Identifying and
reaching consensus on what early care and education teachers and administrators
need to know and be able to do is an essential part of ensuring that children
are supported as competent learners, regardless of the B–8 early care and
education setting.
The knowledge and
competencies needed by adults to support learning, development, and school
success should draw from the science of child development and early learning,
the knowledge base about educational practices, and the context of early care and
education and related sectors.
The knowledge and
skills necessary for competent practice by early educators are listed on pages 328-329 of Transforming the Workforce, which organizes them into
five categories:
- Core knowledge of the science of child development and early
learning
- Practices to help children learn and develop based on this science
- Knowledge and skills for working with diverse populations of
children
- Developing and using partnerships with families and support
services to bolster child learning and development
- Ability and motivation to continually improve the quality and
effectiveness of one’s practices
Perceptions
expressed by practitioners in B–5 and elementary education communities suggest
that significant differences exist between them. A comparison of national and
state statements of core
competencies, however, indicates more agreement exists than typically
thought, especially in terms of supporting children’s growth and development
across domains, including general and specific cognitive skills, social and emotional
development, health, and physical well-being. These two communities both have
public statements indicating shared belief in the importance of collaborating
with colleagues and interacting with children in developmentally appropriate
ways.
Nonetheless, there
are meaningful variations in the knowledge and skills expected of early
childhood educators in B–5 and elementary grade educators, especially in the
areas of child assessment, family engagement, and use of technology.
Examination of
national statements and state expectations for what B–8 educators need to know
and be able to do indicates several areas where additional and/or more defined
competencies are warranted based on the current science of child development
and early learning and the importance of competent educational practice:
- Teaching subject-matter-specific
content
- Addressing stress and adversity
- Fostering social and emotional development and general learning competencies, including a
coherent conceptual framework for preparing learning environments and
experiences that support learning and growth in these areas. This realm
includes understanding self-regulatory capacities and the ways these capacities
interrelate with one another and connect to academic achievement when connected
to specific developmentally appropriate teacher strategies
- Working with dual language
learners
- Integrating technology into
curricula
Program and school
administrators are increasingly being recognized for creating the context for
children’s effective learning and teachers’ continuing growth. In contrast to a
broad overlap between the stated competencies expected of early childhood (B–5)
and elementary educators, a more pronounced divide in expectations exists for
administrators in elementary school settings and those in early childhood
learning settings outside of the public schools.
