Recommendations

Launch promotional quality/safety campaign that emphasizes to communities, early education and care providers and parents the critical nature of safe environments for young children.

Build awareness around health care where parents are (e.g. child care).

Improve knowledge about resources that are available in a family’s community.

Ensure infrastructure for coordination at local level. Assess existing or potential collaborative entities

(Coordinated Family and Community Engagement Grantees, etc.)

Determine best mechanism to support effective collaboration so that services are seamless for families.

Examples of Strategy Recommendations

Assure that infants and toddlers get a large and steady supply of rich, responsive language experience in their homes, child care settings, and community that support their curiosity, concept development, positive peer interaction, creativity, and emotional resilience.

Ensure a focus on language (as well as literacy and numeracy) through expansion of effective programs.

Encourage parents / caregivers to use their primary language, especially if they are not fully fluent and comfortable in English.

Strengthen family child care.

Establish competency-based credentials for care teachers and those who supervise, teach, or mentor them.

Provide evidence-based training and mentorship/reflective supervision for early care and education providers on caring for infants and toddlers. Develop Infant/Toddler Early Learning Guidelines to

inform professional development and family/caregiver outreach activities.

Examples of Strategy Recommendations

Include programs serving infants and toddlers in the state’s emerging Quality Rating and Improvement System and support their success. Use environmental rating scales (ITERS or FCCRS) as a

tool to assess observed quality and guide improvement.

Bring existing center-based and family child care programs up to a level of quality that is high enough to support all children’s healthy development in all domains.

Use evidence-based tools in pediatric, early education and care, home visiting, and other settings to track children’s development and guide the provision of routine supports and prevention or intervention activities (as needed).

Implement a universal data system for young children and their families accessing services across systems. Develop Memoranda of Understanding across state

agencies on enhanced data collection and sharing.

Examples of Strategy Recommendations

Invest in facility improvement and expansion.

Assure that existing child care facilities, family child care homes, and indoor and outdoor play spaces have adequate space, natural light, and ability to modulate sensory stimulation (including protected areas for infants and toddlers) and meet health and safety guidelines.

Build or expand child care facilities to serve infants and toddlers.

Provide credit and other supports to enable new family child care and family friend and neighbor providers to create appropriate spaces for infant toddler care.

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Birth to School Age Task Force, Phase I: Pre Birth to Age Three

OUTLINE OF THE FINAL REPORT

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Preliminary Outline of Final Report – Alignment with Ready for Lifelong Success Report

Ready for Lifelong SuccessA Call for Collaborative Action On Behalf of Massachusetts’ Children and

Youth

Submitted to Governor Deval Patrick and the Patrick Administration Readiness Cabinet

byThe Massachusetts Action Planning Team

June 29, 2009

The end product/report of the Taskforce will align as a companion document with the report below, Ready for Lifelong Success: A Call for Collaborative Action On Behalf of Massachusetts’ Children and Youth, which focuses on defining desired outcomes for all children, youth and families, was submitted to Governor Patrick and the Patrick Administration Readiness Cabinet by The Massachusetts Action Planning Team on June 29, 2009.  

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Task Force Timeline

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Timeline Activities

May 2009 Task Force Convened

May- October 2009 Task Force Subcommittees Convened to Work on Outcomes, Indicators, Strategies and Action Steps

October/November 2009 Community Meetings Held to Gather Stakeholder Feedback.

November 2009 - January 2010 Report Will Be Written (with stakeholder input)

January-February 2010 Final Report Available

If you have additional questions or feedback, please send to:

Nicole Lessardnicole.lessard@state.ma.us

617-988-7822 

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