The PRIDE Digital Curriculum: Learning Anytime, Anywhere

The development of the PRIDE Digital Curriculum (PDC) was funded by the U. S. Department of Education’s Learning Anytime, Anywhere Program, designed to provide educational opportunities for individuals who are unable to easily access traditional methods of training. Resource families fit these criteria, as their responsibilities caring for children with multiple needs may make it difficult for them to attend training outside of their homes. The grant involved a partnership between Governors State University in Illinois, the Child Welfare League of America and six public state child welfare agencies.

The PRIDE Digital Curriculum provides a consistent and standardized version of the PRIDE (Parent Resources for Information, Development, and Education) caregiver training that is used in 30 states, 6 Canadian Provinces, and 17 European countries. It evolved from the PRIDE Core (In-service training) modules that have been available in print book form since the program was developed. The CD-ROM version is a derivative of the same material, with some updates and modifications, contained in each of the nine module’s trainer guides and participant workbooks (PRIDEbooks).

The PDC program is designed to teach knowledge and skills in five essential competency categories: Protecting and nurturing children; Meeting children’s developmental needs, and addressing developmental delays; Supporting relationships between children and their families; Connecting children to safe, nurturing relationships intended to last a lifetime; and Working as a member of a professional team.
Using the same combination of co-trainers that are featured in all the PRIDE classroom/group training programs, a child welfare professional and a foster parent professional greet the at-home learners and guide them through each module. A module may be comprised of one or more sessions and each session takes three hours to complete. With the exception of Module 3 (which is three hours in length), all the modules include at least two sessions.
	The CD-ROM version of PRIDE Core Training has been developed to strengthen an agency’s overall capacity to provide ongoing professional development for its entire cadre of resource families. It is considered as a supplement to, not a substitute for, classroom/group style training. The PDC format provides an “at-home” alternative to caregivers who are unable to participate in classroom/group training. For example, a foster/kinship parent, for a variety of reasons, may not be able to attend one of the sessions of a PRIDE Core Training Module. He or she will be able to achieve the same learning objectives that were “missed” by using the CD-ROM version at his or her own convenience.
With the exception of some modifications and updates (based on more recent changes in federal policy and practice), the same familiar content has been adapted for media-based instruction. By clicking on their pictures at the beginning of each session, the at-home learners meet other experienced foster parents, adoptive parents, child welfare workers, former children in care, adults who were adopted earlier, and child welfare program managers. Throughout each session the at-home learners have an opportunity to hear from them regarding their life/work experiences and suggestions related to particular issues that are covered. The interactive classroom exercises have been transformed into media exercises and written case studies are now dramatized. Because of the nature of the linear instruction, the learners must participate in every activity. The CD-ROM format allows anytime, anywhere training allowing learners to complete the program at their own pace. For instance, they may want to work for only 30-minute intervals over a certain time period so that their learning time won’t compete with meeting the enormous tasks associated with their many roles and responsibilities. Up to five people per computer can use the programs so each individual’s learning and professional development needs and progress can be monitored and supported. At the end of each CD session and occasionally during the session, there is an opportunity to complete an exercise that the at-home learner will then be directed to “save” or “print.” These exercises are designed as an assessment option for both the caregiver and the agency. They are saved in a folder on the user’s computer and can be accessed like any document on the computer. This provides a record of the caregiver’s work which can be shared with the appropriate personnel at the agency. At the completion of each module, a certificate can be printed. For more information about the PRIDE Digital Curriculum and how it can be obtained and licensed, contact Danella Soeka, Marketing and Media Distribution Coordinator at (708) 534-4094 or email at sales@pridedigital.org.