The child care sector is characterised by people dedicated to creating exciting, nurturing and innovative learning environments for Australia's youngest learners.
Every month this section of our newsletter will profile some of Australia's most dynamic child care professionals.
If you or someone you know deserves to be featured in this section drop us a line to editor@careforkids.com.au
Interview with Jocelyn Whisker - Director of Sydney Cove Children's Centre
What is your full name (please include any nicknames you have been christened with by the children!) and age?
My name is Jocelyn Whisker
Which centre do you work in? How many staff and children are in the centre?
Sydney Cove Children's Centre. We cater for 140 children across our two centres in the CBD.
The centre caters for:
- 30 places aged 0-2 years
- 20 places aged 2-3 years
- 20 places aged 3-5 years
I have a Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood). I was a Teacher at SBS Child Care Centre, Director of Starting Blocks /ABC St Leonards Central before taking up the role of Director with Sydney Cove.
What attracted you to a career in child care?
I always wanted to be a teacher. Growing up my teachers played such an important role in my life and I thought what a rewarding job. I completed a school work experience practicum in a child care centre; it just seemed to come naturally.
What does a 'normal' day look like for you?
At Sydney Cove I interact directly with the owners on a daily basis. Our common goal is to ensure the professional satisfaction of our team, the education of the children in our care and quality services and support to our families.
I liaise with families from when they first contact the centre, discussing their child care needs and how the Sydney Cove team can meet them. I assist our team and the families through the orientation process and continue to guide both the parents and our teachers through meeting the day-to-day needs of each child.
I spend the day moving through our classrooms and interacting with the children and their carers. I am always on hand to give advice and support to the teachers. The best part of my day is being able to have lunch or a cuddle with the children. I feel fortunate to have the support of the centre owners that are passionate about the quality of care at the centre.
What makes your centre unique?
We have a number of experienced Early Childhood Teachers in our team across each of our age groups. Together we have designed a curriculum that is reflective of elements of the NSW school curriculum while still incorporating the values included in the NSW Curriculum Framework. We have benefited from the expertise of the owners of the centre, both of which don't hesitate to assist in all facets of our role. We can rely on their support when implementing new technologies, communicating with parents and helping out when extra cuddles are needed for the children.
We have embraced technology to document our planning, evaluating and children's individual portfolios. We are able to display daily power point presentations to our families, giving them a bright and informative review of their child's day.
As a CBD centre we are very lucky to have a huge outdoor area that features forts in the shape of a pirate ship and a submarine. We always receive positive comments about our outside space.
What are some of the biggest challenges facing the child care sector?
I believe that parents returning to work struggle with being in a position to choose a quality service as places can be limited. This may be because they do not know what they need to look for as well as limited places being available.
Services need to be open about their philosophy so that families can choose an environment for their child that is reflective of their own values.
Families need more and more support and advice from centre staff as they may not be using traditional mother's groups or baby health clinics due to being at work.
How has your centre changed to deal with these challenges?
Sydney Cove strives to meet individual family expectations rather then having a blanket view of what each family needs. We take the time to listen to each family and respond to their needs. We ensure that parents are well informed about their child's day through emails, phone calls and daily presentations that include photos that we display on large plasma screens. We use our website and regular newsletters/emails to communicate to families about events and changes at the centre.
Our team is involved in regular training to ensure that we are able to provide up to date and accurate information to families.
How does the industry need to change to adapt to these challenges?
Services need to look for new ways to involve families in the centre. When I was in school parents would visit and help with reading groups and on excursions. In most cases both parents are at work and are unable to do this. Parents want to know about their child's day and have input to the learning environment in a time efficient way.
We have an opportunity in this time of growth for our industry to ensure that Childcare stays personal, that relationships with the children and their families are not compromised by the needs of big business. We as Early Childhood Teachers can achieve this by choosing employers that will help us achieve high standards of care for young children.
What advice would you offer someone thinking about a career or looking for a promotion in child care?
I often hear people say they want to work in child care because they love children. Working as a part of a team in child care is a lot more then just playing with children. We have found that the better your understanding of child development the better you are equipped to deal with their changing behaviour.
I would say that valuing parents as much as you do the children is also important. Playing such an important role in a centre means playing an important role in a family's life and this needs to be a whole hearted commitment, one which will repay you a great deal of professional and personal satisfaction.
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