The Journeys Project engaged 30 parents from 8 ethnocultural communities in focus groups. This included participants from the Bhutanese, Chinese-speaking, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Filipino, Kurdish-speaking, Somali, and  Spanish-speaking communities.  

We then undertook an empathy and journey mapping process to produce ‘personas” and composite stories that illustrate the complex experiences of parents. Each persona/ composite story is a semi-fictional account woven together from what we heard from multiple participants and informed by the experiences of the brokers who work directly with ethnocultural families.

The results illuminate opportunities to improve early learning and care for ethnocultural families and their children. 

The Edmonton Council for Early Learning and Care recommends 13 actions that can be taken by Alberta Children’s Services and that will support many families, contribute to economic and social recovery from the COVID pandemic, and help to address some of the critical priorities of EndPovertyEdmonton.

The Edmonton Council for Early Learning and Care recommends 5 actions that can be taken by School Boards and that will support many families, contribute to economic and social recovery from the COVID pandemic, and help to address some critical educational priorities.

Authors Chelsea Freeborn, MEd., Alvina Mardhani-Bayne, PhD., and Cheyanne Soetaert provide an overview of the joint research between Edmonton Council for Early Learning and Care (ECELC) and MacEwan University and findings.

Authors Chelsea Freeborn, MEd., Alvina Mardhani-Bayne, PhD., and Cheyanne Soetaert conducted case studies with child care directors and senior staff to ascertain how support for Indigenous and newcomer families can be realized in Edmonton child care contexts.

Authors Chelsea Freeborn, MEd., Alvina Mardhani-Bayne, PhD., and Cheyanne Soetaert using information from a scoping review of current academic literature to identified existing understandings of indicators of quality and desirable educator dispositions created guiding questions for focus groups made up of Indigenous families and educators who support Indigenous families.

In Quality Indicators and Dispositions in the Early Learning and Child Care Sector:
Learning from Indigenous Families authors Chelsea Freeborn, MEd., Alvina Mardhani-Bayne, PhD., and Cheyanne Soetaert bring attention to a range of quality indicators and educator dispositions valued by Indigenous Families.

The Child Care Act and Regulation provides the legislative basis for early learning and care in Alberta. The Act has undergone review by the Ministry of Children’s Services, and a new Act was tabled in the Legislature in November 2020. This report is a comprehensive review of how jurisdictions can, and do, support quality in early learning and care through a combination of regulation and other policy vehicles and mechanisms.