Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education)

Level 7

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Are you passionate about early childhood teaching? UCOL’s Te Tohu Paetahi Akoranga Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) (Level 7) will prepare you to enter the highly gratifying early childhood education sector.

Quick info

Level: 7

Locations: UCOL Manawatū in Palmerston North, UCOL Wairarapa in Masterton

Duration: 3 Years

Dates:
TBC - Subject to Approval and Accreditation.

Domestic Fees: *
TBCScholarship info

Find out if you're eligible for fees-free study

International Fees:*
TBC

Additional Fees
Compulsory course costs may apply.

* Fees are indicative only, and are inclusive of the student services levy and GST (goods and services tax). The fee shown is for one year of study.

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The Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) (Level 7) programme is an Initial Teacher Education (ITE) degree that will prepare you to become a qualified Early Childhood Educator in Aotearoa New Zealand. The classroom and field-based teaching will provide you with a comprehensive learning experience covering both the theoretical and practical aspects of early childhood teaching. You will understand the different phases of children’s learning and development and acquire the skills required to carry out teaching tasks independently.

Having obtained the skills needed to uphold the expectations of New Zealand’s Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession, you will be ready to apply for registering yourself as a professionally certified Early Childhood Educator.

COVID-19 Vaccinations:

As of October 2021, the Government has announced a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for those working in the healthcare and education sectors. UCOL, and our students, are required to comply. The Government’s mandate means that many practicum placement providers will require students to be vaccinated before your practicum. The placement hours are essential for this programme. If you are not COVID-19 vaccinated, your placement access will be very limited. This will affect your ability to complete this programme successfully, and become qualified.

You can see more information on this on UCOL's Covid-19 page, and on the Ministry of Health's website.

Career & Study Outcomes

Graduates of this three-year Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) (Level 7) degree will have the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values to be competent, registered teachers in early childhood settings in New Zealand. Employment options may include:

Kindergarten
Early childhood centres
Home-based settings
Or staircase to further study

To find out more about possible job prospects and salaries, see Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment's Occupation Outlook for Teachers.

Course Information

This programme consists of 360 Credits.

Year 1

Child Development (15 Credits)
This course will introduce you to the theoretical perspectives of child development (from birth to six years) relevant to the context of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Education and Society (15 Credits)
This course examines underlying social and cultural contexts in education including Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the implications for early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 1: Professional and Reflective Practice (15 Credits)
This course will introduce you to the knowledge, practice, values, and attitudes required to be an effective professional teacher in early childhood education.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 2: Communication and Relationships (15 Credits)
This course will further develop your knowledge, practice, values, and attitudes as required to be an effective professional teacher in early childhood education.

Te Puna Reo (15 Credits)
This course will introduce you to te reo Māori me ngā tikanga and their relevance to early childhood services.

Play, Curriculum, and Pedagogy (15 Credits)
This course will introduce the early childhood curriculum Te Whāriki and explore the concept of play as a curriculum in early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Artistic Languages of Children (15 Credits)
This course will help you develop curriculum knowledge, skills, and an understanding of effective learning and teaching processes and strategies in visual arts, music, and movement.

Educational Approaches (15 Credits)
This course will help you understand historical and contemporary educational ideas, philosophies and approaches that inform early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Year 2

Infants and Toddlers: First 1000 days (15 Credits)
This course will critically examine the requirements for providing education and care for infants and toddlers in early childhood settings.

Equity & Diversity (15 Credits)
This course will help you understand historical and social issues connected to diversity and the achievement of educational equity for infants, toddlers, young children, and their families in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 3: Assessment for Learning and Teaching (15 Credits)
This programme will provide you with the skills and knowledge to assess learning in early childhood settings.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 4: Personal and Professional Identity (15 Credits)
This course will help you develop a reflective practitioner's professional knowledge, skills, and attitudes within early childhood settings.

Te Puna Tikanga (15 Credits)

This course will enable you to apply concepts and knowledge of tikanga Māori to reflective teaching practice, planning, implementation, and evaluation of early childhood curriculum.

Emergent Literacies (15 Credits)

This course will help you develop content knowledge, skills, and understanding of effective learning and teaching approaches for developing and supporting young children’s emerging literacies.

Early Mathematical and Scientific Concepts (15 Credits)

This course will help you understand how infants, toddlers, and young children learn mathematical and scientific concepts and apply this theoretical knowledge in meaningful ways within early childhood settings.

Introduction to Educational Research (10 Credits)

This course will introduce you to educational research methods and develop the skills, knowledge, and attitudes required to be an effective practitioner-researcher.

Year 3

Holistic Wellbeing of Teachers (10 Credits)

This course will critically explore contemporary issues that impact teacher wellbeing.

Pedagogy, Policy, and Practice (15 Credits)

This course will help you apply critical reflection and analysis of societal structures and processes to complex political issues that affect the early childhood education sector in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 5: Professional Leadership (15 Credits)

This course will provide you with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to fulfil leadership roles and responsibilities within early childhood settings.

Professional Inquiry in Practice 6: Collaborative Partnerships (20 Credits)

This course will focus on blending the professional skills, knowledge, and attitudes of a graduating early childhood teacher.

Te Puna Mātauranga (15 Credits)

This course will help you understand Mātauranga Māori and its implications for future teaching practice.

Environments and Learning (15 Credits)

This course will critically explore early childhood learning environments and the influence of historical and contemporary perspectives in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Whakatōpū Arotakenga (15 Credits)

This course will consolidate prior learning and demonstrate the skills, knowledge, and competencies of an effective reflective practitioner.

Teacher as Researcher (15 Credits)

This course will provide you with an opportunity to plan and implement an action research project in an early childhood education setting.

Domestic Entry Requirements

To be eligible to enter this programme, you must be 17 years of age at the start of the programme, and provide evidence that you meet Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Entry to the Programme requirements.

Academic Entry Requirements

a) If you are under 20 years of age:

University Entrance or a recognised equivalent such as International Baccalaureate or Cambridge International,

or,

Be able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of UCOL that you have the skills and ability to study at a tertiary level. This may include successful completion of New Zealand Certificate in Early Childhood Education and Care Level 4.

b) If you are over 20 years of age and without University Entrance (or equivalent), be able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of UCOL that you have the ability to study at a tertiary level. This may include successful completion of New Zealand Certificate in Early Childhood Education and Care Level 4.

Competency in English Language, te reo Māori, literacy and numeracy (English medium programmes)

English Language

All applicants who do not have English, Māori or NZ sign as their first language must demonstrate English language competency through one of the following:

New Zealand University Entrance Literacy Credits at either NCEA Level 2 or 3, or
New Zealand Certificate in English Language Level 5 (Academic) as well as Unit Standards 22750, 22751 and 22749, or
IELTS score of 7.0 in all bands (achieved in the past two years) or equivalent including TOEFL (refer to the English language competency table on the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand website).

Māori Language

Applicants who will be submitting assessments in te reo Māori but do not hold University Entrance in te reo Māori are recommended to demonstrate Maori language competency through the achievement of Whakamātauria Tō Reo Māori Level 2 (National Māori Language Proficiency Examinations).

For applicants who have studied full immersion in te Reo Māori may use the following evidence of language competency:

Achieved Whakamātauria Tō Reo Māori level 2 (National Māori Langauge Proficience Examinations);
Undertook all primary schooling and at least 3 years of secondary schooling in te reo Māori;
Undertook five years of secondary schooling in te reo Māori.

Literacy and Numeracy Competency
Prior to entry, all applicants must pass a literacy and numeracy competency assessment. The pass level in literacy and numeracy must be no lower than the equivalent to UE in literacy and numeracy.

UCOL will use the Tertiary Education Commission on-line Literacy and Numeracy for Adults Assessment Tool to assess candidate’s literacy and numeracy competency prior to confirmation of enrolment. A score of Step 4 for Literacy and Step 5 for Numeracy plus a scale score of 571 for writing, 608 for reading and 596 for two of the numeracy standards will be considered to having met the literacy and numeracy credits.

For more information about NCEA Credits see UCOL's NCEA explained page.

International Entry Requirements

If you are an international student, you will be assessed on a case-by-case basis to ensure that you meet New Zealand University Entrance equivalency. In addition to meeting the academic entry requirements listed above, if your first language is not English, or you come from a country where the general medium of instruction is not English, you will be required to provide documentary evidence of proficiency in English (reading, writing, listening, and speaking).

The minimum requirements are:
An IELTS score of at least 7.0 (Academic) in all bands (or equivalent including TOEFL, NZ Certificate in English Language (Academic) L5), achieved in one sitting authorised by the awarding body (i.e. combining scores from more than one test is not permissible). And which is within the preceding two years when the student’s application is received and stamped by Registry.

Advice & Guidance

Safety Check
UCOL will undertake a safety check after you have completed an application for enrolment. The safety check will involve:

An interview with you.
Confirming your work history.
Verifying with two trusted referees.
Completing New Zealand Police vetting.

Field-Based Experience
You are required to undertake a field-based experience under the supervision of a registered and fully certified teacher and be working in a licensed early childhood centre in an employed or non-employed capacity for a minimum of two days (12 hours) per week throughout the academic year, except when you are on the practical experience placement.

Practical Experience Placement
In addition to the field-based experience, you will be placed in an early childhood centre other than your regular place of work for a four or five week full-time practical experience placement each year.

As part of the practical experience placement, you may need to travel out of the district. This will be at your own expense.

Selection Criteria
The selection process consists of an interview. Areas considered by the interviewers are:

Personal qualities.
Professional qualities.
Early childhood knowledge and experience.
Other work and community experience.
Cultural knowledge and understanding.

The interview panel will have a UCOL early childhood lecturer, assisted by an early childhood sector representative or another UCOL academic representative.

The interview will be conducted in an equitable, professional manner with every endeavour to make you feel at ease. You are welcome to bring family/whanāu for support.

If the number of applicants who meet the entry criteria exceeds the available places, a waitlist will be created in the date order of completed and received applications.

Recognition of prior learning
Applications for Recognition of Prior Learning, including Cross Credit, Credit Transfer and Assessment of Prior Learning may be made on the Recognition of Prior Learning Form where a student believes all learning outcomes for a course have already been met. Applications will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the UCOL Academic Statute and other relavant policies and procedures.

Application checklist
It will make the process easier if you prepare the following before you apply:

National Student Number (NSN) (If you don't have a NSN, you may request one from NZQA, or you can supply a verified copy of your birth certificate, passport or Whakapapa statement.)
Evidence of your highest level of academic achievement (and evidence of prior learning, if applicable)
Evidence that you meet the entry requirements of the programme
Check if you're eligible for additional support or a scholarship. If you're 19 years or younger, you may be eligible to enrol in one of our free Youth Transition programmes.

Note that you will need to provide any verified documents in person, via post or email (not via the online application form).

Additional Costs

TBC

Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education)