Here's Everything You Need To Know About Early Childhood Education

It’s strange to think that even though pretty much all of us spent a couple of our formative years at kindergarten (or ‘pre-school’ depending on where you are), we’re pretty clueless as to what our teachers actually did all day when they weren’t reading to us, playing with us, or helping us build or create something cool. There’s always loads of misinformation out there, so we’ve got the straight truth about what you need to know about a career in early childhood education.

It’s so much more than a babysitting job

You’ve probably heard someone make a dad-joke like ‘wow, I’d love to play all day too, but I’ve got a real job to do’. While there are some really fun moments where you get to hang out and do activities with kids, there’s actually a lot going on under the hood. 

Research shows that play-based learning is a powerful way to support children’s development. And it has a profound effect on the lives people go on to lead, and not just in terms of their education. In fact, the evidence shows that two years are better than one when it comes to early learning!

One in five kids in Australia are what’s called ‘developmentally vulnerable’, which means that they’re a little behind on the skills they need to do the best they can at school. As an early childhood teacher, your job is to put the kids’ needs first, and help them learn, grow and set them up for success. This actually takes a fair bit of understanding about how young minds work, how to plan activities but also how to go off-script if you need to.

That’s why it’s so important for kids to have passionate teachers who feel positive about teaching young learners.

There are thrills and spills, but at the end of the day early childhood teaching is one of the most fulfilling careers out there where no two days are the same. You can even bring some of your own passions – be it art, instruments, or drama – to the job.

You’ll need qualifications if you want to work in the sector

Going off the last point, it’s actually a pretty involved job, and there’s loads of stuff you need to know so that you can help these little kids grow. There are two main roles that you’ll see in early childhood education: early childhood (or ‘Kindergarten’) teachers, and early childhood educators.

Kinder teachers are similar in a lot of ways to primary or secondary school teachers - you’re looking at a 4-year bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education if you’re studying full-time. It’s not all theory though - you’ll be out in the field getting stuck in through mentored placements in early childhood settings, such as kindergartens and childcare centres. It’s a really hands-on experience where the aim is to have you job-ready as soon as you get out of uni.

If you’re worried about getting the marks you need to get into a Bachelor degree straight away, don’t sweat it - there’s always a way to work your way up to getting that qualification. You might do a different degree, then go back to uni for a graduate diploma or a Master’s. 

You also have the option to get a Certificate or Diploma through TAFE or another vocational education provider. In Victoria, you can get a Certificate or Diploma through Free Tafe tuition fee-free. This qualifies you to be an early childhood educator and then you can upskill to become a teacher and lead learning programs (and get paid more!).

If you’ve already completed a Cert III in Early Childhood Education and Care, some unis will recognise that as prior learning, which will cut down on the amount of uni you’ll need to do.

It’s in-demand right now, and here to stay

It can be a little intimidating signing up for a course if you’re not sure there’s going to be a job for you on the other side. Thankfully, education is one of the fastest growing industries in Australia, and thanks to some exciting government initiatives, it’s going to stay that way for a long time to come. Not to mention, unless we crack how to program robots to teach and care for children, working in the sector won’t be under threat from automation any time soon.

The Victorian Government is now delivering Three-Year-Old Kinder across the state! This means 6,000 additional teachers and educators are needed over the decade to meet this new huge demand. Not only that, but they’re also offering financial support of up to $34,000 to help with education costs so you can teach in Victoria.

For more info about a career in early education, check out our super short course - Serious About Play.