about children’s development and basic principles of care. For this you will be required to have an undergraduate degree in a subject that has child/human development and/or child psychology as part of the course. However, if there a desire to enter into the field soon after completion of schooling, there is also the option of one year diploma or Open University educational courses in the field. Nursery Teacher Training is another course that offers training in this field.
In addition to the courses that one can attend, and degrees that can be acquired, it is also important to remember that having a predisposition to be open and interactive with children is a fundamental requirement if one wants to become an effective early childhood specialist. The person should also be aware of the community and culture so that the pre-school activities are in the context of the culture and regional environment in which the child is growing up. The teacher also needs to be capable of administrative and management skills that are required for record keeping, accounting, report-writing so that the institution maintains proper records, and the contact and interaction with the parent community is effective and productive. It is also extremely helpful for a teacher to be equipped with a good repertoire of skills in the arts.
The skills of story-telling, dance, music, voice modulation, of organising playful outdoor and indoor activities are mandatory when working with children. The training courses will offer several such sessions for the trainees but it is also important for a person to be deeply engaged with and willing to interact with children in several different ways. Young children have a short attention span when compared with older children and adults. Hence, it is not only important to be prepared with several activities, it is also essential to be adaptive and flexible with children, rather than focussed on completing one’s own plan of action.
A pre-school teacher has often to quickly change her lesson plan, her strategies and techniques to deal with the needs of young children so that s/he can be an effective teacher.