Education going too far
by: Tallulah - 10-05-10 14:46
Just wanted to see what people think - I was recently talking to a parent about the drive to have graduate led childcare and she made the point that this means that only the most intellectual people will get to lead in the sector and she would value other qualities in a person above intellectualism when it comes to taking care of her children.
What does everyone think - has it gone mad with regards to staff feeling they have to have MA' and degrees. Is undue emphasis being placed on the intellectual side of our profession at the expense of other qualities e.g emotional intelligence, practical skills. Would the children be better served by happy more relaxed staff than staff who are burnt out striving to climb the academic ladder? Where will it all lead, is it time to question this approach?
RE: Education going too far - 10-05-10 15:52
by: Maestro
Personally I would like to see an improvement on the current qualifications. People are being pushed through who can not spell, write, read and some can not even string a sentence together. These are basic education requirements in my opinion, and so many people just don't have them. If people do not have the GCSE's then they can do keyskills but these do not prepare people for report writing, observations, assessments etc...
Degrees have a place as its the professional development taught that gives people the transferable skills from job to job, hence why some companies are not fussed on degree subjects. I would prefer a more school orientated qualification/recruitment process. Once qualified, having to do a year as a NQT or similiar, being observed and assessed on the practical side of teaching. The current qualifications fail miserably on the practical side of things.
The academic side of things will fail when people realise there is no extra money. People will upsticks and get a job in a profession where their degree/skills are utilised in return for higher wages. It's all very well demanding every childcare setting to have a leader with EYPS but the funding has to come from somewhere and it will shut down a lot of nurseries over night. Even a the larger chains will find it difficult to fund a leader in every setting. We can't pimp ourselves out over multiple settings so it will make a significant impact.
Withdraw from the NEF and exempt ourselves from the EYFS, its going to be the way to go.
RE: Education going too far - 19-05-10 20:34
by: billabong
I was at university with graduates who gained first's but who failed to deliver as teachers. I truely believe that you 'have it' or 'you haven't' when working in ANY field. Accademic skills are certainly NOT everything. My friend is a pilot for a commercial airline and he has no degree!!!!!
RE: Education going too far - 19-05-10 20:37
by: billabong
I was at university with graduates who gained first's but who failed to deliver as teachers. I truely believe that you 'have it' or 'you haven't' when working in ANY field. Accademic skills are certainly NOT everything. My friend is a pilot for a commercial airline and he has no degree!!!!!
