Gokart tool: sustainably strengthening pedagogical quality

Gokart: support tool for innovation in pedagogical quality

Working on quality can only be achieved with sustained attention to driving innovation and commitment to reflective practice.

Previous research (Eneman & Thys, 2019) showed that this can be done using a Gokart tool. After all, change and professional growth are most effectively realized when it involves a continuous process while making room for self-reflection (Whitebook et al., 2009).

In addition to the necessary education for professionals on the guidance of children and collaboration with parents, it is also important that professionals can be part of a professional learning community where shared learning is paramount and where they can reflect together on quality (oa Core, 2011; ISSA, 2017).

As Vandenbrouck and Lazarri argue, centralized systems are needed to monitor quality. However, there is also a need - in the field and among professionals in training - for a supportive tool to also realize that quality together with all stakeholders. In addition to the commitment to reflective practice, we also cited the management of innovation in the pursuit of quality. To do this in a sustainable and supported way, support is needed.

Making expertise on innovation widely applicable

Sufficient expertise has also been built up within our program in recent years on supporting innovation via:

• internships;
• service projects for VVSG;
• various training components (research&innovate, working with teams, profiling).

These methodologies are tailored to students and/or tailored to a specific field of work and with a specific objective. However, research was lacking to further investigate these available knowledge, insights and tools for their usability and from there also to develop a substantiated tool for a broad field of work and applicable to a wide range of societal challenges. In this research, we nurture what is strong and strengthen where necessary. The research will be characterized by the appreciative approach.

Participatory change process: working tool and manual

A working tool and supporting roadmap was developed in late 2019 (Eneman & Thys, 2019).

It became a working tool to support diverse actors in a broad field of work in the design and guidance of a participatory change process. By diverse actors we mean professionals who want to facilitate change in a setting where team-based work is done with children, youth and families.

Also included is a manual with key research findings. In order to optimally prepare and support professionals in using the tool, described above, we developed a manual containing the most important and proven active factors and processes.

Pooling realizations under Gokart

In the present project proposal we build further on these realizations. We bundle the above realizations under the umbrella 'Gokart' and make it a supported, tested and substantiated instrument for training and practice.

Research method

The research methods employed are:

• User experiences: We send third-year students from the undergraduate program Pedagogy of the Young Child prepared with the Gokart tool as developed in the design research described above (Eneman & Thys, 2019). During and after their internship, we collect the experiences of about 75 students who get to work with the tool.
• Focus groups: Through questioning and exchange between mentors on the hit day(s), their experiences, opinions on the use and added value of Gokart are collected. These research data lead to revisions of (parts of) Gokart and the development of supporting documents and/or (information, exchange, intervision ...) moments.