EFFECTIVE SUPERVISION IS BASED ON JOB STANDARDS
Sources of Job Standards
What Job Standards Include
Communicating Job Standards to Parents and StaffMOTIVATING STAFF
Promoting Staff Growth and Development
Establishing Avenues for Open Communication
Promoting TeamworkAN INDIVIDUALIZED APPROACH TO SUPERVISION
Using an Individualized Approach
Examples of Individualized SupervisionEVALUATING STAFF PERFORMANCE
Ongoing Observation of Education Staff
Providing Feedback to Staff
Performance AppraisalsDEALING WITH PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS
Analyzing the Causes of Performance Problems
Termination of Component Staff
Staff Termination PoliciesHELPING TEACHERS SUPERVISE
Techniques to Promote Supervisory Skills
Supervision of VolunteersSTRATEGIES FOR SUCCESSFUL SUPERVISION
THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF TILE EDUCATION COORDINATOR FOR SUPERVISION
- Setting, clarifying, and communicating job standards for the Education Component to staff and parents.
- Supporting and promoting the Head Start Performance Standards and local standards applicable to Head Start.
- Establishing and maintaining written and verbal communication systems within the Education Component.
- Convening regularly scheduled staff meetings.
- Providing individualized supervision based on continual assessment of the skills, knowledge, motivation, and attitudes of staff.
- Conducting regular observations of staff performance and providing feedback to staff.
- Conducting formal staff performance evaluations according to the program's policies and procedures.
- Providing assistance and support to staff whose performance does not meet the job standards for the Education Component.
- Recommending staff termination when staff performance does not or cannot improve.
- Assisting teachers to develop their own supervisory skills.
- Establishing and implementing procedures for orienting and supervising Education Component volunteers.
- Keeping up with the field of early childhood education and sharing information with staff.
BEFORE READING THIS CHAPTER
- Complete the self-assessment for this chapter.
- Review the program's personnel policies.
- Review the job descriptions for all education staff (including the Education Coordinator's).
- Review the Education Component's policies and procedures.
- Summarize personal values and beliefs about effective supervision and commonly used supervisory techniques.
SELF-ASSESSMENT: EFFECTIVE SUPERVISION ESTABLISHING AND COMMUNICATING STANDARDS
1. Have I made it clear what is expected of staff in terms of job performance?
2. Do the job descriptions for Education Component staff accurately state the responsibilities for each position and the
standards for successfully carrying out these responsibilities?MOTIVATING STAFF
3. Do I communicate respect for individual staff members?
4. Do I keep staff informed of what is going on in the program?
5. Do I give staff the authority to make as many decisions as possible?INDIVIDUALIZING SUPERVISION
6. Do I continually assess each staff member's supervisory needs and provide supervision accordingly?
7. Do I provide staff with an orientation to individualized supervision?EVALUATING STAFF PERFORMANCE
8. Do I allow staff to participate in setting goals and in deciding how to achieve them?
9. Do I conduct classroom observations and provide feedback on a regular basis?
10. Do I record observations objectively?
11. Have I made home visit observations?DEALING WITH PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS
12. Do I analyze what is causing performance problems before deciding what to do about them?
13. Do I recommend staff termination when it is in the best interest
of the children and families?HELPING TEACHERS SUPERVISE
14. Do I help teachers develop their own supervisory skills?
15. Are the volunteers in my program given a job description and
clear expectations for job performance?
16. Have I helped home visitors better utilize parent help during socialization sessions?Review your responses, especially those you marked "Needs My Attention," and circle those you want to work on. List them below in order of their importance to you.
EFFECTIVE SUPERVISION IS BASED ON JOB STANDARDS People are most comfortable and productive in situations in which the standards and expectations of the organization and of the supervisor are clearly communicated and understood. Clear standards for job performance help the Education Coordinator function effectively. They are used as objective criteria to guide observations of staff and as a basis for conducting performance appraisals. Job standards also contribute to positive communication between the Education Coordinator and the staff because the staff knows what is expected of them.
SOURCES OF JOB STANDARDS
One of the most important tasks, an Education Coordinator undertakes is to identify or establish clear job performance standards for each member of the Education Component staff. Some of these job standards are based on national requirements, such as the Head Start
Performance Standards and the Child Development Associate (CDA) Competencies, which specify the level of performance expected. The CDA Competencies are applicable to all teaching staff: those who already have their CDA credentials, those working toward them, and those with degrees in early childhood education.Local program requirements also define job standards for the Education Component. Every teacher, assistant, home visitor, and volunteer should have a job description that accurately states the job responsibilities and the standards for successfully carrying out these responsibilities. (Writing job descriptions is discussed in more detail in Chapter III of this guide.) However, job descriptions are not detailed enough to address specific job standards, such as quality, quantity, frequency, process, and (when appropriate) the time frame for completing each task. These are specified in written policies and procedures and in daily communications. Some job standards are developed through the participatory management process-staff meetings, work groups, Policy Council/Committee meetings, etc. Others come from the Director, the Education Coordinator, the grantee/delegate Executive Director, and the community.
In addition to job performance standards based on national and local program requirements, supervisors may have expectations concerning staff performance based on their own experiences, values, and priorities and on their knowledge of early childhood education. Communicating these to staff and parents is often difficult because the Education Coordinator cannot refer to specific requirements, such as the Head Start Performance Standards. Instead, the Education Coordinator assumes the role of an assertive, credible leader, using training or demonstrations to convince the staff that a given job standard is appropriate.
WHAT JOB STANDARDS INCLUDE
Performance standards for the education staff are explicit in job descriptions. This is one reason why clear and accurate job descriptions, tied to the Education Component Plan, are so important. Job standards for home visitors and classroom staff will cover the home or class room environment, use of materials, planning, discipline, individualization, working with volunteers, and appropriate teaching behaviors, to mention a few topics.
Job standards and expectations should reflect a balance between the quantity of work to be completed and the quality. They also may include additional performance criteria:
For example, job standards concerning the development of weekly plans might be reflected in the following statements.
- the frequency of performance-how often;
- the process used-how and by whom; and
- the time frame-when.
The performance criteria for these job standards are:
- Using the program's established planning formats, teachers prepare complete long-range plans one month in advance and complete weekly plans.
- Teachers develop plans that identify objectives and reflect the curriculum. Teachers include parents, class room staff, and volunteers in the planning process.
- Each Friday, teachers submit copies to the Education Coordinator and post the plans in the center.
A program may also have job standards related to staff members interactions with each other. These include cooperation, collaboration, communication, and response to feedback. Other job standards may address personal behavior such as judgment, overall attitude, adaptability, and willingness to grow. These job standards are subjective, harder to define, and therefore harder to communicate to the staff. Assessment of performance with regard to these subjective job standards must be based on observed and documented behavior. For example, when providing feedback to an individual about an inappropriate attitude, the Education Coordinator needs to give several examples of incidents where this was observed.
- Frequency
- monthly and weekly.
- Process
- using standard format,
- involving assistants and volunteers, and
- posting the plans in the center.
- Time Frame
- each Friday.
- Quality
- complete,
- use standard format,
- identify objectives, and
- reflect curriculum.
COMMUNICATING JOB STANDARDS
TO PARENTS AND STAFFJob standards can be communicated in three ways: in writing, by modeling behaviors, and by "selling" beliefs and values.
WRITING
Many of the job standards for Education Component staff are clearly stated in the written documents that help the Director and the Education Coordinator manage the program. In addition to the Performance Standards and job descriptions already mentioned, job standards can be found in:
It is important to have copies of these written materials available for staff and parents. Staff members should have their own copies of the personnel policies, their own job description, and job descriptions for those they supervise. Parents each receive a parent handbook, and Policy Council/Committee members receive other program documents on request. Also, every center needs a copy of the latest Education Component Plan. This can be kept in a prominent place so that the staff and parents can use it. This conveys the message that it was written to be used. Written communication of job standards also includes posting signs throughout the center in obvious places to inform and remind parents and staff about upcoming events, policies, menus, resources, duties, or schedules.
- the curriculum;
- the Education Component Plan;
- the personnel policy manual;
- program policies and procedures;
- performance evaluation forms;
- the parent handbook; and
- the CDA Competencies.
MODELING
It is very important to stress that setting standards is part of an ongoing process of assessing staff and program effectiveness. Standards help control daily program activities and provide goals for staff. Communicating the program's job standards is part of this ongoing process. Every time a supervisor holds a staff meeting or engages in a conversation with a staff member or a parent, he/she is communicating something about job standards.
For example, supervisors model job standards by:
SELLING
- asking a home visitor to share a design for a successful activity with another home visitor; this conveys the standards related to the activity and to staff collaboration;
- sending a memo stating that activities incorporating sound nutrition should occur at least once a week;
- calling staff to remind them of the classroom observation schedule; this models the standards for notifying staff of observations in advance; and
- scheduling a staff meeting for 3:00 but not beginning it until 3:15; this conveys that the standard for punctuality may not be consistently applied.
Sometimes communicating job standards will involve persuading the parents and staff that the Education Coordinator's approach or method is the most appropriate one. It is always better to promote voluntary compliance with standards rather than making compliance compulsory. Ideas can be sold by modeling, providing examples, documenting the results to be gained, or by allowing discussion and compromise.
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