Estimated Tuition
$500.00
About the Course
This supervised field experience course follows the guidelines established by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. Students will gain experience working with young children at a local center based ECE environment under the supervision of a mentor teacher or other qualified early education professionals. Supervised field experience at a local licensed facility that operates a program under the requirements of California Department of Public Social Services. This includes Head Start, public school programs, and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accredited programs. Students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of developmentally appropriate early childhood education methodology, utilize practical classroom experiences to make connections between theory and practice, professional ethics, and portfolio preparation. Knowledge of curriculum content areas will be emphasized as student teachers design, implement and evaluate experiences that promote development and learning for all young children, and build a comprehensive understanding of children and families. Other topics of discussion will address classroom management, student learning, lesson planning, assessment, parent communications and professional development. This course requires students to attend class sessions in addition to their field experience.
Students are required to complete 200 field work hours. The duration of the Internship is a 67-day interval of – 3 hr. maximum per day—15 hours per week. UCR Extension does not provide site placement or mentor teachers for this course. Students are responsible for finding their own mentor teacher and appropriate site. Family childcare sites are not permitted. Mentor teachers should be working in a licensed, preferably accredited, facility. It is acceptable to accept a kindergarten teacher as a mentor. Mentor teachers must have at least 5 years of experience working with children in the lead teacher or director role. They should have a minimum of 24 units in early childhood education or an Associate’s /Bachelor’s degree and meet the requirements for a master teacher permit.
- Students will learn to engage and support all young children in development and learning. They will also learn to communicate and collaborate in partnership with families in a culturally appropriate and responsive manner to support young children’s development and learning.
- Develop productive (i.e., healthful, safe and predictable) daily routines and schedules for potential use with children which can also serve as learning opportunities for children, and adjust these as necessary to meet children’s developmental and/or learning needs.
- Identify and implement strategies to prevent and/or address young children’s challenging behaviors, and implement strategies to help children learn to resolve conflicts.
- Understand and demonstrate how to adjust a curriculum to meet the needs of young children and to address differences in young children’s skill levels and learning styles, as well as how to adjust the curriculum and learning activities to address children’s individualized learning plans for young children with special needs.
- Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of commonly-used early childhood curricula and approaches, including their alignment to the California Infant/Toddler Learning Foundations and the Preschool Learning Foundations as well as the principles put forth in the California Early Development and Learning System-based curriculum from the California Department of Education.
- Demonstrate how specific learning experiences would be adapted to address specific children’s needs related to their cultural background, linguistic, ethnic, economic, skill levels, gender, and first- second- and dual language acquisition and development, as well as children’s diverse learning styles, motivations, interests, skills, social and cognitive development.
- Describe appropriate pedagogical strategies and potential curriculum and pedagogical modifications to help young children with disabilities access the curriculum.
- Demonstrate understanding of commonly-used early childhood screening and formative assessment strategies. Demonstrate understanding of the characteristics and purposes of formative and summative assessments of young children. Choose and/or use program-or site-identified formative assessment strategies appropriate for assessing a particular skill. Identify and describe the key characteristics of culturally-and linguistically-appropriate assessments.
- Act in an ethical manner, with honesty and integrity, and with children’s and families’ well-being as the central concern. Reflect on practice and use this information to improve teaching and learning in the EC context. Demonstrate the ability to co-plan and co-teach with others such as other teachers, Master/mentor teachers, and others in the ECE setting. Collaborate and communicate effectively with other professionals, where applicable. Demonstrate effective strategies for supporting adult learning related to the teaching of young children.
- EDUC X85.A | An Introduction to Early Childhood Studies: Child Growth and DevelopmentEnroll
- EDUC X85.B | The Role of Home, School and Community in Early Childhood EducationEnroll
- EDUC X85.C | Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum in Early Childhood EducationEnroll
- EDUC X85.D | Health, Safety, and Nutrition in Early Childhood EducationEnroll
- EDUC X85.E | Principles and Practices of Teaching Young ChildrenEnroll
- EDUC X85.F | Observation and Assessment of Children's Social and Learning DevelopmentEnroll
- EDUC X85.G | Teaching Young Children in a Diverse SocietyEnroll