ECE 1006 Health in Early Childhood

SubjectCat-NbrClassTermModeDescriptionUnitsCampus
ECE1006248032, 2003ONCHealth in Early Childhood1.00TWMBA
Academic Group:FOEDU
Academic Org:FOE004
HECS Band:1
ASCED Code:070101

Contents


STAFFING:

Examiner: Lyn Bower
Moderator: Di Small



RATIONALE:

Creating and maintaining healthy safe environments for young children is one of the most important tasks facing the early childhood educator today. It is important that early childhood educators, who are often responsible for the care and education of young children from birth, understand the importance of maintaining healthy environments and are capable of planning and implementing appropriate health and nutrition programs for all children birth-8 years. Educators must also be aware of the importance of establishing a healthy lifestyle while promoting preventative and educational programs for families.


SYNOPSIS:

This course will identify and inform the educator of the wide variety of health issues, policies and procedures that impact on the provision of programs for young children. It will focus on issues relating to the health of the educator, child and family and the establishment and maintenance of healthy and safe environments. It will also focus on the development of skills to enable students to make informed decisions on the wide variety of advice offered to the general community and families. Disclaimer This course is designed to inform the student about medical conditions, both care and prevention, and the nutritional needs of young children and families. It encourages the students to seek further information from appropriate sources. This course will in no way equip students with the knowledge to diagnose or give advice other than promotion of healthy lifestyles and referral.


OBJECTIVES:

On successful completion of this course students will:

  • be familiar with the regulations and accreditation in Day Care and other Early Childhood services relating to Health, Safety and Nutrition;

  • be able to create and maintain a healthy and safe physical and emotional environment for young children;

  • be able to identify and respond to important issues in the area of Health Education including common infectious diseases, AIDS, the abuse of children, hospitalisation, and nutritional requirements;

  • be capable of creating Protective Behaviour Programs in relation to child abuse;

  • be aware of the importance of balanced nutrition programs for young children and be competent at designing interesting and appropriate nutritional programs;

  • be aware of the importance of establishing, maintaining and promoting a healthy lifestyle for educators and the general community;

  • be aware of international and cultural perspectives and differences in addressing health issues;

  • be aware of parents' rights and choices that pertain to the treatment and care of their children;

  • be aware of legal issues relating to all aspects of children's health;

  • be familiar with administrative decisions, policies and procedures that relate to maintaining a healthy environment;

  • be able to use and access a wide variety of reference sources and information including web-based materials;

  • be able to critically analyse the wide range of resources and popular medical and nutritional information.



    • TOPICS:


    DescriptionWeighting (%)
    1. The importance of the health and safety of the educator
    		 10.00
    2. Regulations and accreditation standards
    		 5.00
    3. Infectious diseases
    		 10.00
    4. Hygiene practices and requirements for prevention of illness, disease and infestations
    		 15.00
    5. Creating and maintaining safe physical environments for young children
    		 10.00
    6. Creating and maintaining safe emotional environments for young children
    		 10.00
    7. Child abuse and protective behaviour programs for children and families
    		 10.00
    8. The importance of providing nutrition programs for young children and families
    		 15.00
    9. Food handling procedures
    		 5.00
    10. Legal and administrative issues, policies and procedures for early childhood educators
    		 10.00

    TEXT and MATERIALS required to be PURCHASED or accessed:

    Books can be ordered by fax or telephone. For costs and further details use the 'Book Search' facility at http://bookshop.usq.edu.au by entering the author or title of the text.

    Appleton, J., McCrea, N. & Patterson, C. 1999, There's More to Food Than Eating, Pademelon Press, Sydney.




    REFERENCE MATERIALS:

    Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.

    1991, Health, Safety and Nutrition in Early Childhood Services, Australian Childhood Association, Watson, ACT.

    1999, Child Care Act 1991: Reprints as in force on 6 May 1999, Government Printer, Brisbane.

    (Available online.)

    Bell, C. 1995, Highlighting Health: A Discussion of Health Practices and Accreditation, Australian Early Childhood Association, Watson ACT.

    Broome, M. 1998, Children and Families in Health and Illness, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.

    (Also available online as e-book.)

    Cicchetti, D. & Carlson, V. 1989, Child Maltreatment: Theory and Research on Causes and Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

    Donatelle, R. & Davis, L. 1998, Health: The Basics, 3rd edition, Ally and Bacon, Boston.

    Duyff, R., Giarratano, S. & Zuzich, M. 1995, Nutrition, Health and Safety for Preschool Children, Glencoe, New York.

    Edelman, C. & Mandle, C. 2001, Health Promotion Throughout the Lifespan, 5th edition, Mosby, St Louis.

    Garcia, J., France-Dawson, M. & Macfarlane, A. 1994, Improving Infant Health. The Effectiveness of Health Promotion Activities to Reduce Stillbirth Infant Mortality and Morbidity: A Literature Review, Health Education Authority, Oxford.

    Gillham, B. & Thomson, J. 1996, Child Safety: Problem and Prevention from Preschool to Adolescence, Routledge, London.

    Juan, S. 1992, A Study Shows II: More of What's New in Child Health and Development for Parents and Professionals, University of Sydney, Sydney.

    Kedrickm A., Kaufmann, R. & Messenger, K. 1995, Healthy Young Children: A Manual for Programs, National Assoc for the Education of Young Children, Washington.

    Legg, C. 2001, When Things go Wrong: Managing Critical Incidents in Children's Services, Australian Early Childhood Association, Watson, ACT.

    Mayall, B. 1996, Children, Health and the Social Order, Open University Press, UK.

    Plested, D. 1993, Health and Safety in Early Childhood Centres, Resources Book Committee of the AECA, Watson, ACT.

    Queensland legislation reprints, 'Ch' Vol 8 1999, Child Care (Child Care Centres) Regulations 1991, Goprint, Brisbane.

    Ranson, R. 1999, Health, Hygiene and Safety in Children's Day Care Facilities, Taylor & Francis Books Ltd, UK.

    Robertson, C. 1998, Safety, Nutrition and Health in Early Childhood, Delmar, Albany.

    Sears, W. & Sears, M. 1999, The Family Nutrition Book: Everything You Need to Know About Feeding Your Children, From Birth Though Adolescence, Little Brown and Company, USA.

    Thompson, J. & Howard, G. 1998, Nutritional Requirements of Infants and Young Children: Practical Guidelines, Blackwell Science Inc, USA.

    Turtle, J., Jones, A. & Hickman, M. 1997, Young People and Health: The Behaviour of School-aged Children, Health Education Authority, UK.

    World Health Organisation. 1996, Promoting Breast-feeding in Health Facilities: A Short Course for Administrators and Policy- makers, World Health Organisation, Geneva.




    STUDENT WORKLOAD REQUIREMENTS:

    ACTIVITYHOURS
    Assessment50
    Directed Study25
    Lectures26
    Private Study51
    Tutorial13


    ASSESSMENT DETAILS:

    DescriptionMarks Out ofWtg(%)RequiredDue Date
    ASSIGNMENT999.0040.00Y29 Aug 2003(see note )
    TUTORIAL PARTIC & TASKS999.0020.00Y27 Oct 2003
    EXAMINATION999.0040.00YEND S2(see note )
    NOTES:
    .
    999 indicates that this course will be graded using one of the following letter grades: HD, A, B, C, F, or Incomplete. Plus and minus may be used with each of these letter grades.
    .
    Examination timetable will be available during semester.

    IMPORTANT ASSESSMENT INFORMATION

    1. Attendance requirements:
      It is the students' responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.
    2. Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
      To complete each of the assignments satisfactorily, students must obtain at least a grade of C- for each assignment .
    3. Penalties for late submission of required work:
      If assignments are submitted after the due date without an approved extension of time, University penalties may be applied.
    4. Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
      (b) To be assured of a passing grade, students must demonstrate, via the summative assessment items, that they have achieved the required minimum standards in relation to the objectives of the course by: (i) satisfactorily completing the examination and assignments; and (ii) obtaining at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for all summative assessment items.
    5. Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
      The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the weighted aggregate of the grades obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course.
    6. Examination information:
      (b) In a Closed Examination, candidates are allowed to bring only writing and drawing instruments into the examination."
    7. Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
      (c) Any Deferred or Supplementary examinations for this course will be held in the fourth week of the semester following this course offering and the examiner will advise students involved in writing of the date time and location of any such examination.
    8. University Regulations:
      Students should read USQ Regulations 5.1 Definitions, 5.6. Assessment, and 5.10 Academic Misconduct for further information and to avoid actions which might contravene University Regulations. These regulations can be found at the URL http://www.usq.edu.au/SECARIAT/calendar/Part5/ or in the printed version of the current USQ Handbook.

    ASSESSMENT NOTES

    1.1. Letter grades will be used for summative assessment items in this course. 2. Students must retain a copy of each item submitted for assessment. This must be produced if required by the Examiner. 3. In accordance with University's Assignment Extension Policy (Regulation 5.6.1), the examiner of a course may grant an extension of the due date of an assignment in extenuating circumstances. 4. The Faculty will normally only accept assessments that have been written, typed or printed on paper-based media. 5. The Faculty will NOT accept submission of assignments by facsimile.