As a preschool teacher, who has worked in centers both with cameras and without, I have vowed to never work in a center that does not have cameras ever again. Other posters have mentioned that if there are no camreas children are more likley to be abused (which is 100% true) but so far no one has mentioned center accountability.
Number one thing I have learned in life: trust, but verify. Camreas help parents verify.
The first center I “worked at” when I was 19 had no cameras. (it was a short lived internship for college) It was an absolutely terrible Experience for everyone involved. Children slept 2inches apart at nap time (Florida DCF standards state 16 inches on all sides), most siblings shared a nap time mat, and the air was turned off to save money. Parents were told that each child had plenty of space and that they all slept through nap time every day, even though the heat made it too hard for the kids to sleep. Sometimes, the teachers would came to work intoxicated visibly stumbling through the front door. Some even went to bars on their lunch breaks and ate wings to cover the scent (they told me the director knew, but didnt care and once I turned 21 I would understand). The director, who promised the parents she was always there, would leave the center regularly to shuttle kids from the center to elementary school and back at the end of the day. (She needed money, so she did not have a permit and used her personal vehicle.). Parents of infants and toddlers were unaware that school age children were also there (sometimes unsupervised with the little ones) as the center was only certified for 6mos-4yrs. Why do cameras matter? Because if parents could see any of this, the center would have been shut down much sooner than it was. If parents could have seen this, their children would not have been abused and neglected. If parents knew what really happened there, as opposed to that of the “professionals” they trusted, they would have found a safer place for their babies. The director could not be held accountable for her immorral and illegal behavior, so she did whatever she wanted.
Note to add that on my first day I questioned the director about the sleeping arrangements and I was told to know my place. The second day I asked if it was procedure to work with children while drunk, and told the director i was going to need to report this to my professor. I was told that if I speak to anyone I was never welcome back. I detailed everything to my instructor, who reported the center, and never returned. A few months later it shut down. I would like to think it was investigated and permanently closed, but I think the “director” just ran out of money.
A second center (no cameras) that I interned at wasn't that bad, however during nap time teachers would leave the building to smoke and everyone was on their cell phones all day long. Parents were told that children were learing, but the teachers fabricated kids work and put all of the students in front of the television for 6 hours a day. Again, parents had no way of knowing what was happening so they believed the “professionals”. I was at that center two hours a day, three days a week for four weeks and every day was about the same. Oh- and no visitors were allowed, and no early pickups.
The center I work at now has cameras. We are always in ratio. Safety standards are followed. If a parent sees something they don't like on the cameras, they can call and talk to the director or the teacher directly. Yes, it can get annoying listening to management complain about ‘picky parents’, but you know what? They are trusting us to care for their children, and paying well to do so. We just lost one teacher for losing her temper and hurting a child. Fortunately, that child was old enough to talk so he could say exactly why his face was bleeding and have the cameras verify the story. Some children in preschool/daycare are so young they cannot speak. The teacher gets to tell the story of the bumps or scrapes. In this center, we are required to write accident/incident reports with the time on them. This way, parents can see the video footage of exactly how their child got hurt. It keeps abuse low, enrollment high, kids safe, and parents happy.
NOTE TO PARENTS: If your child is in a center that does not have cameras, try to show up unannounced every now and then to make sure things are going okay and are up to par. I'm sure not all centers are as bad as my first two examples, but bad centers and bad people do exist.
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