Diversity+ provides complete set of tools for ECEC professionals

Over the past three years, the Diversity+ project has provided Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) professionals, managers and practitioners with governance, benchmarking, recognition and professionalization tools to help them transform their practice and increase their understanding of the diversity that exists among the children and families they serve. 

 Diversity+ project achievements 

The D+ consortium’s set of tools assist ECEC practitioners and managers develop inclusive, bias-free, and diversity-friendly practices and environments. All tools are available in English, Bulgarian, Czech and two of them, the Diversity+ Charter and Footprint Assessment Tool, are also in Dutch. 

• Diversity+ eBook: Informative reading with an analysis and overview of ECEC systems in six countries, and thirty-three inspiring practices from 11 EU countries. 
• Diversity+ Charter: a set of minimum requirements that ECEC services and institutions have to meet to accommodate different types of diversity and be classified as inclusive and diversity positive (Diversity+). The added value of the Charter is that it is based on the EU Council Recommendations on High-Quality ECEC and is organized around its five key themes: access, workforce, curriculum, monitoring and evaluation, and governance. 

• Diversity+ Footprint Assessment Tool: a digital, inspiring self-assessment tool for ECEC managers, and professionals to assess current services, reflect on common practices and mostly understand in a visual way the concrete, necessary steps needed to create a fully inclusive environment. The Tool is aligned with EU Council Recommendations on High-Quality ECEC and provides additional readings and information to support the process of transformation.  
• Diversity+ Ambassador in ECEC environments:  Presents a European Qualification profile (EQF Level 5) of the Diversity+ Ambassador active in ECEC environments. The EQF aims to improve ECEC HR management and to profile key knowledge, skills and attitudes required to respond to individual and group needs of children from different backgrounds and with special educational needs. Specific learning resources complement the EQF profile to smoothly develop the role of the Diversity+ Ambassador. 
• Diversity+ Interactive Scenarios/Serious Game: An innovative online game-based tool with a set of thirty scenarios to help ECEC practitioners in their professional development, solving practical challenges related to diversity inclusion and working with children on recognizing and addressing biases, prejudice, discrimination, and exclusion.  Scenarios cover nine topics and aim to sustain critical thinking in children and adults and support them to speak out for themselves and others, and treat everybody with empathy and respect regardless of their origin, gender, background, level of abilities, language and other existing differences.  

Stay tuned and follow the Diversity+ social media channels (Facebook and YouTube channel) for new chapters of the Diversity+ project.