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This project is a collaboration between the students in my Holistic Learning in Early Childhood Education course in the Mitch and Leslie Frazer Faculty of Education at Ontario Tech University and CityStudio Durham/Regional Municipality of Durham’s Children’s Services Division.  This collaboration enabled the students to work with partners to address real-world challenges in the Durham Region.

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The Project

                The goal of this action research project is to use the Early Development Instrument (EDI) data to create evidence-based prototypes (products, tools, and resources) that support vulnerable children in the Durham Region. The EDI tool measures young children’s ability to meet age-appropriate developmental expectations to determine their school readiness. This initiative is a collaboration with CityStudio Durham, which is a community-based organization that works with partners to create projects based on real-world challenges.

                The Project is integrated into my EDST 4150U Holistic Learning in Early Childhood Education course in the BA program at the Mitch and Leslie Fraser Faculty of Education at Ontario Tech University. Students work in small groups to propose and then design a prototype for educators, caregivers, and children based on the EDI vulnerability scores to improve developmental outcomes. Each prototype is tailored to a specific EDI developmental domain: physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive development, and communication skills and general knowledge. CityStudio Durham staff introduce the students to the EDI dashboard, provide feedback on their initial prototype proposal, and follow up on their progress.

                Over the past three years, more than 200 Ontario Tech students have participated in the project. The students designed many innovative prototypes including an Emotions Calendar, I Share and I Care Social Competence Board Game, Yoga 4 Kids, Emotional Maturity Toolkit, Mindful Science Explorers, and an At-Home Grounding Centre. In addition to creating the prototype, students produced videos that synthesized what they had learned about the EDI domain, explained how this led to the creation of the prototype, and then described the prototype itself. Some students were invited to present their prototypes at the CityStudio Hubbub, a major public annual event in Durham Region.

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Educational Impact

                There is clear evidence that this experiential learning opportunity has had a tremendous educational impact on Ontario Tech students, ECEs, and families in Durham Region. Among my students surveyed by CityStudio in 2023, 83% enjoyed working with real world data. Moreover, 87% of students agreed that this learning experience was valuable, 76% said that the experience taught them new skills, and 78% agreed that it will help them in future academic and work endeavors. These students were confident that their prototypes would benefit the community, with 94% believing that what they created would help Durham children and their families.

                The findings about the benefits for students were even more positive in the 2024 survey by CityStudio, where 90% of the students enjoyed working with real world data and 93% of students agreed that this learning experience was valuable, 89% of the students said that the experience taught them new skills, and 91% agreed that it will help them in future academic and work endeavors. 98% of the students believe that what they created will help Durham Region children and their families. These prototypes are indeed making a difference to the developmental outcomes of vulnerable children in the Durham Region. The Children’s Services Division has developed and disseminated some of the prototypes for use in early learning and childcare communities.

                My research has also shown that students have been positively impacted by the project. Individual students responded:

  • I liked that we were creating something for a purpose more than just a mark, as there is a chance it could be used. I had no knowledge of the EDI prior to this project, and I think it was a great way to learn and connect it back to my experiences working with children.

  • I am passionate about creating awareness around social-emotional education and the importance of early intervention, and this was an amazing opportunity to try and create something that could really help parents and children in need.

  • I learnt about what children…were struggling with and even came up with something to help them...Loved it. 

  • This will certainly have an effect on how I work in the education system in the future.

  • So [many] projects are theoretical applications and having a tangible target for the effort finally felt purposeful.

  • I liked that we got to be creative and able to choose something that we were passionate about.

See below for media stories that were released by Ontario Tech and CityStudio Durham:

https://news.ontariotechu.ca/archives/2023/05/ontario-tech-education-researcher-and-students-develop-practical-tools-to-support-the-development-of-school-readiness-skills.php

https://www.durham.ca/en/citystudio/ready-to-learn-improving-children-s-development-and-readiness-for-school.aspx

This action research project was also recognized when I became the recipient of the Ontario Tech University Learning Reimagined Award 2023 (awarded March 27, 2024).

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