1. Exploring How the PQA & Creative Curriculum Work Together

2. PQA- Program Quality Assessment
What do you find meaningful about the PQA?
How does it improve the quality of your relationships and instruction?
Write by yourself
Set the tone
Share with an elbow partner
Share with small table groups

3. PQA & Creative Curriculum
What new information are you hoping to gain today?
Write on a notecard – review at the end

4. PQA - Program Quality Assessment
Goal of the PQA is to make
Quality Changes in the classroom, center, program or child care home.
Many programs use PQA as a marker for ongoing progress and improvements.
Use it as a tool to mark improvements on a valid and reliable tool. Continue to use the indicators to support and mark growth.

5. PQA
The assessment tool is based on the five key objectives of Head Start, which are:
enhancing children's growth and development;
strengthening families as the primary nurturers of their children;
providing children with educational, health, and nutritional services;
linking children and families to needed community services;
and ensuring well-managed programs that involve parents in decision making.
-M. Bunch, 2004
Works the same for GSRP – all have similar quality indicators

6. PQA Developed by: High Scope Educational Research Foundation
PQA Describes what a high quality early care and education program looks like.
PQA provides us with the knowledge and common vocabulary to make quality improvements with research based supports.
Based on Sound Principles of a High Quality Preschool Classroom and 40 years of research in the Perry Preschool Project -Ypsilanti, MI

7. What Is Program Quality?
Program quality, like child development, has many dimensions. 
It includes:
Structural components — the classroom, center, program or home. How the learning environment is set up and what happens during the program day.
Process — how adults interact with children and plan and carry out meaningful learning experiences. Ways in which staff relate to parents, one another, and the community can affect children and are part of the quality process.  Finally, agency-wide factors influence what happens in the classroom and can directly or indirectly impact children.

8. Uses for the PQA Research and Evaluation Self Assessment
Supervision , Observation & Feedback
“Our PQA feedback is grounded in two strong convictions:
that all teachers want to do the best for the children
in their care and that there is always room for
growth, no matter how good the teacher.”
-S. Christensen and A. Rosen, 2010

9. What is the PQA? Comprehensive tool Research – based and field-tested
Appropriate for use in all early care and education settings
Administered by independent evaluators or used as a self- assessment tool
Defines quality along a continuum

10. - High Scope ReSource Spring 2010
Structure
Each item begins with a statement followed by a series of indicators defining the lower, middle and upper ends of the 5-point quality continuum or rubric.
“When teachers are on a quest for high quality, the Program Quality Assessment is an integral component of their journey.”
- High Scope ReSource Spring 2010

11. Potential Uses of the PQA
Improving the Quality of Early Care and Education Programs with:
Self Assessment
Training/ Coaching
Program Monitoring
Observation and Feedback
Research and Evaluation
The goal of assessment is to acknowledge strengths and identify
areas for improvement.
We travel side by side with teachers and directors as we all strive to make quality better.
-A. Rosen & S. Christensen, 2010

12. Michigan’s Roadmap to Quality
Great Start 2 Quality Resource Center, NW
Quality Improvement Consultants & Specialists help support us on our journey.
Michigan’s T.Q.R.I.S.
Tiered Quality Rating Improvement System
Self Assessment Survey (SAS)
PQA

13. Creative Curriculum
The Curriculum grows and changes along with the early childhood field as we learn from current research and gain new insights about what teachers need to know in order to teach effectively. The CC now has a long history – each new edition reflects our commitment to respond to the needs of early childhood educators.
John Dewey, Lev Vygotsky, Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget, brain research and literacy/math research between 2003 and 2009

14. First edition launched in 1978
Introduced teachers how to set up their classrooms into interest areas and to use them effectively
Blocks, House Corner, Art and Table Toys
2nd edition in 1988
Added the Library, Sand and Water, and Outdoors sections

15. 1992 was the 3rd edition
Explained the theories and philosophy behind the Creative Curriculum
Goals and objectives for children’s learning assessment
Families
Cooking, Music and Movement, and Computers

16. Fourth edition in 2002
New brain research guided the development of the fourth edition providing more guidance about appropriate teaching strategies
Defined the vital role of the teacher in connecting content, teaching and learning for preschool children
Explained the teacher’s role in addressing content in literacy, math, science, social studies, the arts and technology
New interest area added – Discovery

17. Fifth and most current edition created in 2010
Includes 5 volumes that help teachers build their professional knowledge of best practices
The Foundation
Interest Areas
Literacy
Math
Objectives for Development and Learning
The Creative Curriculum volumes are designed to support teachers at all levels of experience in planning and implementing a high quality developmentally appropriate program
To make the curriculum work for you, incorporate your own interests and teaching style as well as information about the children you teach and their families

18. The Creative Curriculum is based off of 5 fundamental principles:
Positive interactions and relationships with adults provide a critical foundation for successful learning
Social-emotional competence is a significant factor in school success
Constructive, purposeful play supports essential learning
The physical environment affects the type and quality of learning interactions
Teacher-family partnerships promote development and learning
How do these 5 areas tie to the PQA?

19. Moving from Good to Great! Together we can!
Developing High Quality Learning Environments for all children!

20. PQA & Creative Curriculum
What new information were you hoping to gain today?
Please take a moment to review your question…
Did we answer it?
Q & A
Review your note card at the end. Did we answer your questions?
What questions do you still have?

21. Facilitated by: Angela Norvell, Traverse Bay Area ISD
Liz Walker, Wexford, Missaukee and Manistee ISDs
Dru O’Connor, Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency