Looking back and reflecting on the development process

In quality development there are always victories and problems, and we congratulate you that you have come this far in using the program for your practice development.A. Today you will look back at the contents and tasks from the first 3 sessions to sum up what you have experienced together.B. Then you will interview each other about working in the program and discuss how you can resolve any problems in cooperation and help each other as much as possible in the next sessions.In part B it is important that the leader should participate.


A. LOOKING BACK AT SESSION CONTENTS AND TASKS


In this activity there will be a short summary of what the first three sessions were about.
Please give short comments on each question.
The list is presented by the instructor who also asks the questions.

Group activity 20-40 minutes

1ST SESSION “ATTACHMENT”

In the 1st session “Attachment” you learned about Bowlby’s Attachment Theory: The concept of Secure Base seeking (Attachment behavior), and how children start Exploration behavior only if they feel secure.

  • Do you observe and reflect on this in your daily practice?
  • Did you change the way you perform care because of this?
  • Did you manage to produce videos or observations of Attachment Behaviour and Exploration Behaviour?
2ND SESSION “WHAT IS PROFESSIONAL CAREGIVING?”

In the 2nd session “What is professional caregiving?” you worked with understanding how important it is to work with human relations to the children while also resolving practical tasks in a daily rhythm.

  • How did this affect your attention towards the children in your daily practices and routines?

You also learned the dimensions of Secure Caregiver behavior (To respond often and take initiatives to contact – to act in a sensitive way – to be accessible to the child – to feel with the child, but not like the child when it is in negative or sad states – to be interested in what the child feels and thinks and talk about it – even to babies).

  • How did you decide to work with these competences, and how did it go between sessions?
3RD SESSION “INSECURE ATTACHMENT PATTERNE IN OUTPLACED CHILDREN”

In the 3rd session “Insecure attachment in outplaced children” you learned about the three attachment patterns you often see if babies and toddlers who did not have proper care in the first two years of life.
The patterns are:

    • insecure avoidant,
    • insecure ambivalent, and
    • insecure disorganized attachment behavior.
  • Did you observe these ways of relating to caregivers in the children?
  • Did you use any of the recommendations for how to care for children with any of the three ways of relating to caregivers?
  • Did it work?
  • Have you become more tolerant, understanding and reflecting towards children with insecure attachment.


4TH SESSION “HOW TO PRACTICE PROFESSIONAL CAREGIVING”

In session 4, you worked with understanding how important it is to work with human relations to the children while also resolving practical tasks in a daily rhythm.

  • How did this affect your attention towards the children in your daily practices and routines?

You also learned the dimensions of Secure Caregiver behaviour (To respond often and take initiatives to contact – to act in a sensitive way – to be accessible to the child – to feel with the child, but not like the child when it is in negative or sad states – to be interested in what the child feels and thinks and talk about it – even to babies).

  • How did you decide to work with these competences, and how did it go between sessions?


5TH SESSION “INSECURE ATTACHMENT RESPONSES IN CHILDREN”

In session 5, you also learned about the three attachment patterns you often see if babies and toddlers who did not have proper care in the first two years of life.
The patterns are: insecure avoidant, insecure ambivalent, and insecure disorganized attachment behaviour.

  • Did you observe these ways of relating to caregivers in the children?
  • Did you use any of the recommendations for how to care for children with any of the three ways of relating to caregivers?
  • Did it work? Have you become more tolerant, understanding and reflecting towards children with insecure attachment behaviour?
6TH SESSION “TURNING LOSS INTO RESILIENCE”

In session 6 you learned how to work with children in order to help them overcome loss and see this experience as a source of personal strength and experience.

  • Did you use your own experiences about how to get over loss as parallel stories in dialogues with the children?
  • Did you make activities, videos and dialogues to create an open minded environment where children are free to talk about separations and losses they have experienced?
7TH SESSION “WHO AM I?”

In session 7 you worked with how to help children actively create a positive idea about themselves, in spite of having many different sources of origin.

  • Did you find ways to help children be active in working with the challenges of having many different sources of origin?
  • What was your most valuable experience from this session?

GROUP DISCUSSION


10 minutes

  • Are there any of these sessions, theories or tasks we want to go over again?
  • How has our knowledge, our value system and our practices been affected by our work with the program?

B. INTERVIEWS FOR UNDERSTANDING AND SUPPORTING EACH OTHER IN THE EDUCATION PROGRAM


The leader participates in this section. In this section you will make three interviews to clarify roles, relations and mutual support among you.

  • Please start by appointing a referee who can write down short notes of the statements people make, and write a summary at the end of the session.
  • Interviewer and the person interviewed should sit so that everybody can see them.
  • Each interview should take about 10 minutes, and after each interview the listeners can reflect and comment for 5 minutes on what they heard.
  • The interviewer just asks the questions and give the person good time to think, reflect and answer.
  • The listeners should not comment or interrupt during the interview.(NB: If you are a foster family manager you can use the questions in individual interviews with foster families)
FIRST INTERVIEW: A STAFF MEMBER INTERVIEWS LEADER/MANAGER
  1. What made you choose to use the Fair Start program?
  2. Do you get support and interest from your own superiors in using Fair Start?
  3. What has the program so far given you as a leader?
  4. Please name three problems for you as a leader in conducting the program – practical, cooperation with others involved, or otherwise.
  5. Please name three things you think that the instructor and the staff do well in the way they work with the program.
  6. Please name three things you think that instructor and staff can improve in the way they work with the program.
  7. Please name three kinds of support from staff and instructor which will help you as a leader in your future work with the program.

Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions!


5 minutes: Interviewer and leader listen without comments, while staff and instructor reflect on what they heard during the interview.
10 minutes: Please discuss and make a conclusion. What are the most important workpoints for staff and instructor in the way they cooperate with the leader?
The referee writes down these points.
SECOND INTERVIEW: LEADER/MANAGER INTERVIEWS THE INSTRUCTOR
  1. What do you think about having the role of instructor – what is difficult and what gives you energy in that job?
  2. How is your cooperation with me as a leader going? – are there any improvements or adjustments you need from me?
  3. When you conduct sessions and work between sessions – what is difficult for you and what gives you energy?
  4. In session one staff members were instructed to help each other understand the material, participate actively in sessions and speak their opinions, and to be active in the practical tasks between sessions – do you see them help each other understand the material and speak their opinion during sessions? Be active using the material and resolve tasks between sessions? If not, what do you think keeps back their energy?
  5. Please name three problems for you as an instructor in conducting the program – practical, in cooperation with others involved, or otherwise.
  6. Please name three things you think that the instructor and the staff do well in the way they work with the program.
  7. Please name three things you think that staff can improve in the way they work with the program.
  8. Please name three kinds of support from staff and leader which will help you as an instructor in your future work with the program.

Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions!


5 minutes:Interviewer and instructor listen without comments, while staff and leader reflect on what they heard during the interview.
10 minutes: Please discuss and make a conclusion. What are the most important work points for staff and leader in the way they cooperate with the instructor?
The referee writes down these points.
THIRD INTERVIEW: LEADER AND INSTRUCTOR INTERVIEWS THE STAFF
  1. What do you think about being a staff member in the program – what is difficult and what gives you energy in the sessions and between sessions?
  2. How does your cooperation with leader and instructor go – are there any actions or adjustments you need from them?
  3. When you work in the sessions and work between sessions – what is difficult for you and what makes you satisfied?
  4. In session one, you were instructed to help each other understand the material, participate actively in sessions and speak their opinions, and to be active in the practical tasks between sessions – is there anything that makes it difficult to help each other, understand the material and speak your opinions? Is there anything that makes it difficult to use the material and resolve tasks during sessions? Please be as specific as you can.
  5. Please name three problems for you as staff in using the program – practical, cooperation with others involved, or otherwise.
  6. Please name three things you think that the instructor and the leader do well in the way they work with the program.
  7. Please name three things you think that leader and instructor can improve in the way they work with the program.
  8. Please name three kinds of support from instructor and leader which will help you as a staff in your future work with the program.

Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions!


NB: The staff group can be divided in two groups – one group is interviewed by the leader, the other group is interviewed by the instructor. Each group start by appointing a referee person.
5 minutes: The staffs listen without comments, while instructor and leader reflect on what they heard during the interview.
10 minutes: Please discuss and make a conclusion. What are the most important work points for instructor and leader in the way they cooperate with the staff? The referee writes down these points.
DECIDING ON IMPROVEMENTS IN PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

The referees write what they heard on a blackboard, or on a large piece of paper, while the others take a 10 minute break.

  • How can we support the leader? What does he or she need?
  • How can we support the instructor? What does he or she need?
  • How can we support the staff? What does he or she need?

GROUP DISCUSSIONS AND DECISIONS


15 minutes:
The assembly discusses and suggests practical ways of mutual support to the leader, the instructor, and the staffs. It is important that everybody is realistic and practical in their suggestions.
The referee writes down the decisions, and who is responsible for observing and following up on mutual support decisions between leader, instructor and staffs.