What are preschool Guidelines?

Question

In what time frame should a preschool provide an evaluation for new employees? Should teaching assistant's have some kind of training?

Answer 1

Evaluations for new employees are usually given after the primary entry period (3 months from their start date) around the same time their insurance eligibility kicks in. Then, once yearly after that there should be a formal "evaluation" to let the person know how they are doing. I would definitely say that teaching assistants should have training... if they are working in a classroom with children, they need to have training on such. Plus, if you think about it, these are the people who are one day aspiring to be teachers of their own classroom. They need to have access to good training techniques just as the regular teachers do! Of course, setting up a new teaching assistant with a seasoned veteran teacher helps a lot in the "training"... staff generally learn about the way teaching goes by observing other "more experienced" staff. Make sure to pair your "newbie" with a person who has lots of experience, who can model good techniques and behaviors for the new staff. At our center, we also have weekly meetings, ranging on issues such as child abuse, multiculturalism in the classroom, safety issues, behavior modification techniques, children with special needs, management issues, etc. These are great trainings for all the staff- not just the teachers, so that all staff benefit from learning new techniques and information pertinent to working with young children. It is important for all staff to receive the same training, so that you know the philosophy of your school is being represented in a similar way by all your staff. You don't want a child to move up from one class to another in the same center and not have a feeling of similiarity in the rules, expectations and treatment of others. You want your whole staff to know what the expectations are of how you are all dealing with children, so that your center has a cohesive feel about it. You should be constantly offering trainings for the staff, since it not only helps them grow as teachers, but helps them become more effective for the children they serve, as well as allies to your center.