Promoting Quality Improvement for Family Child Care Providers
Stars Plus: Promoting Quality Improvement for Family Child Care Providers in QRIS using a Community of Practice Model
Principal Investigator Rena Hallam, and Co-Principal Investigators Martha Buell, Myae Han and Kaitlin Bargreen have partnered with the Kentucky Department for Community Based Services University of Kentucky, Delaware Office of Early Learning and Delaware Health and Social Services to document the experiences of family child care providers (FCCP) in two different Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) in Delaware and Kentucky.
This four-year Child Care Research Partnership grant funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (2013 -2017) will investigate the implementation of a community of practice (COP) model and coordinated curriculum- focused professional development and the effects on FCCP participation and quality improvement within QRIS.
The goal of the project is to examine family childcare experience and participation in Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) in Delaware and Kentucky and to study the impact of quality improvement via implementation of Community of Practice model and coordinated professional development. The project serves 8 cohorts of family child care providers. In 2014, 5 literacy PD modules were delivered to the first cohort (New Castle county), 4 modules to second cohort (Sussex County), and 4 modules with third cohort (New Castle county, Spanish cohort).