Quality Rating and Improvement System

[Guest]

I am a family childcare provider in Washington State where we have just been introduced to Early Achievers which is our Quality Rating and Improvement System(QRIS).

I heard that almost half the states in our country are participating in this program and haven't come across a thread about it yet.

I enrolled last spring and am getting ready for my first rating this winter. I am very curious if any of you have gone through a rating and can share their experience?

I have heard that the raters have all been trained the exact same way so every program gets rated with the exact same criteria.

Two hints I have heard are:
~If you are a center director, make sure all your employees answer the interview questions the same.
~When the children are done with lunch, the tables/chairs/highchairs need to be cleaned and sanitized immediately rather than waiting for the children to go down for nap and then cleaning.

Any of you have any other helpful hints or ideas about getting rated?

[Heidi]

I am a family childcare provider in Washington State where we have just been introduced to Early Achievers which is our Quality Rating and Improvement System(QRIS).

I heard that almost half the states in our country are participating in this program and haven't come across a thread about it yet.

I enrolled last spring and am getting ready for my first rating this winter. I am very curious if any of you have gone through a rating and can share their experience?

I have heard that the raters have all been trained the exact same way so every program gets rated with the exact same criteria.

Two hints I have heard are:
~If you are a center director, make sure all your employees answer the interview questions the same.
~When the children are done with lunch, the tables/chairs/highchairs need to be cleaned and sanitized immediately rather than waiting for the children to go down for nap and then cleaning.

Any of you have any other helpful hints or ideas about getting rated?

QRIS's in general have been talked to death here. 90% of us think they're a big ol' waste of money.

I'm in WI, and they are definitely deficit-based. Meaning, they look for what's WRONG with your program, not what's RIGHT. We are in year 3, and they are still working the bugs out, but they're getting there. Ours is a 2-part system. You get a technical consultant who is supposed to help you get ready for the rater (if you want 4 or 5 stars you need to have a formal observation by a rater). Then, the rater observes the program. Here is where the problems arise; the raters and technical consultants have different approaches.

I can tell you that if you look at the 2 other programs in my county that have the same amount of stars, you will find a huge difference in the quality and environment, yet we are all the same "star level".

[Annalee]

The state I am in mandates an Assessment with the Family Child Care Environmental Rating Scale-Revised version.....going on the 13th year. While we are told the assessors have the "same" knowledge of the FCCERS-R book/tool, there are a high number of areas that are left to "perception" which lead to many inconsistencies. I hope the tool you will be assessed with is more realistic than ours. There are over thirty areas which are scored 1 to 7 and then averaged....you must receive at least a 4 average to earn any stars. It is a one and done deal until the next year. Needless to say, FCC providers do not agree, to say it nicely, with this system....

[Blackcat31]

Here are tons of other threads about this subject

https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.php?tag=qris

https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.php?tag=star+program

https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.php?tag=rating+system

https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.php?tag=rating+-+daycare

[dingledine]

I'm doing this too, in WA state. Just finishing my binder, etc. That is how far along I am, so, no help.

[snbauser]

Although many states across the country are doing QRIS, they vary greatly in how they are implementing it. Here in NC, we have had this for a while. It is optional unless you want to take state pay. You get 1 star when you start out and after 6 months can request to be evaluated for more stars. You can get up to 5. Our star rating is based on two components - education and program. Education is pretty straight forward. You get points based on how much ECE you have. Program is more complicated. You can get a certain number of points (very few) without going through FCCERS. If you want to go through the FCCERS, you can get up to 5 stars based on where you score. I have been through FCCERS several times and I can attest to the fact that there is much open to interpretation and it varies both based on the assessor and based on the mood of the assessor. I am actually getting ready to go through it again. My window is from Nov 25 through Dec 20. Meaning they can show up any of those days. I wouldn't do it if I didn't need the stars right now. I only have to complete my internship for my AA in ECE but can't count any of my hours here if I am not at least 3 stars. Plus I changed my program to a much smaller target group so I need every advantage I can get.

[Annalee]

You are SOOOO right when you say the FCCERS-R is left in large part to interpretation and the mood of the assessor.

Plus, the fact that you have to meet certain "crazy" things for each age group: 12 mos and under, 12 to 30 mos, then 31 mos to age 5.....crazy!

It is mandated annually in our state and causes havoc.

I have always scored well, but even though I do, the negativity surrounding it causes the children in our care to suffer. I start worrying the minute I receive my letter....then comes the call a few weeks later to set up the appt.....they will come usually in the next 4-6 weeks.....then after the 4-6 hr observation.....I wait up to six weeks for my scores... so this affects months of my life!

Counting science, math, books, etc....then making sure I sit in an adult-size chair during routine and play.......then making sure I talk about math during routine and play......then making sure I talk about science during routine and play.....following me to the bathroom to watch every diaper changed.....should I go on at the expectations of the day??!!!?????

National FCC Accreditation is much more FCC provider-friendly with an emphasis on achieving....Assessment is built around what you do wrong.

No matter how much ECE education a provider has, they can still, on a given day, fail the state assessment. Something is wrong with that!

[Laurel]

We don't have it where I live (Southeast Florida) but they have been trying to implement it for YEARS. The providers here who have volunteered to have these people in their homes to 'test it' (I think) said it was a nightmare. Pretty soon no one wanted to help them out and be the 'guinea pigs' for this.

Things I heard from them is that they do nutty things like one provider said they measured the grass under her climber. One had a changing table that was an inch too short. Just all kinds of things like that. Plus the providers felt like they had a wonderful setup (and they did) but they would come in and seem to make it hard to get a high star rating.

My hope is that nothing will ever come of it here. I figure I only have a year or so till retirement so, and supposedly, it is voluntary. I definitely won't volunteer.

Laurel

[Annalee]

We don't have it where I live (Southeast Florida) but they have been trying to implement it for YEARS. The providers here who have volunteered to have these people in their homes to 'test it' (I think) said it was a nightmare. Pretty soon no one wanted to help them out and be the 'guinea pigs' for this.

Things I heard from them is that they do nutty things like one provider said they measured the grass under her climber. One had a changing table that was an inch too short. Just all kinds of things like that. Plus the providers felt like they had a wonderful setup (and they did) but they would come in and seem to make it hard to get a high star rating.

My hope is that nothing will ever come of it here. I figure I only have a year or so till retirement so, and supposedly, it is voluntary. I definitely won't volunteer.

Laurel

You are right about measuring the surfacing (pea gravel/mulch, etc.) under climbers outside that are over 12 inches. Grass doesn't count for surfacing in my state!

I personally have pea gravel with NO climbers anymore because it had to be 6 inches deep in every area. Even if they measured 10 places and it was 6 inches but one spot had 5 1/2, then I would be discredited. Therefore, I just removed all climbers and offer gross motor play another way.

It is a nightmare for sure!!!! Like I stated earlier, I score well but the negativity surrounding the assessment makes me crazy!!! Looks to me llike the state could find a much better way to spend tax dollars.

[snbauser]

You are right about measuring the surfacing (pea gravel/mulch, etc.) under climbers outside that are over 12 inches. Grass doesn't count for surfacing in my state!

I personally have pea gravel with NO climbers anymore because it had to be 6 inches deep in every area. Even if they measured 10 places and it was 6 inches but one spot had 5 1/2, then I would be discredited. Therefore, I just removed all climbers and offer gross motor play another way.

I did the same thing. I got tired of the mulch tracked all over the yard and tired of constantly having to replace and respread the mulch to make sure it was 6in over the entire play area.

[snbauser]

Grrrr...and I just realized today that I need to so something with my markers. My youngest dcg will be 3 on Dec 18th but my window for FCCERS is 11/25 - 12/20 and they consider marker lids a choking hazard. Stupid since they are like 1 1/2 in - 2in long and she doesn't mouth anything. But there is no allowance for that. So I need to have dh cut and sand some blocks of wood for me that are long and skinny so I can lay them down and they still fit in my marker drawer and hot glue all the lids to the block. It is stupid things like this that make me not want to do the FCCERS.

[sharlan]

If CA ever implements it, I will turn in my license.

[Heidi]

Grrrr...and I just realized today that I need to so something with my markers. My youngest dcg will be 3 on Dec 18th but my window for FCCERS is 11/25 - 12/20 and they consider marker lids a choking hazard. Stupid since they are like 1 1/2 in - 2in long and she doesn't mouth anything. But there is no allowance for that. So I need to have dh cut and sand some blocks of wood for me that are long and skinny so I can lay them down and they still fit in my marker drawer and hot glue all the lids to the block. It is stupid things like this that make me not want to do the FCCERS.

Yes, because in order to score high in one area, you often have to give up something else.

All hands must be washed and the table sanitized before the children sit down. Ok. But, children should not sit at the table and wait for more than 3 minutes, and if they touch anything on the way back to the table, they have to go around again. If you have 2 kids, that'd be a challenge, but if there are 7, and 1 of you, how can you do both?

[snbauser]

All hands must be washed and the table sanitized before the children sit down. Ok. But, children should not sit at the table and wait for more than 3 minutes, and if they touch anything on the way back to the table, they have to go around again. If you have 2 kids, that'd be a challenge, but if there are 7, and 1 of you, how can you do both?

Typically I wash and sanitize the table and have them play in an area that is away from the table while I get the last minute things ready for lunch. Then I line them up to wash hands and while they are doing that I dry the table. Thankfully with my set up and the ages of kids I have (almost 3 - 5), I can do that. They also know not to touch anything on the way from the sink to the table. I usually tell them to fold their hands or if I have a younger group, clap their hands on the way to the table.

[Annalee]

If CA ever implements it, I will turn in my license.

That is what happened in my state when the FCCERS was implemented 13 years ago....Only a third of FCC providers remained licensed...the rest went unregulated, some legally.....some not!!!!!