Why Early Childhood Education is a Smart Career Choice in 2022
Do you have a passion for teaching and contributing to a strong foundation for student’s futures? Then you might want to seriously consider being an educator of young learners, where the building blocks of self-development really start.
Early childhood education teachers are currently in high demand across Australia, compared to primary and secondary teachers. In fact, this area of education has been ranking as one of the most in demand jobs in the country in the last few years.
More than teaching basic numeracy, literacy, music and art to pre-primary students, early childhood teachers promote children’s social, emotional and physical development, which is crucial in the human stages of growth. The importance of proper development in a child’s early years and its profound effects on that child’s adulthood is the main reason why demand has greatly risen for educators who specialise in early childhood development.
No longer is it enough to be a general educator. Employers are looking for educators who have the skills and specific qualifications to teach and care for early learners. This is because young children have a different set of needs than older children, which must be uniquely addressed.
In Australia, the common work duties of an early childhood educator include:
- Teaching the elementary skills of numeracy, music, literature, art, literacy, and counting
- Promoting social, intellectual, emotional, and physical development
- Focusing on the physical development, health, and well-being of the students including those with special needs
- Structuring outdoor and indoor learning programs
- Using equipment and materials to develop motor skills, confidence, and social skills
- Promoting vocabulary and language development through role-plays, drama, storytelling, rhymes, songs, games, and informal discussions
- Evaluating and discussing the progress of the student with carers and parents
- Supervising students’ nutritional health, safety, and welfare requirements
- Involvement in community activities and family support programs as needed
- Planning learning and play activities using various tools to develop creativity in a student
- Encouraging inquisitiveness and exploration in children
- Listening to children and interpreting their actions and words to learn about their needs
- Assisting children with personal hygiene, dressing, sleeping, and eating
- Identifying signs of sickness, hurt and developmental disorders
- Observing, recording, and evaluating the growth, behaviour, learning, social development, and progress of children
- Communicating the student’s condition and progress to other teachers, healthcare nurses and doctors, psychologists, and speech pathologists.
- Attending interviews with parents, committee meetings, and support staff
- Monitoring the activities of support staff and training them
- Maintaining a safe, hygienic, and appealing environment
- Providing basic first aid.
The roles and responsibilities of an early childhood educator are many, which means that you will be having a busy & dynamic career that challenges your creativity on a daily basis. But at the end of the day, the fulfillment in knowing that you’re making a big difference in young children’s lives and futures makes it all worthwhile. Early childhood educators place high on the list of workers with career satisfaction.
If you feel inspired to start building your career as an early childhood educator, there’s no better time than now, when demand for this job position is at an all-time high in Australia! Enrol in the Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care in Australia to get your professional qualifications.
You can complete our nationally accredited Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care at ETEA (Education Training and Employment Australia).
ETEA is an Australian Registered Training Organisation (RTO) and private college. Over many years, ETEA has built a strong reputability in Australian education through our flexible programs that include a combination of both theoretical (classroom) learning and practical learning to prepare students for actual work environments. We have proudly produced an exemplary rate of students with immediate job placements after graduation through our comprehensive training, state of the art facilities and strong industry links.
Learn more about ETEA today.
Visit our website for course details and contact us for enquiries.
