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Certification Council of Early Childhood Educators of NS
Early Childhood Centre Administrator Certification
The Application process begins with training in the ECCA certification process to acquaint the applicant in the expectations for her in being a candidate and for the Certification Council of Early Childhood Educators of Nova Scotia (CCECENS) in the certification process. If the candidate decides to continue with the application, training is taken in Professional Portfolio Development. The applicant proceeds with the development of her portfolio, assisted by a workbook that she received in the portfolio development workshop. When completed, she submits the portfolio to the CCECENS for their review. This portfolio provides the CCECENS with a comprehensive overview of the skills, knowledge and attitudes of the applicant to use in their deliberations as the suitability of the applicant as a candidate. The CCECENS interviews the applicant and makes a decision to accept or reject the application.
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Experience |
Length of time |
Description of Responsibilities, Learning Opportunities, Activities |
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Work experiences: 1. Daily responsibility for ensuring that personnel policies are followed
2. Ensure relative input to strategic planning of program consistent with philosophy |
6 months
6 months |
-staff are scheduled according to program and family requirements -dress code and sick leave policies are discussed and decided upon -salary levels are negotiated -expectations of staff for program planning and implementation are coordinated -guidance and input is provided |
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Volunteer work: 1. Member of the Professional development committee of the association. 2. Fund-raising to send member to conference
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8 months
3 weeks, 2 years in a row |
-planning workshops, 1 conference -how meetings operate -importance of child care as a career -dealing with public -promoting the organization -managing money< -record keeping |
Writing Your History Section:
When my daughter, Laura, was three years old she began to attend the preschool component of the day care centre in our community. Her teacher asked me if I would be interested in volunteering some of my time to help with the children’s program. I said that I would give it a try, but didn’t know if I could be of any help. I volunteered two mornings a week during the summer program. I found that there was so much to learn about the way young children develop, that this volunteer work was also helping me in my parenting skills. I started by observing the way staff interacted with the children, and tried to be consistent with their approach. I felt very unsure at times about how to best handle certain situations. Questions about the children and their behaviour kept coming to mind, and I asked the teacher for some reading materials that would help me to understand the children better. I inquired about courses that were available and found out about the training program at IECEDS. I applied and was accepted start in September 1979. My daughter could attend day care full-time while I participated in my studies.
For the next year I studied early childhood education. I had never imagined that there was so much to learn about children, their families, planning and preparing programs, and the operation of a child care centre. The faculty were so knowledgeable, and the staff at the laboratory school were excellent role models. They were very helpful in giving me ideas to make my work more effective. I also found that I had to be very organized at home and at school in order to study and raise my daughter. There were some difficult times, like when Laura came down with the chickenpox. We had to stay home for a week. I never thought that I would catch up in all the work that I was missing. A friend from class offered to bring home notes from classes, and one of the faculty gave me her home telephone number so that I could call if I needed help understanding the readings or doing the assignments. I remembered this help the day I walked across the stage to receive my diploma. I felt so proud of this accomplishment, but knew that there had been some very special people who made it possible.
Before graduating I had sent out several applications for positions in child care centres and family resource centres. I was interested mostly in working with children two to five years of age, but would also have considered infant/toddler and school-age children. I was offered work as a substitute to replace staff on vacation at the day care centre that my daughter attended. I enjoyed the work, but found that it was hard being called in the morning....
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Description of Experience |
Learning Outcomes |
Supportive |
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Workshop on "How to run effective staff meetings" |
Demonstrate the leadership skills necessary to run effective staff meetings. - solicit input on agenda -organize the meeting so that important items get enough discussion -encourage equal participation of all staff -bring new information -arrive at consensus -make decisions and decide on action |
D3 - certificate of participation D4 - outline of workshop |
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Daily planning and program implementation |
Co-ordinate planning with team members -ensure they have had time to observe and record children’s interests, preferences, challenges. -schedule in support staff during planning meetings -review all plans and post for parents -check inventory or order supplies to support plans |
D8 - Operating budget for program consumables |
Describing Your Competence:
In-depth Event Report
At a planned discussion amongst staff, concerns were raised about a particular child. For the last month, four year old Matthew had become very quiet, uninterested in most program activities, and preferred playing alone. We reviewed previous observation records that indicated that he was usually involved in active associative play with another child, Alec, and also enjoyed co-operative play with Stephanie and Noel. He was noted as interacting confidently with other children and showing enthusiasm for playing roles in dramatic play. Each of the staff brought forward their perspectives and interpretations of their observations. We listed the information that we had, and then began to brainstorm questions that we needed answers for in order to be supportive to Matthew. We agreed that it was important to discuss our concerns with Matthew’s parents. On a few occasions staff had already mentioned to the parents that he seemed out of sorts. They said that he had seemed a bit tired lately, but had also been up later at night than he was used to. Now that it has been a month, we agreed it would be important to discuss our observations with them and share any information that may be relevant to Matthew’s feelings. We discussed the importance of trying to determine whether Matthew had experienced any problems with his friends; whether he was feeling physically healthy; if there was anything he was thinking about that made him feel sad or afraid. One staff, Donna, felt that she had a close relationship with Matthew and that he might trust her enough to share his feelings. As director, I agreed that I would meet with Matthew’s parents. Two other staff agreed to assist Donna by continuing to keep running observations and staying after work on Thursdays to share our findings. I would also call the Public Health Nurse to ask her to drop by and to find out if there are any common illnesses circulating at this time. We would agree to meet in one week’s time to review the information and to see if there is any change in Matthew’s behaviour ....
In Depth Event Report: the Essay
In my role, I have found that having good interpersonal communication skills are very important to being an effective administrator. I attended a workshop on interpersonal skills and found that I was much more aware of the importance of listening than I was before. In order for the child care centre to offer a high quality program, there must be open communication amongst child care practitioners, families, children and the community. My role is to facilitate opportunities for daily interaction between staff and parents to share information about their children. Parents are welcome to stay at times that are convenient for them. The more informed parents are about the children’s program, the more likely that they may offer suggestions. Parents have said that they also enjoy parent meetings in the evening, perhaps two or three times a year where they have the opportunity to listen to a guest speaker and discuss their children with the staff.
Staff needs to have opportunities to discuss the program and the children and time to plan a program that will interest the children and enhance their development. Regular staff meetings and program planning meetings allow for this work. When working with staff in the program I support them and give them guidance through role modeling and discussion. I encourage them to take the lead in program activities such as small group times, creative activities, and mealtime. We work as a team to guide the children’s play and behaviour throughout the day, and communicate regularly about the events of the day....
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