Være sammen, kompetanseløft i barnehagen: Rapport fra evalueringen av deltakernes vurderinger, opplevelser og erfaringer med kompetanseheving og kvalitetsutvikling i pilotbarnehagene i Være Sammen implementeringsåret 2011-2012.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the "Være Sammen" (being together) project implemented in 21 Norwegian daycare centres (barnehage) in 2011. The focus of the evaluation is to elucidate the staff's assessment of the project and the experiences the kindergartens made during the project as well as to discuss the implementation process and whether the project contributed to an actual upgrading of skills.

The "Være Sammen" project consists of several elements; implementation, authoritative adult role, focus on building children's relationships, dealing with challenging behaviour in children, early intervention, communication theory and guidance between colleagues. "Være Sammen" consists of material for adults presenting the theory behind the project. Furthermore, it consists of material for the children. The children's material focusses on adult-to-child and child-to-child dialogue and collaboration, with a view to stimulating a learning environment in which the child is part of and affects life at the kindergarten. The daycare centres are trained and guided by supervisors who have completed supervisor training. The aim of "Være Sammen" is to upgrade the skills of the pedagogical staff, and thereby prevent children's challenging behaviour, and to promote inclusion and good relationships.

The study shows that the pedagogical staff is experiencing improvements after implementation of the "Være Sammen" project. The staff is positive towards several of the project components. The idea of the authoritative adult role is that the early childhood educator is a "warm" and "visible" adult. Particularly the authoritative adult role is assessed by several project participants as one of the elements that contribute most to upgrading skills in the daycare centres. The early childhood educators' period with a supervisor is used to reflect on their own pedagogical practice and to engage in constructive discussion with other colleagues. Several staff members find that their work on common goals for the children have been strengthened. Moreover, some staff members believe that the interaction between children and adults is characterised by more empathy, because there is more focus on building relationships and on conscious and organised interaction with the children. For instance, the use of timeouts for the children has decreased since the project began. Furthermore, several staff members point out that internally the children have improved their relationships with one another, because they have become better at expressing their feelings in words and at resolving conflicts.

The study shows that the fact that the project had to be developed and implemented at the same time was challenging. Interviews reveal that the project was influenced by delays in connection with forwarding the material to the children and the early childhood educators. In addition, the material developed for the children was not suitable for the children to be able to use the material themselves. For instance, in order to be able to use the material, the children had to have good language skills, and therefore bilingual children and children with language difficulties found it difficult. The study also shows that it is crucial for staff motivation and commitment to the project that the management at the daycare centre shows engagement in the project and that there is a carefully prepared project plan. This applies to a varying degree, and this is why staff motivation varies from institution to institution.

Finally the study shows significant differences in a number of areas in how the project is assessed, depending on whether or not the employee has a pedagogical qualification. Employees with a pedagogical background are generally more positive towards the project and experience a better outcome, for example in connection with the supervision sessions and the children's material.

The data material consists of a questionnaire survey sent out to 21 kindergartens which took part in the "Være Sammen" project. All kindergartens have answered the questionnaire which resulted in responses from 118 respondents. Moreover, focus group interviews and one-to-one interviews were conducted with the pedagogical staff, supervisors and project management. Focus group interviews were carried out in seven different staff groups, and five-seven employees took part on average, including assistant teachers, early childhood educators and pedagogical managers. In addition, nine supervisors and the managers of the project were also interviewed. The focus group interviews with the supervisors dealt with pedagogical staff training, the role as a supervisor, as well as the implementation process. The one-to-one interviews with the project management dealt with the background of the project as well as the role of the management.

Omdal, H. (2013). Være sammen, kompetanseløft i barnehagen: Rapport fra evalueringen av deltakernes vurderinger, opplevelser og erfaringer med kompetanseheving og kvalitetsutvikling i pilotbarnehagene i Være Sammen implementeringsåret 2011-2012. Ph.d.-afhandling. Universitetet i Agder, Kristiansand.