Online Education Options for Early Childhood Education Degree
- Online Certifications in Early Childhood Education is available in certain states and they generally consist of 12 or more units of coursework in early education in order to meet state requirements. Many states require a bachelor degree so it is wise to check your state before hand.
- Online Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education this two year degree plan specializes in early childhood education and will qualify the degree holder for more responsible positions in preschool and daycare as well as sometimes as a head start teacher. This is a great program for the current daycare worker who wants to advance and perhaps work up to their bachelor degree in early childhood education.
- Online Bachelors of Arts Degree in Early Childhood Education is a four year program that meets the standard for all bachelor degrees and has at its heart a liberal art program. The prospective teacher will then focus on classroom skills in educational theory needed to become a successful early childhood educator.
- Online Master of Education Degree in Early Childhood Education is an advanced degree that generally takes around two years to complete and a Bachelor degree to begin. This degree is normally sought by teachers in specialized areas of education such as special education or administrators and curriculum planners or educational technology.
- Online Doctorate Degree in Early Childhood Education also known as a PhD in Early Childhood Education is normally sought by high-ranking administrators or perhaps educational policy makers. Programs with this type of early childhood education degree are highly specialized in the student focuses on very narrow area such as child psychology, curriculum development or administrative issues in education. The amount of time it takes to get an online doctorate degree varies with the area of specialization and with the student and their current career demands. The short answer is between three and five years
Early Childhood Education Career Considerations
To be in Early Childhood Education professional requires a deep concern for children. At the educator level this will also require a lot of patience especially with children in the early ages. Careers in early childhood education can be physically and emotionally demanding as these are young children with short attention spans and a lot of energy. The person who wishes to make a difference in the lives of young children and to influence their learning throughout their lives will find this a very rewarding career. The academic portions of the early childhood education degree can easily be satisfied online, but many states require a classroom training period as well the academics and that part will have to be arranged with your online school so these requirements can be satisfied locally.
Early Childhood Education Salary and Career Information
Naturally, with so many educational options available to the early childhood educator, salaries vary with the level of education. An entry-level preschool teacher with a certification might expect to make from $9.06 an hour to $12.47 an hour the first year.
- Employment settings for the early childhood education career
The range of employment settings for the early childhood education professional are wide indeed because the public school setting is not the only employment setting for the early childhood educator.
- Public schools are normally the first places that come to mind when thinking of the early childhood education career this includes kindergarten, project head start, and elementary education. Though it is true that public schools are the largest employer of early childhood education teachers holding bachelor degrees, they are not the only employment setting.
- Private Schools and this can be in the setting from the private daycare, to the exclusive private preschool or kindergarten schools that wealthy persons enroll their preschoolers in to give them that extra head start.
Median salaries for the Early Childhood Education professional will vary according to the employment setting and region. Often private schools and employers pay better than the public school setting. However, what follows is an average range for the person with an early childhood education bachelor degree. Persons holding a certificate, or holding more advanced degrees will of course make less or more.
- Entry level Early Childhood Education educators holding a bachelor degree in early childhood education, May expect to make between $29,110-$38,980 per year. The median salary range for an Early Childhood Education teacher is around $47,600 yearly. The top 10% earn around $67,490 per year.
Job Growth for the holder of an Early Childhood Education Degree is projected to be good according to a 2006 the US Department of Labor outlook report. The Early Childhood Education career is projected to grow around 12% which is better than average. The more children that are born, the more need for the early childhood education teacher grow. Also, the need for Early Childhood Education has finally become generally acknowledged as educators begin to convince budget makers that the richer the child's initial environment is the better the educational outcome is. This is not just applicable to children from economically deprived backgrounds either.
There is and has been and probably will continue to be a shortage walloped by Early Childhood Education teachers. Schools have begun to make certain allowances to permit holders of any degree to "level" to attain their teaching certificate. Even these initiatives are not expected to close the gap.