Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

There are three organizations that have appealed to me during my research of communities of practice for my challenge of inequities in teacher preparations.

   One organization is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). This organization has many different resources and means of assessing the quality of higher education programs in the early childhood field. NAEYC has different accreditation programs for help higher education programs better prepare teachers to work with young children. While looking at their jobs page, I also saw where there was a job for senior director for higher education accreditation. Even though this job would require me to have more experience in higher education, I believe it is a great job to potentially look at in my future as well as what their requirements are for a job such as this.
   Another organization that I found was the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. This organization is there to help and support educator preparation and it is dedicated to promote high-quality, evidence-based preparation programs that assures educators are ready to teach all learners. In searching for job listings on their website I came across a job search page for many different jobs within the higher education field all across the U.S. There was even a section for a few jobs to be found outside of the U.S. I think this would be a great start to look at different potential jobs within the higher education field. 
   The last organization that I found is The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). This organization help establish accreditation to programs to help ensure high quality teacher preparation. Accreditation applies to schools, colleges, and departments of education. This organization can help in my community of practice because of the knowledge of teacher preparation standards that are assessed throughout many different schools and programs. There were no job listings on this website but there are many valuable pieces of information about how to be accredited from this organization. Being accredited will allow me to help find jobs that I know are readily prepared to educate future teachers.

References
http://aacte.org/
http://www.ncate.org/
http://www.naeyc.org/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community

   It is important for me to grow professionally in the field of early childhood education. Right now I am currently a teacher in a two- three year-old classroom but I hope to grow and move on to other opportunities soon. Before moving on to these other opportunities I have to research and look at different organizations on the local and state level that can help me find different career opportunities. Many of the career choices I am looking for involve teaching/training professionals or potential professionals in the early childhood field.
   One organization that I found was the Partnership for Children of Johnston County. This is an organization that I am well aware of in my local community that helps young children and professionals in the field of early childhood. Opportunities at the organization include providing trainings for other professionals in the field. These trainings can include many different topics in the early childhood field. I think this is a great organization that I could potentially be a part of.
   Another organization that I am well aware of is NCAEYC. This is the North Carolina chapter of NAEYC and I have attended many different conferences that have been arranged by this organization. Potential career opportunities with this organization could be to help the community of early childhood professionals in their own professional growth and development. This organization does not only help professionals in the field but also as advocates for early childhood in communities and the state.
   The last organization that I was interested in was the NC Institute for Child Development Professionals. This organization has many different resources and tools to help professionals that teach adult learners in the early childhood field. Through this resource I could gain certifications and look for career opportunities that are related to the field. It is important as a professional that I look for opportunities to grow and I believe this organization can help me find the resources to do so. No matter which career path I choose, I can be well prepared by doing my research on career opportunities and use my knowledge pertaining to the early childhood field.


References
http://www.partnershipforchildrenjoco.org/
http://ncaeyc.org/
http://ncicdp.org/

Week One: Merging Passion, Vision, and Practice

This week we were able to create a Wordle that represents our passion and interests in the early childhood field. Here is my Wordle:

I look forward to working with each of you on our last course of our program!