QRSQRIS: A Strategic Movement for Defining Quality Peggy Ball and Nancy vonBargen NCCIC Technical As

1
QRS/QRIS A Strategic Movement for Defining
QualityPeggy Ball and Nancy vonBargenNCCIC
Technical Assistance Specialists
2009 National Smart Start Conference May 6,
2009 Greensboro, NC
2
What Is a QRS/QRIS?

• A quality rating system (QRS) is a method to
  assess, improve, and communicate the level of
  quality in early and school-age care settings
• May also be called a quality rating and
  improvement system (QRIS)

3
What Does QRS/QRISLook Like?

• Builds on foundation of licensing and adds
  multiple steps between licensing standards and
  higher quality standards
• Offers supports/incentives for reaching higher
  levels
• Provides easily recognized symbols for higher
  levels

4
Why Develop a QRS/QRIS?

• The overall goal of QRS/QRIS is to improve the
  quality of programs through systemwide
  improvements
• Opportunity to do the following
• Increase quality of care for children
• Increase parents understanding and demand for
  higher quality care
• Increase professional development of child care
  providers

5
Why Develop a QRS/QRIS, con.?

• Create alignment between licensing, subsidy, and
  quality and across child care, prekindergarten,
  and Head Start
• Link support and initiatives to a quality
  framework
• Provide an accountability measure for funding

6
Connecting Existing Initiatives
7
Scope of Statewide QRS/QRIS

• All 18 QRS/QRIS include child care centers and
  Head Start programs
• 17 include family child care homes
• 17 include school-age programs
• 7 include prekindergarten
• Prekindergarten may or may not be licensed
• Done at the local level
• None include unregulated family, friend, and
  neighbor care

8
Administrative Agenciesfor QRS/QRIS

• Licensing agency/subsidy agency
• IN, LA, ME, NC, NH, NM, OH, OK, TN
• Subsidy agency
• IA, KY, MD, MT
• Private entity
• CO, DE, VT
• State department of education
• DC
• Contract with child care resource and referral
  agencies
• PA

9
Funding Sources for QRS/QRIS

• All but one use Federal Child Care and
  Development Fund monies
• Other common sources
• Other Federal sources (Temporary Assistance for
  Needy Families and the Social Security Block
  Grant)
• General State dollars
• Private dollars
• Tax revenue
• Tobacco settlement

10
Common QRS/QRIS Elements

• Standards
• Accountability
• Program and practitioner outreach and support
• Financing incentives specifically linked to
  compliance with quality standards
• Parent/Consumer education

11
Determining Quality Standards

• States choose standards that research has shown
  to have significant impact on quality
• Classroom structure Child-staff ratios and group
  size
• Staff qualifications Caregivers and
  administrators education, training, and
  experience
• Program dynamics Curriculum, learning
  environment, and parent engagement

12
Common Categories of Standards
Source Data compiled by NCCIC as of March 2009.
13
Rating Assignment

• Building blocks
• All standards in a level must be met to move to
  the next level
• DC, DE, IN, KY, MD, ME, MT, NH, NM, OH, OK, PA,
  TN
• Points systems
• Standards are assigned a point value, which are
  calculated to determine ratings
• CO, NC, VT
• Combination
• A combination of building blocks and points used
  to determine ratings
• IA, LA

14
Classroom Assessments

• 14 of the 18 statewide QRS/QRIS are using an
  environment rating scale (ERS)
• Variations in using ERS with QRS/QRIS
• Frequency of assessment
• Percent/Number of classrooms observed
• How scores are used
• Averaged
• Required score for a particular level within the
  quality standards

15
Use of ERS Assessments

• ERS scores are used to determine rating levels
• DC, DE, KY, MD, NM, PA, TN
• Programs can earn rating points for ERS scores
• CO, IA, LA, NC
• Programs must be assessed with ERS, but do not
  tie particular scores to ratings
• NH, OK
• In OH, self-assessments are required, but
  programs can use an ERS or Early Language and
  Literacy Classroom Observation Tool, and scores
  are not tied to ratings

16
Accountability

• Accountability of compliance with quality
  standards, through assessment and monitoring does
  the following
• Creates benchmarks for measuring improvement
• Provides accountability for funding
• Guides the alignment of program and practitioner
  support (i.e., matching quality improvement plans
  with technical assistance TA resources)
• Builds the case for additional funding

17
Agencies That Monitor QRS/QRIS
Source Data compiled by NCCIC as of March 2009.
18
Program and Practitioner Outreach and Support

• Outreach for participation in the QRS/QRIS
• Orientation sessions and outreach staff
• TA
• Mentoring and coaching
• Help with accreditation
• Professional development and training
• College courses leading to degrees and distance
  learning
• Financial incentives
• Compensation awards, quality bonuses, and tiered
  reimbursement

19
Financing Incentives Linked to Compliance With
Quality Standards

• Tiered reimbursement rates
• Quality bonus payments and incentives
• Contracts
• Quality grants
• Scholarships
• Wage supplements
• Tax credits

20
(No Transcript)
21
Parent/Consumer Education

• Development of a quality rating indicator (or
  symbol) that families can use as a consumer
  guide
• Posted quality rating symbols
• Child care resource and referral agencies
• Public awareness campaigns
• Press releases
• Informational brochures, Web sites, etc.
• Publicized ratings

22

• Trends

23
Trend Growing Number of Statewide QRS/QRIS

• There are 18 statewide systems
• DE, LA, and ME are the most recent
• Most other States are exploring, designing, or
  piloting QRS/QRIS

24
(No Transcript)
25
Trend Piloting QRS/QRIS

• Can be used to check the following
• Standards
• Forms
• Assessment tools
• Financial incentives
• Provider response
• Assessment and monitoring process
• Sample size varies

26
Trend New Types of Standards

• Early learning guidelines
• Child observations
• Inclusion
• Infant and toddler and school-age criteria
• Classroom Assessment Scoring System and other
  instruments
• Registry participation

27

• Challenges

28
Challenge Including Accreditation

• Accreditation is included in 16 of the 18
  statewide QRS/QRIS
• How accreditation is used varies
• As the highest rating (or level) of the QRS/QRIS
• One of the criteria for reaching the highest
  step within the standards
• Criterion for which points are awarded

29
Challenge Defining Licensing Compliance

• No licensing citations
• No substantiated complaints
• License in good standing
• Specific number of noncompliances
• No serious noncompliances
• Specific number of penalties

30
What Is Good Enough?

• Does program have to be in 100 percent
  compliance? How far back? What is the timeframe?
• What is the degree of risk?
• Are there repeated violations?
• Were violations corrected during monitoring?
• Are there unsubstantiated complaints?
• Are violations out of the directors control?

31
Challenge Including Ratios

• 7 States include ratios
• Licensing ratios in comparison to national
  recommendations
• Major fiscal impact

32
Challenge TA Is Expensive, But Essential

• TA can focus on the following
• The QRS/QRIS process
• Quality improvement topics to meet QRS/QRIS
  standards
• Evaluation tools, e.g., ERS
• Accessing other resources, e.g., scholarships and
  grants
• The accreditation process

33
Oklahomas TA Resources

• Consultation Consultation and Technical Support
  Specialists (14), formerly Stars Outreach
  Specialists
• Professional development Scholarships,
  mentoring, and wage supplements
• Training ERS, accreditation workshops,
  Directors Leadership Academy

34
North Carolinas TA Resources Alignment With
QRS/QRIS

• Consultation Child care resource and referral
  agencies (general, infant and toddler,
  social-emotional, and school age), Smart Start,
  More at Four, Child Care Health consultation
• Professional development T.E.A.C.H. (Teacher
  Education and Compensation Helps) scholarships,
  wage supplements, and health insurance
• Training ERS and early learning guidelines
• Financial Grants

35
Pennsylvanias TA Resources

• Consultation STARS Specialist (program
  assessment and improvement plan, one-on-one),
  health and mental health
• Professional development T.E.A.C.H. scholarships
  and vouchers
• Training Visionary Director, Mind in the Making,
  conferences
• Financial STARS, education and retention, and
  site awards

36
Challenges for TA Systems

• Alignment with agreed upon outcomes
• Consistency
• Quality assurance
• Equity
• Coordination across TA systems

37
Challenge Conducting Meaningful Evaluation

• What is the impact of a QRS/QRIS?
• On program quality?
• On teachers?
• On families?
• On children?

38
Evaluation Impact

• State evaluations find positive impacts on
  quality
• Oklahoma
• Higher star level programs connected to more
  educated directors and teachers
• Less turnover
• Higher salaries
• North Carolina
• Validated rating standards
• Reduced staff turnover
• Reduced incidents of abuse and neglect
• Increased rating scale scores connected to
  increased teacher education levels

39
Evaluation Impact, con.

• Pennsylvania
• Programs with higher ratings have higher ERS
  scores
• Programs with a defined curriculum have higher
  ERS scores
• Teacher and provider education and experience
  correlate to higher ERS scores
• Tennessee
• Child care quality across Tennessee has improved
  at both centers and homes
• Average infant and toddler scores rose 9.9
  percent
• Parents across the State had evaluation results
  and report cards to help them make more informed
  child care choices
• Caregivers received detailed information about
  what they were doing well and ways to improve
  their services

40
QRS/QRIS Resources

• For more information about QRS/QRIS, visit
  NCCICs Web site at
• http//nccic.acf.hhs.gov/topics/topic/index.cfm?to
  picId44.

41
Sources

• Mitchell, A. (2005, July). Stair steps to
  quality A guide for states and communities
  developing quality rating systems for early care
  and education. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from
  www.earlychildhoodfinance.org/ArticlesPublications
  /StairStepstoQualityGuidebook_FINAL.pdf.
• Data compiled by NCCIC as of March 2009 from
  State documents and Web sites.

42
(No Transcript)