Partnerships could work, says Cooper
Metrovalley Newspaper Group - The Tri-City News
July 3, 2008
By: Diane Strandberg

Private and non-profit child care centres shouldn't be passed over in favour of school-based programs if kindergarten is expanded to all-day programs for three- to five-year-olds, says the operator of two child care centres and a former chair of the B.C. Child Care Council.

Wendy Cooper says daycare operators already have the knowledge, expertise and systems in place to offer kindergarten to children as young as three. Replacing them would cause redundancy, duplication and further marginalize care workers at these locations.

She's also worried that moving very young children from a child care centre to school and back while they wait for their working moms and dads to pick them up will make them anxious and confused.

…On the other hand, children will benefit if the government pumps resources into expanding early learning opportunities, Cooper said.

She would like to see a community board oversee the change and monitor the kindergarten providers, which would have to be accredited to get government funding. Some could be based in schools, but not all. As long as everyone used the same government curriculum - a framework for which has already been developed - B.C. could offer a seamless, accessible system that meets the needs of all families.

"There's lots of ways we can work in partnerships," Cooper said.

…If expanded kindergartens were to be run entirely by schools, Cooper wonders if they could provide the same quality of program given their class size ratios. Licensed child care centres have eight children for every caregiver; currently, the student-to-teacher ratio for kindergartens in B.C. public schools is 22 to one.

"We wonder if parents would be aware of that and we would have to educate them about that fact," Cooper said….