Child Carers Gather
Friday 16th September
Australian leaders in the high-growth sector of child care will be speaking in Coffs Harbour on Saturday 17 September for the 2005 North Coast Institute of TAFE Children’s Services Conference.
The conference is the largest of its kind in the north coast region, attracting about 150 delegates from Sydney to Southern Queensland, all seeking information on the new challenges and quality practices in this dynamic field.
This year’s presenters include:
- keynote speaker Judy Radich, national president of prime advocacy body, Early Childhood Australia,
- Janet Robertson from peak early childhood research and care facility, Mia Mia,
- Sue Farmer, co-author of one of the leading early childhood care textbooks
A number of workshops and seminars will follow the conference theme of Nurturing those who are nurturing others. Conference spokesperson, Margaret Spears says “this focus is important in a profession where so many of those who work hard caring for and educating children in the precious years before school, do so for little pay and community recognition.”
Margaret Spears added, “Child care professionals are too often dismissed as babysitters, when the majority have invested 6 months to 2 years in TAFE qualifications or 2 to 4 years in a university degree to work in a children’s service.” Ms Spears continued, “They need to comply with an immense burden of regulations and quality assurance principles and provide quality care for every child attending their service.”
“It’s so important that all of us who work in this sector learn how to nurture and support each other, as too many staff, in numbers as high as 33% to 40% each year, leave child care employment.”
Ms Spears is proud of the efforts of staff and students involved in the 2005 conference, “A number of TAFE NSW teachers are presenting some popular workshops, profiling current best practice, and the second-year Diploma students have (for the first year) taken the lead role in organising the conference.”
