In June 2018, the City of Cologne launched a "quality offensive" in all municipal daycare centres and commissioned the ISTA's Quality Development & Evaluation department with this project. The aim is to develop an instrument (quality handbook) in a dialogue-based process together with teachers, managers, parents and children as well as the relevant departments of the City of Cologne's Youth Welfare Office, which can be used to describe and continuously develop quality in the daycare centres.
In future, the quality manual will form the professional basis for educational work and its further development in the municipal daycare centres.
Development of the quality manual
In autumn 2018, all stakeholders formulated their requirements and wishes with regard to good daycare centre quality as part of large participation forums. In addition, children in ten municipal daycare centres were surveyed on this topic. Observations, discussions and focus groups were used to find out what the children think about their daycare centre, what they like about their everyday life there and what they find less good. In a creative activity accompanied by discussions, the children made their "dream daycare centre" and gave an insight into their ideas of successful everyday life at the daycare centre.
The ISTA staff analysed the results qualitatively and sorted them thematically. Based on the data material, they then formulated quality standards and criteria together with the representatives of the practice, which are perceived as important for the practice in Cologne's daycare centres and describe good quality. The result is a quality manual with different areas of pedagogical action. The assigned quality standards and criteria are framed by basic theoretical texts that clarify the content-related focus and conceptual professional background.
Pilot phase
We are conducting the pilot phase from January 2019 to autumn 2019 with 20 municipal daycare centres. We are currently training the managers of the pilot daycare centres in two multiplier courses.
The internal evaluation process provides teachers with a tried and tested tool for reviewing their pedagogical actions in line with the professionally based quality standards and criteria of the quality handbook, recognising what has already been successful and exploring impulses for further development.
In addition to this, we offer development workshops for all teachers in which the content of the areas of pedagogical responsibility are explored in greater depth.
An initial version of the quality manual has been available since autumn 2019.
Implementation phase
From 2020 to 2024, we will familiarise all managers with the internal evaluation process and thus implement the contents of the new quality manual. All heads and their permanent deputies will gradually take part in the multiplier courses. Development workshops are offered for teachers to accompany the implementation.
