DT1C 04 (CCLD 407)Support and evaluate the curriculum for children’s early learning

Elements of competence

CCLD 407.1Identify and support activities, resources and programmes for children’s early learning

CCLD 407.2Support the implementation of the curriculum for children’s early learning

CCLD 407.3Work with colleagues to monitor and evaluate the curriculum for children’s learning

About this Unit

This Unit is about co-ordinating and evaluating the curriculum for children's early learning. It includes delivering the curriculum and/or supporting colleagues to deliver the curriculum, ensuring adequate resources for curriculum delivery and assessment, and the evaluation of the effectiveness of the setting or service. The Unit applies to the curriculum within both formal early education frameworks and less formal provision for early learning.

The Unit is for you if you manage or are a lead/senior practitioner or work in support of colleagues involved in the delivery of the curriculum provision for children's early learning. If you work within formal early education frameworks, these vary between the four home countries and you will need to relate each part of the Unit to your own country and workplace.

Keywords

What we mean by some of the words used in this Unit
Children / Children with whom you are working, except where additional requirements are indicated
Colleagues / Other people who work with you in your provision: they can be working at the same level, line managers, volunteers, casual workers, paid or unpaid
Curriculum for early learning / This can apply to formal curriculum frameworks or less formal opportunities that take place in practice with children who are not participating in early education
Differentiated curriculum / The curriculum that is responsive to the learner's needs i.e. not presenting the same curriculum to everyone
Equality of access / Ensuring that discriminatory barriers to access are removed and allowing for children’s individual needs
Families / Includes parents (mothers and fathers) and carers and extended and chosen families who contribute significantly to the well-being of individual children and who may or may not have legal responsibility
ICT (Information and Communication Technology) / Examples are computers, calculators, electronic devices, audiovisual equipment, programmable toys and digital cameras
Resources / Human resources or material resources
Reflective practice / The process of thinking about and critically analysing your actions with the goal of changing and improving occupational practice

Evidence Requirements for the Unit

It is essential that you adhere to the Evidence Requirements for this Unit

GENERAL GUIDANCE
  • Evidence must be provided for ALL of the performance criteria and ALL of the knowledge.
  • Work with children and families does not lend itself to a series of fragmented activities. When assessment planning it is essential that assessors and candidates identify opportunities to integrate a number of activities for assessment on any particular occasion.
  • Assessment of knowledge and understanding should wherever possible be carried out during performance to ensure that theory and practice are linked.
  • The evidence must reflect, at all times, the policies and procedures of your workplace as linked to current legislation and the values and the principles for good practice in children’s care, learning and development.
  • All evidence must relate to your own work practice.

SPECIFIC Evidence Requirements for this unit
Simulation:
  • Simulation is not permitted for this unit.

The following forms of evidence ARE mandatory:
  • Direct Observation: Your assessor or expert witness must observe you in real work activities which will provide evidence of some part of this unit.
  • Reflective Accounts: You should describe your actions in a particular situation and explain why you did things. You may be able to use a reflective account to provide some of the performance evidence for this unit. e.g. how and why you ensure that children are consulted, your effectiveness in involving families and local communities in the setting/s.

Issues for consideration:
  • The following performance criteria may be difficult evidenced by observation.
Element 1 – PCs 1, 2 and 5
Element 2 – PCs 5, 7 and 8
Element 3 – PCs 1 and 2
Competence of performance and knowledge could also be demonstrated using a variety of evidence from the following:
  • Questioning/Professional Discussion: Questions may be oral or written. In each case the question and your answer will need to be recorded. Professional discussion should be in the form of a structured review of your practice with the outcomes captured by means of audiotape or a written summary. These are particularly useful to provide evidence that you know and understand principles which support practice, policies, procedures and legislation, and that you can critically evaluate their application e.g. how you differentiate the curriculum to meet the needs of individual children, how you ensure that colleagues reflect on their practice and have high expectations of children, requirements of legislation, regulation and guidance covering early education, the evidence/research base for your practice. In addition the assessor/expert witness may also ask questions to clarify aspects of your practice.
  • Products: These are non-confidential records made, or contributed to, by you, e.g. curriculum plans, analyses of available resources, training needs analysis, development plans, minutes of meetings, systems for evaluation and the implementation of the planning cycle.
  • Confidential Records: These may be used as evidence but must not be placed in your portfolio, they must remain in their usual location and be referred to in the assessor records in your portfolio e.g. individual child records, individual colleague training plans.
  • Original Certificates and other evidence of prior experience and learning: Where you have relevant prior experience it must match the requirements of the standards. Certificates of training, awards and records of attendance must be authentic, current and valid. Your assessor will also want to check the content of such training so that this can be matched to the standards and check that you have retained and can apply learning to practice, e.g. training on the early education curriculum, courses on children's development and learning, previous childcare qualifications or units of learning.
  • Case Studies, projects, assignments: These methods are most appropriately used to cover any outstanding areas in the knowledge requirement of your award.
  • Witness Testimony: Colleagues, allied professionals, children, young people, families and carers may be able to provide testimony of your performance. Your assessor will help you to identify the appropriate use of witnesses.

Knowledge specification for this unit

Assessment of knowledge and understanding should wherever possible be carried out during performance to ensure theory and practice are linked.

You need to provide evidence for ALL knowledge points listed below:

To be competent in this Unit, you must know and understand the following: / Enter Evidence Numbers
1Requirements of legislation, regulation and guidance, covering early education in your home country
2How to ensure that your provision includes high-quality learning experiences, activities and resources that meet the needs of children within early education frameworks and learning situations not linked to a specified curriculum
3The pattern of learning and intellectual development for the age range of the children involved in early learning for whom you are responsible
4The role of play in the delivery of learning i.e. how play can be used to achieve learning goals, whilst maximising children's opportunities for freely chosen play
5The rights of all children for participation and equality of access and how this affects provision
6How to adapt your practice with children for whom you are responsible of different ages involved in early learning including different genders, ethnicities and with different needs and abilities
7Principles of partnership with parents and families
8How to ensure that the voice of the child is heard
9How to involve the family and local community in the setting or service, ensuring cultural and religious sensitivity and equality of access
10Specific issues for the curriculum for children’s early learning in multilingual or bilingual settings
11Curriculum planning formats that are suitable for the provision
12Resources that are required for the delivery of the curriculum, how to ensure these are available, cost-effective and fit for purpose
13Sources of information about accessing and adapting activities, resources and experiences to ensure equality of access for all children for whom you have responsibility
14Systems and procedures for monitoring and evaluation that are appropriate for your service or setting and for regulatory purposes
15Information about training and professional updating available in your local area or region
16How to model effective work with children in the delivery of early learning and advise and support those who are involved
17 The difference between personalised learning and a differentiated approach to curriculum delivery where this is relevant to the requirements of the curriculum frameworks in your home country

CCLD 407.1Identify and support activities, resources and programmes for children’s early learning

Performance criteria
Enter Evidence Numbers
DO / RA / EW / Q / P / WT
1Support planning for children's early learning, complying with national and local guidance and involving colleagues in the setting
2Facilitate the involvement of children and families as partners in the planning for children's early learning
3Facilitate the identification of activities and resources required to deliver the curriculum for children's early learning
4Identify and work with colleagues to ensure adequate resources are available to deliver the curriculum
5Ensure colleagues and adults involved are knowledgeable about children's early learning and confident in their roles and responsibilities
6. Ensure planning meets children’s needs for a personalised approach to learning

CCLD 407.2Support the implementation of the curriculum for children’s early learning

Performance criteria
Enter Evidence Numbers
DO / RA / EW / Q / P / WT
1Support the implementation of the planned curriculum for children's early learning, ensuring flexibility in the adaptation of provision as required to meet children's needs
2Ensure the curriculum is appropriately differentiated to enable equality of access for all children
3Provide guidance and support to those delivering the curriculum to encourage their confidence and ability to adapt and develop provision to meet the needs of children
4Encourage the effective use of available resources to support the implementation of the curriculum, identifying future needs, enhancements and modifications that may be required
5Facilitate the recording of children’s progress, supporting those involved and clarifying requirements
Performance criteria
Enter Evidence Numbers
DO / RA / EW / Q / P / WT
6Facilitate the identification of children requiring additional support
7Have high expectations of children and commitment to raising their achievement, based in a realistic appraisal of their capabilities and what they might achieve
8Facilitate the organisation of additional support and resources

CCLD 407.3Work with colleagues to monitor and evaluate programmes for children’s early learning

Performance criteria
Enter Evidence Numbers
DO / RA / EW / Q / P / WT
1Support the development of systems and procedures to monitor and evaluate the curriculum for children's learning
2Facilitate the participation of children and families in the evaluation of the curriculum, as appropriate to the children's age needs and abilities
3Identify with colleagues issues for improvement and plan for continuous development and improvement
4Encourage reflective practice by modelling reflective skills

DO = Direct ObservationRA = Reflective AccountQ = Questions

EW = Expert Witness P = Product (Work)WT = Witness Testimony

To be completed by the Candidate
I SUBMIT THIS AS A COMPLETE UNIT
Candidate’s name: ……………………………………………
Candidate’s signature: ………………………………………..
Date: …………………………………………………………..
To be completed by the Assessor
It is a shared responsibility of both the candidate and assessor to claim evidence, however, it is the responsibility of the assessor to ensure the accuracy/validity of each evidence claim and make the final decision.
I certify that sufficient evidence has been produced to meet all the elements, pcS AND KNOWLEDGE OF THIS UNIT and that the candidate has demonstrated the application of the princIples and values.
Assessor’s name: …………………………………………….
Assessor’s signature: ………………………………………....
Date: …………………………………………………………..
Assessor/Internal Verifier Feedback
To be completed by the Internal Verifier if applicable
This section only needs to be completed if the Unit is sampled by the Internal Verifier
Internal Verifier’s name: ……………………………………………
Internal Verifier’s signature: ………………………………………..
Date: ……………………………………..…………………………..

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Unit: DT1C 04 (CCLD 407) Support and evaluate the curriculum for children’s early learning