College Credit Certificate inEarly Child Educator

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Why Early Child Educator

The Early Childhood Educator Certificate is designed to prepare individuals to be teachers in a child care center and/or preschool setting. Upon completion of a Gateways Level 2 credential, this certificate will be equal to a Gateways Level 3 credential.

The certificate will provide 9 additional hours of credit toward an A.A.S. degree in Child Development or an A.A. transfer degree in Early Childhood Education. (Early Childhood Education Certificate must follow completion of “Assistant Teacher Certificate”.)

See the ECE Program Flyer (PDF)

Discover careers and salaries for this program

Learn more about Early Childhood Education student support and the ECACE Scholarship

Locations

East Campus

Quad-Cities Campus

Formats

On-campus

Online

Number of Credits

Next Start Date

Any Time

Courses in Early Childhood Educator

ECE 100 Introduction to Early Childhood (3)
ECE 200 Growth and Development of Young Child (3)
ECE 201 Health, Safety and Nutrition (3)
ECE 202 Observ/Assessment Y.C. (3)
ECE 203 Curriculum for Early Childhood Programs (3)
ECE 222 Child, Family, Community (3)
ECE 224 Methods of Guiding Child Behavior (3)
ENG 101 Composition I or
ENG 101C Composition 1 (3)
Mathematics Elective* (3)
PSYC/SOC Elective
PSYC 101 Introduction to Psychology or
SOC 101 Principles of Sociology (3)

*It is recommended that students pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Education complete MATH 108.

Learning Objectives

Students who complete this program will be able to:

Analyze and apply the results of a standardized social-emotional-behavioral assessment to the classroom environments in ways that support heathy child development.
Demonstrate knowledge of the legal, ethical and contextual factors that early childhood educators should apply to their assessment practice.
Develop, implement, and evaluate a preschool lesson plan that incorporates evidence-based practices in content and delivery methods.
Apply the results of standardized early childhood assessment to understanding the developmental strengths and challenges of individual children.
Understand the role of early childhood educators in helping families access resources in the community.
Demonstrate knowledge and application of professionalism of early childhood education as indicated by image, behavior and dispositions expected of Early Childhood Educators.

Students must successfully document and meet all health and background checks required by academic programs and/or courses.