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By:  Julie Miller

Staff Recruitment: The Power of Observation

Perhaps one of the areas most often overlooked in staff training in recruitment is how a prospective employee interacts with children.  Many sites now require prospective members to observe standard operations before allowing them to actively participate in the day-to-day activities.  Some may require several observed sessions of interaction with children before a prospective staff member will be hired.  If your facility has not incorporated observation and observed sessions, consider the benefits of doing so. 

Prospective employees may decide the position is not right for them.  A future employee should be comfortable with the working environment, especially individuals pursuing employment with children. Is this the prospect's first exposure to the dynamics of this type of setting?  Children can often be noisy and active.   How do they feel about handling cleaning tasks or assisting a child one-on-one with a project?  Were there any surprising observations?  How does the "tone" of the room fit in with their leadership style?  Do they think they can work in this type of environment?   

Employers can examine a prospect's mode of interaction with children.  Positive interaction with children is the number one expectation on the part of employers and parents.  This is not observable through a typed application or telephone interviews with references.   

How does the possible employee respond to children?  How do they respond when challenged by a child's behavior?  Is it apparent they have begun to grasp the way in which behavior management is applied in the environment through their observed practice?  

Prospective employees interact with the program's behavior modification principles and practices.  Just as children learn by observation, so do employees.  A future employee should understand appropriate behavior modification practices to avoid disruption, conflicts with staff members, and parent dissatisfaction.  Parents choose a service confident that employees will be trained in the appropriate behavior management principles stated in literature or discussed during an orientation.  Children get used to a "flow" within a setting, if disrupted, negative behaviors or acting out may occur. 

Employers can determine a positive "fit" for the new employee.  An employer may observe a prospective employee interacts with a specific age group or staff member more comfortably than another.  Employees new to the field of childcare often have misconceptions of how age groups perform and interact with adults.   Employers can make suggestions on how children may be interacting with an employee in a positive or negative way, and provide a positive match for their skill level. 

Children can often be overlooked as valuable resources in the selection process of new employees.  A Montessori program at which this writer worked, allowed a panel of elementary aged school children to ask questions of the possible room assistants and teachers.  Interview questions were formulated and designees were assigned which they would ask.  It empowered children to assist in the decision making process and ownership of the program.  Follow-up questions were allowed if more clarification was needed.  The process itself was impressive, and made this writer recognize how ironic it is that those most impacted by a new employee's behavior, are often the one's most overlooked.   

To further assist in the process, videotapes should be made of prospective employees working with the participants.  These can be invaluable during hiring and training season.  Possible employees may be shown why they were or were not selected.  Employees who do make the cut can use them as tools for improvement in future training sessions. 

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