THE Tsleil-Waututh Nation Child and Family Development Centre has received national recognition for its innovation related to early childhood education.
According to a written statement, The Centre, as it's known, is being awarded one of two Margaret & Wallace McCain Family Foundation and Lawson Foundation awards for its early childhood education submission on establishing an Aboriginal addendum to the Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scales (ECERS).
The Centre's entry was one of 266 from across Canada submitted to the Changemakers Initiative, which seeks innovative ideas and insights into First Nations, Métis, and Inuit education and learning.
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation places the highest priority on their children and families, said Chief Justin George, in the statement. The Centre is an example of how this commitment is put into practice through on-going quality early childhood programs.
The ECERS capture a range of quality indicators for child care programs. The Centre's piloted project has identified a number of suggestions to enhance the use of ECERS in First Nation communities, providing a solid base to explore the concept of developing a culturally safe addendum to this assessment tool. The concept is attracting many interested partners from across the country, added Marc Lalonde, manager, The Centre.
The Centre's programs include: Aboriginal Head Start, Aboriginal Infant Development and Aboriginal Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters, as well as weekly parent groups. The Centre also provides full-time child care for children from six months to school age, open to non-Aboriginal families as well.
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Caulfeild elementary's new iDEC Program, which incorporates digital immersion, inquiry-based learning and soft skills, has also recently been honoured with a national award. The school was chosen from more than 100 applicants by the Canadian Education Association to receive an honourable mention from the Ken Spencer Awards for Innovation in Teaching and Learning.
This award focuses on innovation in K-12 education and Ken Spencer was on hand to make the presentation at the West Vancouver elementary, April 11.
The school-wide initiative was launched last fall with a strong commitment from staff, students and parents.
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