When I first started in Early Childhood, Childcare centers were popping up everywhere and in the State where I lived; the owners of these centers didn’t need any education.
The problems that are happening in Early Childhood can be avoided if owners were required to have the same educational background as their staff.
It would show that they are serious about educating children and not just in it for the money.
I’ve actually worked for centers like this, and it was a nightmare. Although I learned a lot, it was difficult running a center when the owner didn’t know the basics of what it took to maintain a childcare center.
I struggled with academic planning and enrollment all the time. The owner did not have a curriculum for each age group in the center, it was entirely left in the hands of the teachers. Which can be a great learning experience for them. But the parents should have been given some basic information of what their child would be learning.
This particular owner also wanted her center full, which was understandable if the purpose of the center was to make money. But he/she didn’t understand what was needed to accomplish this. The center needed something to draw the parents in, something that set them apart from other centers.
I found it difficult to hire staff under these circumstances when I didn’t know what the goal of each classroom was.
In my opinion, if a center is formed for the purpose of filling it with children with no academic basis, then call it a babysitting service and hire accordingly, but not a preschool.
So the teachers and management you hire understand what is expected of them and parents understand the goals of the center.
But most schools considered themselves a preschool with no educational foundation or qualified teachers, because they did not take the time to figure it all out before opening the center.
It just doesn’t seem fair to the children, I know being an early childhood provider can be very profitable and I am not saying I’m against it, I’m only saying be honest about what your intentions are for the students.
If you want a center that has an educational foundation; learn what that means before you step into the business. And if you want a babysitting service then understand what it takes to watch someone else’s child for an entire day before you take on that responsibility.
Do it because you love children, not for a quick buck, it’s just not fair to the children or their parents. And it makes it very difficult for people to take Early Childhood Education seriously.
Darla*
