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ICDP activities in Bangladesh

Report by Sajeda Boby, ICDP Bangladesh trainer

It has been a joy to run ICDP training in Bangladesh through the Healthy Childhood Development Programme (HCDP), a project of Normisjon Bangladesh. The testimonies of caregivers and facilitators motivate us to work.

Facilitator level training

In 2022, we were able to train 44 new facilitators. Because of COVID-19 we could not start our training in Dhaka on time. However, we were able to complete the training of 4 batches of facilitators in two locations, namely in Dhaka and Dinajpur. In addition, two candidates completed their training and became ICDP trainers. 

Gatherings for facilitators

Another important activity was to organize meetings in different locations: there were 3 regional and 2 annual facilitator gatherings. In these gatherings we gave out updated materials to the facilitators and encouraged them to run caregiver groups. As a result, facilitators became motivated to run new caregiver groups.

Caregiver level training

In total 45 caregiver groups operated in 2022.

Additional four caregiver groups were started in 2022 and will continue in 2023. In addition to the previously trained facilitators, the new facilitators also ran caregiver groups. In total 293 caregivers received ICDP training and 799 children were touched by this training. 

We work with different partner organizations who offer services to low-income families. We frequently meet with the leaders of our partner organizations and we discuss together about the progress of the ICDP training. They give us their valuable suggestions. Currently we have seven partners. All the partner organizations have certified facilitators who run caregiver groups among their beneficiaries. 

New materials

We produced many new photos related to ICDP content and we made short video clips illustrating the eight ICDP guidelines for good interaction. These photos and videos will be used in the communities where people are illiterate. We also made a video in the Bengali language. The video was made to reflect Bengali cultural context and our local Bengali family was cast on the video.

Nasima’s story

Nasima (26) lives and is employed as a seamstress at a women’s centre in Dhaka, Basha. She was rescued from human trafficking. She has two children; a schoolgirl and a baby boy.

Although the three were rescued from the streets, they were still trapped in a cycle of violence. But then Nasima joined an ICDP caregiver group.

Nasima used to beat her children. Beating children came naturally to Nasima. Because she herself grew up like this, like most children in Bangladesh. As an adult, she had lived through many experiences that made it difficult for her act in a positive way towards her children.

“In the past, my children were of no value to me, and I could not take good care of them, says Nasima. Everything changed after this course. I began to see I was wrong and realized that my children’s value. I started helping my daughter with her homework. Now when my daughter wants something, I can’t afford, I explain why I can’t give it to her, instead of hitting her, like I used to do.”

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ICDP course in Lilongwe, Malawi

An ICDP course for caregivers took place in Lilongwe, at the Riverside Hotel from 26th – 30th September 2022.

The training targeted 25 (13 female & 12 male) caregivers from kindergartens including nurses and clinicians under Lighthouse. Lighthouse is a registered public trust that exists to contribute to Malawi’s national response to HIV as a model providing a continuum of high-quality care while building capacity in the health sector. 

Lighthouse learnt about ICDP from one ICDP facilitator who briefed them about the programme, and they saw the importance of inviting trainers to conduct the training. 

Through ICDP sessions caregivers were guided to see and understand their children, improve the quality of interaction and the relationship with their children. An important focus was also on raising awareness about the needs of the children in their communities and workplaces. Gertrude Msowoya and Louis Malajira, two of the ICDP trainers in Malawi, conducted the week-long training course.

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ICDP national scale up in the Philippines

The International Child Development Programme (ICDP) has been operating for some years now as part as part of the Child Sensitive Social Protection project run by Save the Children Philippines.

Aside from the CSSP project-funded implementing partner, MoLAHUTAY, Inc., there were other partners who were trained in the ICDP parenting programme, such as NACPHIL (National Auxilliary and Chaplaincy of the Philippines), Ormoc City Social Welfare Office, Child Development Workers of Mondragon, Northern Samar and Municipal/City Links and Social Welfare Officers of Region 8 – all have contributed to the significant increase of the CSSP project reach in 2022. A total of 44,255 children and adults were reached directly and indirectly across the region.

228 (F-187; M – 41) individuals in Region 8 were trained as ICDP facilitators

11,502 parents/caregivers (F – 9,276; M – 2,226) across Region 8 have completed the parenting programme

1,494 men/father caregivers were covered by the parenting programme

101 family support groups (FSG) formed during the previous project have been conducting monthly parenting refresher sessions. 32 new FSGs formed by City/Municipal Links (C/M/L) of Leyte have also been meeting regularly.

ICDP expansion to the Samar province:

The ICDP parenting programme is still the flagship intervention of the new CSSP project in Samar which is called, “Advancing Child Sensitive Social Protection in the Philippines”.   The new project is an expanded version of the previous CSSP project in Leyte province, which covered the municipalities of Villaba, Matag-ob, Kananga and Ormoc City. The municipalities of Jiabong and Calbiga in the Samar Province will be added to the project areas. The CSSP Project approaches that include the Barangay Social Protection and Related Initiatives Link (BSPRIL), ICDP parenting programme, Community Clusters for Children (3Cs) and the Youth Resilience Programme (YRP) have yielded substantial results, and therefore the same approaches will be replicated in the Samar project areas.

National scale up:

The key milestone achieved in 2022 is the adoption of ICDP by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). On 1st of December 2022, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was forged between Save the Children Philippines (SCP) and DSWD for the national scale up of the project.

The ICDP parenting programme will be implemented in 17 regions of the country and the training budget is included in the National Programme Management Office (NPMO) budgeting for 2023 – 2024. The ICDP facilitator level training of 90 people from 17 regions will start in May 2023. Out of this group, 34 people will pursue further training to become ICDP Trainers.

Click here to read full report.

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ICDP at the UCN university in Denmark

University College Northern Jutland (UCN) –  Annual ICDP report for year 2022

Report based on information from Heidi Trude Holm

In Northern Jutland, during the year, we rediscovered our preferred way of teaching in ICDP – namely physical classroom teaching. Fortunately, Covid 19 barely affected 2022 in terms of our teaching activities.

In 2021, we worked continuously on rewriting and improving our “ICDP tools”.

We have reformulated/rewritten these and have had them printed for use in ICDP- teaching starting from January 2022. Our teachers and trainers use the materials in all ICDP classes.

New posters have also been made for our work in different areas: ICDP daycare, ICDP school and youth, ICDP for adults and people with disabilities, and ICDP in elderly care.

The primary students in our ICDP teaching activities in 2022 has been daycare staff working with children aged 0-6 yrs.

In addition to this, during the year, ICDP has been included in training sessions on parental guidance, and on implementation in institutions and municipalities.

Implementation of ICDP without clear leadership and municipal support, we found to be difficult. Therefore our aim is to help and teach our partners in institutions and municipalities by focusing on knowledge and structures that increase the possibilities for transfer and implementation – based on Hundeide’s framework for implementation in combination with the newest research in organizational development.

We have two annual meetings with the ICDP trainers who are affiliated to UCN.

In 2022, we held both an online and a workshop in person for our ICDP trainers. The days always consist of a mix of experience sharing on ICDP and professional presentations.

In the spring of 2022 at our Trainers’ Day (held online), we discussed the “evidence concept” and “effect studies” in relation to existing ICDP research.

In the autumn of 2022 at our second Trainers’ Day, we had a full day together where we discussed ICDP in relation to low arousal and recognition. We ended the day by discussing the topic of “how to” best carry out the implementation of ICDP.

In 2023, the teachers’ team will be working on designing a new course for school employees.

Episode 26 – ICDP

Podcast: POP is a podcast series developed by act2learn Pedagogy and learning at the University of Applied Sciences UCN. Through its episodes POP shares knowledge and experience gained in daycare, school and education. Heidi Trude Holm and Anne Hejgaard presented ICDP in e podcast Episode 26.

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Overview of activities in Russia

Report by Oksana Isaeva

During 2022 the International Child Development Programme was implemented on the premises of the Lada Family Centre (LFC) in the town of Nizhniy Novgorod.

The parent groups were conducted by specialists from the LFC, together with the certified ICDP facilitators. The training was conducted throughout the calendar year.

There were 8 study groups with 51 parents.

The ICDP programme was presented at the VI Regional Gathering of Young Families. This event was held at the Solovyi Estate, and it took place in August.

Twenty specialists at the Umka Centre in Chkalovsk received training in ICDP during October 2022.

In November 2022, an intensive course called “Optimization of parent-child relations: opportunities and limitations of educational organizations”, took place in the Vetluzhskaya secondary school, situated in the Nizhniy Novgorod region. Oksana Isaeva presented the work of ICDP and the content of its programme to 200 specialists of the Krasny Baki district.

Information about the work of ICDP Russia can be found on the following page: https://vk.com/club117351685

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ICDP Brazil innovative project

In 2022, ACARI assisted around 290 families in situations of social vulnerability in the city of Juazeiro in Bahia and in Petrolina, Pernambuco, by implementing the Bem Me Quer project (2021-2026).

The objective of the project is for families to experience a positive interaction and relationship with children and adolescents.

For this, ICDP workshops were held with the families and positive interaction kits were delivered to encourage the participation of families in the meetings. Families were invited to participate in the meetings through WhatsApp groups and many exchanges of ideas and experiences were also carried out in this virtual space.

The kits were the great novelty of the year, they were prepared and delivered so that the family could use them at home, to practice the 8 ICDP guidelines for good interaction with their children. A total of 6 kits were delivered.

Kit 1 was called “Sowing love”, it contained coriander seeds, gardening tools and a container for planting.

Kit 2 was called “Assessing self-esteem” and its objective was to provide care for the caregiver, sharing positive experiences with the caregivers of children and adolescents. With this kit, the families made a “mini” beauty salon at home and had a lot of fun.

Kit 3 “Celebrating São João” was designed so that families could cook together and celebrate the typical festival with their family, generating good memories, joy and unity.

Kit 4 was called “Pasta day”, it included tomato sauce, pasta, sardines and soft drinks, through the cooking activities it was possible to reinforce the affective dialogue with the families served.

Kit 5, “Time to play” was designed so that families could create the habit of playing with their children and also teach and reflect on the ICDP guidelines for mediation and regulation dialogues.

Kit 6, “Family reading”, was also designed to reinforce the 3 ICDP dialogues, which contained a children’s book, a packet of popcorn and a soft drink.

All this work was only possible thanks to the support of the Kindernothilfe organization, to which we are very grateful.

Families have learned a lot during this time, but the path of reflection and transformation is a long one.

Comments from ICDP participants:

“Now I am paying more attention to my children, I am taking better care. I am aware what is required to raise a child in the best way, without hitting and assaulting them. Thank you!”

“After this project I understood that to raise my boy, you don’t have to use force, spanking. it’s about talking, giving love and affection. I am calmer and now I talk more, no hitting. Thank you so much”

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ICDP in Finland in 2022

by Petra Zilliacus

ICDP Finland is proud to present the year of 2022 as one of the most expansive years during our 10 year history.

The Federation of Mother and Child Homes and Shelters in Finland, ETKL, has educated nine new trainers with Nicoletta Armstrong as trainer. All in all, our new and old trainers have completed six Basic Trainings with a total of 66 graduates and two facilitator trainings resulting in 17 new facilitators.

ICDP Finland has also conducted an ICDP bilingual kick-off day for the entire day care personnel in the county of Inkoo.

In the Finnish research field there have been two papers addressing ICDP, one by Melissa Matjus at Novia University of Applied Sciences, addressing ICDP as a programme based on attachment and a Master’s thesis by Katri Kvick at Eastern University in Finland about parents’ perspective on ICDP as a parent support programme.

In addition to the many trainings, the ICDP Finland association has conducted virtual ICDP coffee breaks for members every first Thursday of the month, arranged an ICDP New and Old Educators Day for mutual inspiring, and offered a free “Magical ICDP”- webinar for anyone curious about how ICDP can serve people and organizations in different ways.

The photo shows attendees of a virtual meeting: From the COVID times we learned to meet virtually and the ICDP morning coffee meetings once a month are something we have continued with, even though the restrictions are lifted. This is a great way to check in with old and new members and share the ICDP spirit.

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ICDP growth at Happy Start, Tashkent

Update from Uzbekistan, 1st of February 2023

During the last two months of 2022, a group of 6 parents received training in the ICDP programme and completed the course by the end of December.

In December 2022, the teachers in the two Happy Start preschools, in Tashkent, finished their ICDP caregiver courses. A group of 10 new teachers/caregivers were certified and in addition 3 caregivers attended the course a second time. One facilitator from previous training also completed her course as an ICDP facilitator.

In January 2023, Magdalena Brannstrom held a three-day workshop for new facilitatorrs. A group of 7 women who all work in the field of early childhood education embarked on their training to become facilitators. “It is a privilage to train such wonderful people who have big hearts for children and who care for children in their everyday life. These women will become great ICDP facilitators because of their ability to care and have empathy for others.” – says Magdalena, ICDP trainer.

Photo taken at facilitators’ training

Feedback from preschool staff:

After starting with the ICDP course I can see some changes in the children in my class. They try to regulate thier emotions, be patient and listen. And they share or express their feelig. It is now easier to get their attention.

After the course I am more aware of my feelings/emotion, thinking, attitude and behavior around children. I am more patient.

I see the efffect of the course on the children in my class: Children became more open and trusting through my new relationship building.

I see many changes within myself: It has become much easier to build relationships not only with children, but also with loved ones, relatives and friends.

I became more tolerant, began to change my attitude towards people around me.

I have less condemnation and irritation in me. I began to understand children more and ask more questions about their condition.

One discoverry that I made thanks to the ICDP programme is that a teacher should not only give knowledge, but help the child in the development of his or her personality. A teacher can become a very close friend to a child.

I have ceased to be afraid of the unpredictable behaviour of children, because now I have a tool, I know how to react, what needs to be applied so that there are no unpleasant consequences.

I have seen changes in myself – that I became calmer, softer, began to understand children more; I began to see, experience and feel their problems and concerns. I respond to their initiatives more. And also I have seen changes in my class: We began to understand each other; the children tell their secrets, there is a friendly atmosphere in the classroom. While there is no chaos, the children have become more obedient, they remember information better, they develop comprehensively.

I have seen changes in myself: I became interested in the desires of children. I learned how important it is to show your love, emotions and speak encouraging words. I stopped with excessive strictness. I learned that children are individuals and it really became easier to work.

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The Danish Centre for ICDP

The year 2022 was a busy and very fruitful year for the Danish Centre for ICDP, as their annual report demonstrates. – click here to read it.

From the report:

In the Danish Center for ICDP, we have developed a good new rhythm in the area of management. Anne Linder continues to keep her primary focus in the field of development and provides supervision and support to the 35 active trainees. Jens Linder has settled in well in his new job as manager and ensures the smooth running of the many day-to-day tasks at the Centre. In addition, he is the key person responsible for the development of two new digital platforms; one is designed for courses and the other one is for parents. The development of the digital platforms had taken up a lot of our resources throughout the year. We are proud to have presented our course platform Relatuz in an updated design. Both trainers and users say the platform is easy to access and supports video analysis and other teaching material. In 2022, we have trained 725 persons at ICDP level 1; 68 persons to ICDP level 2 and at level 3, we have 3 new trainers.

Plans for 2023
With the new capacity in the management of ICDP, we can now purposefully focus on new development projects. The goal of all projects is to spread and quality-assure the ICDP mindset. At the beginning of the year 2023 we will
continue to work with ICDP parents on the digital platform called, the Danish Center for Relations. On this platform, parents are offered knowledge about interaction – they are shown video sequences, animated films and receive guidance or teaching in groups. Furthermore, we are rounding off the work regarding the Certification of Institutions – where we also expect to provide a financial return to ICDP International. Among are new project developments planned for 2023, we are working on publishing a material case for teachers; the idea is that via ICDP, they can strengthen the community and well-being in the class. During spring 2023, we will be publishing a new book called ICDP and Leadership, as well as a new booklet ICDP and the Children’s Convention.

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ICDP in Somaliland

Evaluation report

A post parenting assessment was undertaken for the ICDP parenting programme 2017-21 with the following results:

Caregivers reported that they have learnt “proper parenting methods” since they participated in the ICDP parenting programme.

Children across the project intervention area also reported that their caregivers talk to them kindly, spend more time with them and they have a more open relationship.

Children are reported to be more involved in the household decisions and making rules together with caregivers, giving them a voice in the household.

The qualitative findings were corroborated by quantitative data which indicates that overall, caregivers who received the parenting intervention show an improvement in engaging in activities with their children, such as having meals together, praising the child for good behaviour, showing physical affection, etc. compared to caregivers who received the cash-only intervention.

Read the full Evaluation Report, 2022

Expansion to Berbera district

The ICDP parenting sessions were expanded to an additional district, Berbera, where parenting session were rolled out with caregivers of 150 households.