California CTC Update: ECE Design Teams Under the PDG-R and Proposed Program Quality Peer Review Process
At the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) meeting on August 5th, CTC staff provided an update on the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Design Teams under the Preschool Development Grant-Renewal (PDG-R) and proposed program quality peer review process. The informational item (3D) was presented by CTC staff who are working closely with the design teams, including Phyllis Jacobson, Administrator, Cassandra Henderson and Debra Keeler, Consultants, Professional Services Division, Amy Reising, Chief Deputy Director, and June Millovich, CAP Co-Director and Faculty Member, Saddleback Community College. They reported on:
- Activities conducted since the last update was provided at the Commission in February 2021;
- Next steps to continue work to align the Child Development Permit with the state’s Master Plan for Early Learning and Care (MPELC); and
- Work to review credential pathways for Transitional Kindergarten (TK).
In their presentation, CTC staff provided an overview of the purpose of the design teams, the processes developed by the design team for peer review, and an update on the work accomplished so far. The update focused on the activities and progress made by the two design teams (ECE Teaching Performance Assessment Design Team and ECE Program Quality Peer Review Design Team) which are working on developing Teacher Performance Expectations (TPEs), Teacher Performance Assessments (TPAs), and the accreditation process to align with the MPELC and move the field towards a competency-based teacher preparation system. These activities are working to shift the Early Learning system from reliance on seat time and course titles serving as the basis for issuing a Child Development Permit (CDP) towards a Commission-adopted permit licensure system based on demonstrated candidate competencies and preparation program quality standards as the guiding principles for preparation and permitting in this field. Currently, the CDP is not subject to standards, program review, or accreditation and does not include performance assessment to support development of candidate competence prior to licensure. Making and adopting these changes will bring the CDP into alignment with the rest of the credential areas.
As part of this update, CTC staff shared about the progress colleges and universities involved in the Pilots are making as they pilot TPE-aligned curriculum and provide critical feedback with CDP candidates at their institutions. Staff stressed throughout the presentation on this item that this work is still in the very early stages and there is ample opportunity for feedback and continuous improvement throughout the piloting process.
Additionally, this agenda item also announced that the CTC will begin reviewing pathways to TK credentialing and will begin to examine how TK staffing has been implemented to date. The CTC plans to engage with stakeholders this fall. An update on this item and next steps will be presented to the Commission at the October 2021 meeting.
Public Comment
Generally, the update on this informational item was very well received and feedback was positive. Much of the public comments and Commissioner discussion conveyed the need to make sure that the Pilots are equally inclusive of all four systems of higher education in California and that all of the systems are engaged. It was stressed that students and CDP permit candidates may change career goals or switch institutions, so the higher education systems need to be aligned to allow that sort of flexibility. There was also much discussion about the need for a P-3 credential; however, a lot of questions were raised about how we can successfully achieve this.
Early Edge California provided public comment during the meeting commending the Commission for its work to move towards a competency-based approach and develop TPAs that support dual language programs and instruction. We encouraged the CTC to use a P-3 approach as it reviews pathways to TK and preschool credentials. We also asked to be included in stakeholder engagement opportunities as they review the TK credential. We look forward to next steps in this work.