Dr Wendy Jarvie Visiting Professor University of NSW at the Australian Defence Force Academy Canberra, Australia Some ECEC Challenges Gaining and sustaining government support for high quality ECEC Engaging parents and communities, particularly ethnic minorities Working across government – joined up agendas and services Improving workforce quality including revamped professional training Developing an innovation culture and scaling up from successful trials (eg low cost delivery, transition to school)

1. The role of Qualitative Research in
Advancing ECEC Policy Development and
Implementation
Dr Wendy Jarvie
Visiting Professor
University of NSW at the Australian Defence Force Academy
Canberra, Australia
OECD Early Childhood Education and Care Network Meeting
O
Oslo, Norway 25 January 2012

2. Overview
1. Qualitative research – what is it?
• strengths
• why is it undervalued?
2. Critical ECEC policy and program
challenges today
• need systematic qualitative research
3. Priority – IMPLEMENTATION
studies!!
• implementation science
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W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

3. Qualitative Research
• In depth study of complex issue,
process, event . . .
• Focus on participants, views and
behaviour
• Cuts across disciplines, uses a mix
of methods
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4. Why is it under-valued by governments?
• Essential for government ECEC agendas
o Best practice guides/regulation
o Evaluations of programs, build public trust
o Comparative studies
o Input to quantitative studies
BUT
• Over-used in education research
• Poor quality/researcher bias
• Expensive, complex, difficult to
generalise from
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4 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

5. Many ECEC challenges today need high quality
qualitative research
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5 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

6. Some ECEC Challenges
• Gaining and sustaining government support
for high quality ECEC
• Engaging parents and communities, particularly
ethnic minorities
• Working across government – joined up agendas
and services
• Improving workforce quality including revamped
professional training
• Developing an innovation culture and scaling
up from successful trials (eg low cost delivery,
transition to school)
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6 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

7. Ethnic Minority Children
The most disadvantaged Governments - struggle
for effectiveness
of all
Public officials - lack skills
and capacity
Communities and parents
- little awareness of
importance of ECEC,
mistrust of government,
lack leadership
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7 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

8. Ethnic Minority Children
Need research on
•Making children’s culture
work for them
• Lifting workforce quality
o Teaching assistants,
ethnic minority
teachers, bilingual
teaching
•Community outreach
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5 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

9. Parenting skills
Essential for outcomes,
especially for very
young children 0-3.
Many parents do not
understand the
importance of ECEC,
especially talking and
reading to children.
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9 W. Jarvie, 2012 OECD ECEC network meeting Norway

10. Parenting skills
Need to develop
•systematic evidence base
•how informal programs
can work with formal ECEC
services
•how to include education
messages in health
programs/home visiting
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11. The impossible dream - education and health
ministries in harmony
PROBLEM
Professional differences : professions don’t Qualitative research is needed
understand each other
– Health professionals don’t understand Good practice studies
importance of reading/play /small group • ministries and professionals
sizes working together successfully
– Education professionals don’t understand
nutrition, de-worming, ear infection • role of advocates, NGOs ,
control programs government ministers
• Research base • organisational structures
o Health – stronger evidence base, that support joined up action
practitioner researcher
o Education – weaker evidence base • Are changes to professional
training needed?
Ministries don’t want to cede leadership
or power to the other
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12. IMPLEMENTATION !
“THE PARADOX OF NON-EVIDENCED
BASED IMPLEMENTATION OF
EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE”
(Drake, Gorman and Torrey , 2002)
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13. IMPLEMENTATION SCIENCE in ECEC !
• Need a conceptual framework, and possibly a
common language
• Systematic studies
• Meta studies
Draw from health implementation science
• develop collaborative relationships -
government, providers, research institutions,
practitioners.
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14. Conclusion: Priorities
• Implementation Science in ECEC
o Journal? OECD studies?
• Research on
o Effective strategies for ethnic minority children,
parents and communities
o Parenting programs
o Joined up government – how to do it; persuading
government to invest in the “invisible “ components of
quality in ECEC
o Enhancing workforce quality
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15. THANK YOU!
• Question THANK YOU!
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W. Jarvie Strategic Management Conference 27 September 2011