5 Career Options In Early Childhood Education
Early childhood ranges from zero to eight years old. It's the most crucial age because children learn the fundamental understanding and abilities upon which they can build later in life.
Apart from family members, early childhood teachers are usually among the first adults to interact with small children. These teachers are responsible for setting up a positive view of education, helping children acquire social and emotional skills, and expanding their world comprehension.
If it's your dream to work with little ones, it'd be prudent to consider a career in early childhood education.
The following are the five most common careers in early childhood education.
- Preschool Teacher
With a need for 9.3 million teachers to achieve pre-primary universal education, becoming a preschool teacher can be a rewarding career choice. As a preschool teacher, your role will be to educate and care for children below kindergarten age, typically between the ages of three to five. You'll focus on developing their social skills through play, taking them through outdoor games and singing songs. Patience and love are essential qualities for dealing with these children.
To become a preschool teacher, you'll need an associate's or bachelor's degree in early childhood education and certification, depending on your state. Recent research shows that employment in this field is estimated to grow by more than 15% in the next decade.
If you're interested in exploring a career in early childhood education or preschool teaching, consider a career at McArthur or similar agencies where recruiters are looking for preschool teachers.
- Toddler Teacher
If becoming a preschool teacher isn't for you, you may consider becoming a toddler teacher. Kindergarten kids and older ones need a lot of guidance in discipline, which can be overwhelming. But that's not the case with toddlers. As a toddler teacher, you'll enjoy playing with them, beholding their giggles, and sharing their excitement.
Becoming a toddler teacher has immense benefits, like keeping your brain young, practicing patience, and helping parents with full-time jobs or those suffering from conditions like postpartum depression.
You'll most likely seek employment in childcare facilities and daycare centers, but you must have an associate degree in early childhood education. This kind of education will prepare you to understand and work with young children as they transition to the classroom.
- Child Advocate
Generally, a child advocate, also known as a child rights advocate, defends and protects a child's rights. While law degree holders often determine a child's placement, one must not be an advocate to stand up for a child's rights. To be prepared for this task, a psychology or early childhood education degree can make you a successful child advocate, especially if children's well-being is critical to you.
You'll speak on behalf of the children and aid them and their families in dealing with trauma. This has a significant impact on society as there'll be fewer cases of school dropouts.
Other roles of a child advocate include:
- Helping the child build solid relationships with others
- Responding to neglect
- Identifying children who require special needs
- Making recommendations in court
- Facilitating visits between the child and their relatives
Being a child advocate is gratifying as you help affected ones find justice.
- Assistant Teacher
Assistant teachers interact with children in the same way teachers do. Therefore, don't assume that assistant teachers have lesser responsibilities. As an assistant teacher, you'll promote proper class behavior, emphasize the lessons taught, and assist children in their daily activities.
In addition, you'll assist teachers with record keeping, like grading assignments and filling out the attendance form.
To be eligible for this career, you must possess an associate degree in early childhood development or at least two years of college coursework.
- Family Resource Worker
A career in family resources will be ideal if you're passionate about helping children who face adversity. Your primary role will involve providing social services to enhance the child's and their family's psychological and social functioning.
Sometimes, you'll be tasked with arranging adoptions and assisting abandoned children in finding foster homes. If you work in a school, you may address issues like teenage pregnancies, drug abuse, and absenteeism. Teachers will most likely seek your intervention in resolving such incidents.
An associate degree in early childhood education is the most preferred course for this career, but you'll also need additional soft skills like:
- Computer literacy
- Excellent communication skills
- Be ready to adapt to ever-changing rules
- Have a personable personality
- Be organized
- Have a vast knowledge of community resources
The more skilled you are, the higher your chances of success as a family resource worker.
Conclusion
The list of early childhood careers goes on and on, but the jobs mentioned above can go a long way in helping you kick-start your journey to helping children. Some careers discussed above don't require a master's or bachelor's degree, depending on your state. However, if you have an early childhood education degree, there's a high chance that perfect careers in early childhood education are waiting for you.
