Research/Best Practices

A Hop, Skip and a Jump: Enhancing Physical Literacy
This resource is a collection of activities developed by students in the Early Learning & Child Care (ELCC 1121) Course at Mount Royal
University. This resource is intended to promote increased daily physical activity, and enhance the physical literacy development of preschool children.

Dual Language Development and Disorders - A Handbook on Bilingualism and Second Language Learning (2004)
By Fred Genesee, Ph.D., Johanne Paradis, Ph.D., & Martha B. Crago, Ph.D.
As a professional working with children who are bilingual or learning a second language during early childhood, you know how difficult it can be to determine whether you’re seeing typical language development or a disorder. Research-based but easy to understand,  book dispels many myths about dual language development and answers key questions that might arise as you work with children and their parents.

Children & Youth - Best Practice Guidelines for Mental Health Promotion Programs
April 20, 2009 - This web resource provides the health and social service provider (“practitioner”) with current evidence-based approaches in the application of mental health promotion concepts and principles for children and youth. It is envisioned that these guidelines will support both the inclusion and the sustainability of mental health promotion concepts.

Canadian Attitudes toward Child Care and Early Childhood Learning - Canadian Council of Learning
2008 - The foundations for successful learning are laid during children’s early years: their activities, and the quality of care and support they receive at this time play a fundamental role in preparing them for learning in school and throughout their lives. Recent research reveals that growing numbers of Canadian parents are relying on non-parental care during the early years. This is due to rising living costs requiring both parents to work, greater labour force participation by women, the need for respite from child-rearing responsibilities, and a strong parental desire to provide their children with the best learning opportunities. As a result, parents and policy makers are paying more attention to the quality of care received by children during their early years.

Canadian Attitudes toward Health and Learning - Canadian Council of Learning
2008 - Learning about health is an important aspect of lifelong learning. It can directly affect individuals’ overall level of well-being by allowing them to make informed decisions to improve their health. More than half of all Canadians over the age of 12 report having at least one chronic condition. By age 65, 77% of men and 85% of women have at least one chronic health condition. Individuals who can learn about their health issues and manage the day-to-day details of living with their chronic conditions face better health outcomes than those who are unable to do so. Well-informed patients are also able to reduce their need for health-care services. Thus, the ability to access health-related information and to learn about health issues is critically important to all Canadians.

Canadian Attitudes toward Schools: Quality, Access and Mobility - Canadian Council of Learning
2008 - To learn about Canadians’ attitudes toward their structured learning systems (e.g., formal learning institutions including schools and postsecondary institutions), SCAL 2008 posed a number of questions about elementary and secondary schools as well as colleges, CEGEPs, and universities. Schools and post-secondary institutions perform vital functions in Canadian society, so much so that structured learning in Canada is heavily subsidized by the public. The services that schools and post-secondary institutions are expected to provide are numerous and relate not only to educational outcomes, but economic and social conditions as well.

Youth-Activism and Participation - A Literature Review on Best Practices in Engaging Youth Introduction
March, 2007 - Historically, working collaboratively with youth was not taken as seriously given the social and developmental stereotypes attached to youth. Too often, the talents and insights by youth were, and sometimes still are, overlooked by adults who consider the realm of youth-centered work to be that of “adults”. However, today, a shift has emerged in which youth are being given a platform to contribute to combating local and global inequities given the fundamental recognition that they are in essence the future. Interestingly within the educational discourse, discussion about how to educate children for their role as future citizens has negated incorporating the youths’ voices (Gidley& Inayatullah, 2002; van Linden & Fertman, 1998). This literature review focuses on the best practices adults can employ when engaging with youth in social action orientated projects.

Involving Refugee Parents in their Children's Education
Spring, 2007 - Spotlight - Bridging Refugee Youth & Children's Services in the USA. Many teachers and administrators across the United States are confused and concerned when they host parent-teacher conferences, “Open Houses,” or other events for parents and find that few of their refugee parents attend. Sometimes, repeated failed efforts result in teachers and administrators concluding that the refugee parents in their district “just don’t care.” Yet, that is rarely the case. Research consistently shows that refugee parents do care about their children’s education a great deal. Yet, as the above quote demonstrates, there are often a number of cultural issues at play.

Best Workplace Policies and Practices - Women Working With Immigrant Women
November, 2004 - Accommodating the Workplace Needs of Muslim Women Wearing Hijab project was a follow-up to the study “No Hijab is Permitted Here,” which showed that Muslim women who wear hijab (headscarf) experience discrimination when applying for work in the manufacturing, retail, food and service sectors, and they experience harassment in the workplace. The aim of the Best Workplace Policies and Practices - Accommodating the Workplace Needs of Mulsim Women Wearing Hijab project was to expand the employment opportunities for Muslim women wearing hijab so as to improve their economic status.

More than a Nightmare, Delays in Refugee Family Reunification - Canadian Council for Refugees
November, 2004 - For refugees who have found protection in Canada, one of the most pressing concerns is for their families left overseas. Like anyone else who has been separated from family against their will, they are anxious to be reunited. The fact that they are refugees adds another layer to their concern: in many cases, their family members have been left in precarious and even dangerous circumstances. As long as their loved ones remain at risk, refugees cannot fully enjoy the relative security they have found in Canada. Unfortunately, many refugees wait years for that moment of reunification with their families, despite the fact that Canadian law and policy seek to promote refugee family reunification. Too often the experiences of refugees trying to bring their families are in painful contradiction with the good intentions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the officials who implement it. The stories of these refugees reflect a systemic cruelty that dishonours Canada and, we believe, would be found intolerable by the vast majority of Canadians if they knew what refugees are going through.

Impacts on Children of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act - Canadian Council for Refugees
November, 2004 - On June 28, 2002 the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) came into force, replacing the old Immigration Act that had been in force since 1978. The new Act includes a number of welcome provisions requiring the best interests of the child to be taken into consideration at various points in immigration processes. In addition, the Act states that it is to be “construed and applied in a manner that […] (f) complies with international human rights instruments to which Canada is signatory.” [IRPA 3(3)]. The human rights instruments to be complied with obviously include the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Nevertheless, there are various ways in which the Act fails to address old problems that threatened the rights of children, and even creates some new problems. This report examines and illustrates some of these problems, which have attracted international attention.

Embracing Cultural Diversity in Health Care: Developing Cultural Competence
July, 2003 - The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO), with funding from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, (MOHLTC) working in partnership with Health Canada, Office of Nursing Policy, commenced the development of evidence-based best practice guidelines in order to create healthy work environments for nurses. Just as in clinical decision-making, it is important that those focusing on creating healthy work environments make decisions based on the best evidence possible.

Best Practices for Working with Homeless Immigrants and Refugees
March, 2003 - Immigrants and refugees in Toronto, particularly refugee claimants, are at-risk for homelessness. As a result, increasing numbers of immigrants and refugees are requiring shelter, drop-in and other housing services. The needs of immigrants and refugees who have become homeless may be different than those who are Canadian-born. Newcomers may be adjusting to a new language and culture and may also face unique challenges with respect to employment, health and legal issues. However, most shelters and dropins are not mandated to meet the needs of immigrants and refugees who have become homeless. Most shelter and dropin staff lack the time, skills or resources to effectively house and settle newcomers. Moreover, there have been few systemic attempts to develop shelter and drop-in services that are accessible, appropriate, and responsive to the needs of this population.

Fire it Up - A Tool Kit for Youth Action
2002 - We live in a world full of inequalities and injustices. As a youth organizer, not only will you join the struggle to battle these injustices, but you will find yourself trapped within them as they affect the way you relate to others, how your group works, and the way you approach different issues. Remember that your struggle is never isolated from the other injustices of the world – they are all embedded within one another, and fighting for one cause means fighting for the other causes as well.

Igniting Young Minds and Spirits - Youth Governance
October, 2000 - The youth of this country are not only our future leaders and builders, but their involvement is important to the health of our communities today.

CLAM
Culture + Language + Awareness = Misunderstandings

Canadian Coalition for Immigrant Children & Youth Bibliographies - Early Childhood Education

Canadian Coalition for Immigrant Children & Youth Bibliographies - Policy & Funding

Canadian Coalition for Immigrant Children & Youth Bibliographies - Teaching, Learning and Programs

Canadian Coalition for Immigrant Children & Youth Bibliographies - Demography and Social and Health Patterns and Issues

Canadian Coalition for Immigrant Children & Youth Bibliographies - Media Reports