high-quality provision, but there is a lack of clarity in the sector
about what they should involve. Dr Kay Mathieson offers some
guidance.
Supervision is, in essence, a professional 'safe' space to raise and explore issues of concern and effective (inclusive) practice, to continually improve the quality and safety of each child's experience in the setting.
Supervision is not a new idea in early education, but has a longer history in health and social care. Any professional role that involves dealing with the emotions, struggles and worries of children and families benefits from an inbuilt process for reflecting and thinking about the impact on the professional, as well as strategies and approaches that may be helpful.
However, talking about supervision in the company of early years practitioners elicits a wide range of responses - from 'Do you mean appraisal?' and 'My manager doesn't do that' to 'It has been the most effective tool in improving my practice.' The variation in experience and understanding of what supervision is suggests that there is significant inequality in the support received by practitioners.
In addition, it indicates that even experienced leaders and managers may be unclear and uncertain about how to use supervision discussions as a safeguarding tool and to improve the quality of their provision.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework (2014) explains the importance of staff qualifications, training, support and skills in underpinning the overall quality of the provision.
Paragraphs 3.21 and 3.22 of the document detail what is meant by 'supervision':
3.21 'Effective supervision provides support, coaching and training for the practitioner and promotes the interests of children. Supervision should foster a culture of mutual support, teamwork and continuous improvement, which encourages the confidential discussion of sensitive issues.'
3.22 'Supervision should provide opportunities for staff to:
- discuss any issues - particularly concerning children's development or well-being
- identify solutions to address issues as they arise; and
- receive coaching to improve their personal effectiveness.'
Further, the Ofsted Early Years Inspection Handbook (2015) states, 'Inspectors will ask for evidence to evaluate the effectiveness of staff supervision ... and the impact of these on children's well-being, learning and development.' They will consider - a sample of induction, training and professional development records.
Creating and maintaining the quality of the supervision experience is not easy and requires the commitment of both the supervisor and the supervisee.
PRINCIPLES AND PURPOSE
The first step is to ensure that everyone in the setting has a shared understanding of the purpose of supervision. Establishing supervision sessions as a central pillar of effective safeguarding practice and high-quality provision is supported through specific elements such as:
- communicating its value through protected time
- respectful, professional two-way discussion
- taking action as agreed
- recognising the impact on the experience of the children
- recognising the increased skill, knowledge and confidence of individuals.
Supervision should be a dynamic experience, and you will trust the process and the colleague taking part more if you see and feel improvements over time.
For the supervisor, it is an investment in the staff member as a key player in improving the quality of provision. For the supervisee, it is an investment in their own skill, confidence and competence.
For both supervisor and supervisee, it is an opportunity to reflect, learn and demonstrate their commitment to the children and families involved with their setting.
SETTING EXPECTATIONS
Clarity about how supervision will work in a particular setting is not just a leadership issue; all practitioners are able to influence the process. Reviewing the current system is a good starting point:
- What has worked well over the past month/term/year?
- What is our collective view of how supervision could support our work more effectively?
- What information can we find about the detail of how supervision can be used?
- What courses are there that we all might benefit from?
In setting expectations, it is also useful to be clear about what supervision is not - that is, it is not counselling, a cosy chat or a whinge about other staff members or parents. There needs to be a professional understanding that the discussions are confidential, purposeful and solution focused, celebrating successes as well as problem-solving.
PREPARING FOR SUPERVISION
To be effective, supervision needs to be a regular event and a coherent part of the setting self-evaluation process. As such, it should link with the induction process, performance management and professional development opportunities (such as work shadowing, peer support and mentoring in the setting, as well as attending courses or visiting other provision).
As the supervisee, your preparation will include reflecting on your own practice, recognising specific elements such as:
- times, roles and activities during which you feel confident and competent most of the time
- exceptions - things that have gone surprisingly well or not so well recently
- new initiatives, changes to routines, your opinions, suggestions and evidence of their success or difficulty
- identifying roles, activities and skills that you would like to learn more about and develop further expertise.
A further useful piece of thinking is to consider what would constitute a 'successful' supervision session for you. You may not get answers to all your concerns, worries and problems but having an opportunity to think these through with another professional can support us to step back and see more clearly a possible next step.
As a supervisor, your preparation will include reflection on previous discussions with this supervisee, identifying approaches to discussion that have been supportive in the past. You should also consider the strengths that the supervisee has demonstrated, how these have or could be developed, and new areas of interest or skills that can be encouraged.
For both roles, at the beginning of the meeting it is useful to identify a small number of issues for indepth discussion, the finishing time building in ten to 15 minutes for summarising and agreeing actions.
PLAYING YOUR PART
It is as much the responsibility of the supervisee as the supervisor to make the discussion productive and helpful. Supervision is not something that is 'done to you', but a two-way process. Supervision is an opportunity for learning, which happens most effectively if approached with an open mind, a listening ear, a generous heart and a clear focus on improving each child's daily experience.
Trust is built up in supervision through both colleagues recognising that there is no 'perfect' supervision formula but demonstrating a willingness to use the process to learn more about practice and effectiveness.
Identifying and playing to each other's strengths can really help to keep a positive atmosphere and make progress in even the most difficult problem-solving situation.
There are strong parallels between supervision and our approaches in the EYFS to a child's learning - scaffolding their thinking, ensuring a broad range of experience, being a positive learning companion, supporting exploration of possible solutions, rather than setting oneself up as the 'expert and font of all knowledge', and thinking carefully about the characteristics of effective learning.
These same elements are present in both the supervisor and supervisee during a quality supervision discussion demonstrating professional trust, respect and joint learning.
CONCLUSION
There are several approaches to supervision, but a good starting point to review your current experience is consider the National Strategies booklet Challenging Practice to Further Improve Learning, Playing and Interacting in the Early Years Foundation Stage, which offers guidance about giving constructive feedback (p19), developing coaching skills and using the Goals, Reality, Options and Ways forward (GROW) coaching process.
Building a strong ethos in the setting of collegiate support and a common focus on improving the provision is embedded in the EYFS in our professional lives.
Developing the skills and understanding related to supervision, including listening attentively, giving constructive feedback, coaching, goal setting, solution-focused problem-solving and being non-judgmental may be viewed as 'leadership' skills but are also important life-skills for all of us.
MORE INFORMATION
- Best Practice in Professional Supervision by A Davys and L Beddoe (2010), Jessica Kingsley Publishers
- Challenging Practice to Further Improve Learning, Playing and Interacting in the Early Years Foundation Stage, Department for Children, Schools and Families (2010), DCSF Publications
- Inclusion in the EYFS, K Mathieson (2015), London Open University Press
- Leadership and Management in the Early Years by J Cook (2013), Practical Pre-School Books, London
- Model Safeguarding Supervision Toolkit for Registered Early Years Childcare and Out-of-School Setting in Sheffield, Sheffield Early Years (2014), available from www.safeguardingsheffieldchildren.org.uk
- Safeguarding: supervision guidance, Kent County Council (2013), www.kelsi.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/28860/Supervision-booklet-early-years.pdf
- Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, Department for Education (2014).
