Team Positive Early Childhood Education (Team PECE) Program
Category
Early Care and Education
Child's Age
2-3 years, 3-4 years, 4-5 years
Participant
ECE Owner/Operator, ECE Teachers
Languages
English
Brief Description
Team Positive Early Childhood Education Program (Team PECE) from Triple P – Positive Parenting Program is an interactive, virtual professional learning program from the developers of Triple P designed to build early childhood educators’ knowledge, confidence, and skills with essential tools to promote children's development, self-regulation, and social competence. Team PECE enhances educators' skills and confidence to handle challenging situations and fosters a nurturing classroom environment. Team PECE includes virtual learning and practice sessions with a PECE Coach.
Expected Impact
- Improved self-confidence among educators
- Improvements in educators’ relationships with parents and children
- Improved child behavior (peer relationships, behavior toward adults, and less disruptive behaviors)
Core Components for Model Fidelity
- Completion of Modules: Educators complete the four virtual modules centered around principles of positive early childhood education and care, building children’s social and emotional skills, developing a positive approach to learning, and helping children learn new ways to behave.
- Practice Sessions: Educators complete 2-4 practice sessions based on what they learned in the modules. This is completed with a trained PECE Coach. Practice sessions with a PECE Coach include observation of the educator interacting with children, clear feedback, self-identification of strengths and areas for improvement, and self-selection of future goals to enact change. Participants will share their digital workbook with their coach to inform coaching.
Languages Materials are Available in
English
Delivery Mode
Self-paced, online modules with optional coaching sessions that can be delivered in the classroom, virtually, or at another location of convenience for the educator. Practice sessions can be delivered virtually or in person.
Dosage
PECE consists of 4 online modules that take approximately 1 hour each to complete. The modules can be completed at the educator’s convenience.
Practice sessions provided by a PECE Coach are typically 40-50 minutes each. The number of practice sessions depends on the needs of the educator but typically includes 2-4 sessions.
Infrastructure for Implementation
Materials: Device to complete online modules (computer, smart phone, iPad, etc.); Agencies also need to purchase PECE codes for the educators.
Space: Practice sessions can be in-person or virtual. If in person, there needs to be a space for the educator to meet with the coach. If virtual, there needs to be access to a virtual meeting platform (e.g., Teams, Zoom) or phone.
Staffing Requirements
Coaches must have a knowledge of child development either through formal education and training or significant experience working with children (e.g., center directors or lead teachers).
PECE Coaches are not trained to deliver other Triple P programs. Agencies implementing PECE must have an established, successful referral process for families or educators requiring additional services.
Training for Model Fidelity
PECE Coaches are required to complete PECE Coach training through Triple P America. PECE Coach training is available in person or virtually and requires 5 days to complete. Agencies interested in training in PECE should contact Triple P America at contact.us@triplep.net to be connected to a Triple P America Implementation Consultant.
Contact Information
https://www.peceprogram.net/global/home/
Sara van Driel, PhD: Community Engagement/Implementation Consultant at Triple P America; sara@triplep.net
Ashley Lindsay: Community Engagement/Implementation Consultant at Triple P America; ashley.lindsay@triplep.net
Cost Estimates
Access codes for the virtual PECE modules are $205/educator. Training for PECE coaches is $2,040/coach. There are no recurring annual costs for PECE coaches.
Purpose Service Code (PSC)
3104 - NC Child Care Resource and Referral Services
3125 - Quality Child Care
NCPC Evidence Categorization
Evidence Informed – One randomized controlled trial with fidelity and implementation challenges and one independent evaluation.
Research Summary
The most recent and relevant studies related to Triple P’s Positive Early Childhood Education Program (PECE) include a foundational randomized control trial1 and an evaluation of the program implemented in Ohio.2 These evaluations utilized various assessments, surveys, observations, and interviews to evaluate the impacts of PECE and found that educators who completed PECE reported improved confidence in managing challenging behaviors in the classroom and building and maintaining relationships with children and families. The authors noted some issues with implementing the model to fidelity, especially around the PECE coaching sessions, as some sites lacked the necessary buy-in to fully implement the model. Educators who participated in all elements of PECE, including the online modules and coaching sessions, reported greater improvements and satisfaction than their peers who did not receive all components.
- ^ See Lee (2017). This foundational trial utilizes a randomized control trial design to evaluate the Positive Child Care Program (PCCP), now known as Positive Early Childhood Education Program (PECE). The sample population included 96 early childhood educators and 12 directors across 12 licensed child care centers in Alberta, Canada. The author utilized stratified randomization to establish a control group (service as usual, n = 53) and a treatment group (PCCP, n = 43). The educators taught children ages 2-12 years, with an average age of 3.68 years (control) and 3.42 years (intervention), and children were primarily Caucasian (control = 54.72, intervention = 53.49%). Participants completed assessments at enrollment, shortly after completing the intervention (10 weeks), and at 2-month follow-up. Measures included the Teacher Interpersonal Self-Efficacy Scale, the Child Care Ecology Inventory, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire or Early Years Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (depending on child age), the Child & Adolescent Disruptive Behavior Inventory (CADBI) Screener and CADBI Observer Rating (CADBI-OBS), Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS), Child Care Worker Job Stress Inventory, Implementation Driver Assessment, and self-reflective, semi-structured interviews. The PCCP intervention was provided by trained practitioners. At the time of the study, there was so accreditation requirement for PCCP practitioners. Intervention participants engaged in 4 online modules and 1-3 coaching sessions over and 8-week period. Study results indicated significant improvements in children’s behavior, including improved peer relationships (p = 0.038), improved behavior toward adults (p = 0.035), and less disruptive behaviors (p = 0.003). Although not statistically significance, educators reported increased workplace satisfaction, improved perceptions of confidence, greater self-reflection, improved relationships with parents and children, and increased use of PCCP strategies. Study limitations include a smaller sample size and inconsistent implementation to fidelity, especially regarding the coaching sessions. Some confusion remained about program strategies (“quiet time” versus “time out,” for example), and challenges included time constraints or lack of administrative support needed to implement to fidelity. Additionally, findings did not remain statistically significant over time.
- ^ See Maguire-Jack et al. (2023). This independent evaluation conducted by the University of Michigan examines outcomes of the Positive Early Childhood Education (PECE) program implanted in Ohio. Participants completed four 1-hour virtual modules accessible to all educators and providers across the state. Participants received Ohio Approved contact hours upon completion of the PECE modules as well as a $100 incentive for course completion if the educator belonged to a child care program with a 2 or lower Step Up to Quality (SUTQ) rating. PECE coaches were primarily Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Master Trainers. The sample population included 1,320 early childhood educators who completed pre- and post-assessments between July 1, 2022, and April 30, 2023. Participants completed surveys to identify their three primary concerns regarding the behaviors of children in their care and assessed their confidence level in managing these behaviors (0 = complete lack of confidence, 10 = very confident in their capacity to handle challenges). Educators initially reported their three primary concerns as disobedience (M = 6.13), tantrums/temper outbursts (M = 6.07), and fighting and aggression (M = 5.93). After completing PECE, educators were significantly more confident in their abilities to manage all the challenging behaviors they identified, including disobedience (M = 7.99, p < 0.001), tantrums and temper outbursts (M = 8.11, p < 0.001), and fighting and aggression (M = 8.04, p < 0.001). Educators were overwhelmingly satisfied with PECE. Over 93% of participants reported generally or definitely acquiring the skills they wanted to receive from the course and over 98% reported feeling confident that they have the skills needed to implement PECE in their work. Participants also had the opportunity to complete up to 4 PECE coaching sessions, but the evaluation failed to report findings from this component.
Researched Population
- Educators of primarily Caucasian children under age 4
- Early childhood educators in Alberta, Canada and Ohio, USA
Lee, S. L. (2017). Examining the Positive Child Care Program in early childhood education environments: A randomized control trial (Master’s thesis). Western University. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/5023/
Maguire-Jack, K., Chang, Y., & Kim, J. (2023). PECE Project: Training outcome report (July 2022 – April 2023). University of Michigan School of Social Work. Commissioned by the Ohio Child Care Resources and Referral Association (OCCRRA).
Local Partnerships Currently Implementing
Local Partnerships in purple have adopted Team Positive Early Childhood Education (Team PECE) Program. Local Partnership contact information can be found here.