Introduction of Early Childhood Education and Care
What is the Childhood Education and Care course?
Diploma of Childhood Education and Care (Course) in Australia provides the skills and knowledge for early childhood educators who are responsible for the design and implementation of early childhood education and care programs.
Some interesting factors of Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care (Course) in Australia are child development and learning, planning educational programs to suit individual needs, leading a team in an early childhood environment, supportive and well qualified teachers with extensive experience in the early childhood field, practical placement in an early childhood center providing hands-on experience working with children, use of modern equipment and resources at ACU, access to student activities in a university environment and access to academic skills support and career advice.
Childhood Education and Care course will give you the skills and practical knowledge to design and implement early childhood programs, by understanding the emotional, physical, cognitive and social needs of young children. Australian College of Skills and Education highly-experienced team of industry professionals will give you the support you need to succeed throughout the course of your studies.
Childhood Education and Care is perfect for people who are already working in early childhood education and care, and want to progress their career as an educator or center director.
If you want to help children get a great start in life, then Childhood Education and Care course is perfect for you. It will teach you to develop strategies to provide and maintain healthy, safe and caring environments for children.
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Demand of Childhood Education and Care
The demand for diploma-trained early childhood staff has risen strongly over the past decade, and the number of higher-level vacancies is expected to continue to increase with an estimated 25,000 new workers required in Australia by the end of 2018.
There are approximately 1.2million children across Australia using government approved childcare services and this figure is growing. The rising number of parents using childcare services has underpinned revenue growth of 12.0% to $12.4 billion in the year to June 2017 and employment growth of 8.1% during the same period.
According to report published in 2018, there is a growing appetite for parents enrolling their children in childcare outside of school hours. The number of children attending vacation care increased by 15.7% in the year to December 2016, while OSHC increased by 7.3% during the same period. New regulations affecting educator to child ratios in family day care centres in January 2016 saw the number of children attending family day care centres fall by 3.2%.
Does doing this course increase your salary?
So in this field you will earn something around $43,000 AU per annum according to a survey.
It totally depends on the quality of knowledge you have and what qualifications you hold in this field.
Benefit of Childhood Education and Care
What are the benefit of the Childhood Education and Care course?
The following are the benefits:-
- Early childhood educator
- Children’s adviser
- Children’s services coordinator
- Nanny
- Center manager (children’s services)
- Family day care Coordinator
- Playgroup Coordinator
What fields or pathways are attached to Childhood Education and Care course?
The following fields or pathways are attached:-
- Lead Educator in Childcare Centre
- Family Day Care Educator
- Care Educator (Out Of School Hours – OOSH)
- Support worker child with needs
- Childcare Supervisor
- Room Leader
- Manager
- Director
- Nanny
- crèche childhood worker
- Early childhood educator
- Early childhood education team leader
- Family day care worker
- Early childhood education and care coordinator.
- Supervisor of an occasional care facility
- Out of school hours care coordinator and educator
- Director of early childhood center
Am I made for Childhood Education and Care course?
If you want to help children get a great start in life, then the Childhood Education and Care course is perfect for you and also if you are passionate about working with children and are looking for career advancement in early childhood Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care (Course) in Australia is perfect for you and if you are looking for a pathway to the Bachelor of Early Childhood Education at ACU then this course suits you.It will teach you to develop strategies to provide and maintain healthy, safe and caring environments for children.
What is the eligibility for Childhood Education and Care course?
Some universities entry requirements are Year 12 or equivalent and you also need to have the Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) skills at the appropriate level for this course. You will be required to complete an LLN assessment prior to enrolment to ascertain the level of support required to complete the course.
Even some university Students will be required to complete at least 440 hours of placements in a recognized early childhood education and care setting. This real workplace experience provides the practical skills and the opportunity to apply knowledge acquired in theory classes. These universities will assist students to find suitable placements. Current Police Check and Working with Children Check are also required.
There are no formal pre-requisites in the training package for course entry, however Australian College of Skills and Education sets a number of its own entry requirements:
- LLN – Clients must demonstrate Language, Literacy and Numeracy skills in line with AQF qualification level demands and ACSF skill level. Each client will undergo an LLN assessment during the application process.
- Learning (ACSF Level 4), reading (ACSF Level 3), writing (ACSF Level 3), oral communication (ACSF Level 3) and numeracy (ACSF Level 3) are desirable to participate in the course. ACSE administers an LLN test based on the desirable ACSF levels.
- Clients must have access to a regulated education and care service facility that provides early education and care services to school aged and pre-school children. The candidate must be able to fulfill the work placement requirements of the course in a regulated education and care service facility. Work placement requirements will be discussed with all clients’ pre-enrolment. ACSE will assist where possible with work placement through its network of Little Oz Kids providers and other partner facilities, but can not guarantee students placement. We encourage students to find a facility which suits them geographically and ACSE will assist to broker the position with you.
- All students will be required to have completed the unit HLTAID004 Provide an emergency first aid response in an education and care setting and have a current Working with Children Check (WWCC) https://www.kidsguardian.nsw.gov.au/child-safe-organisations/working-with-children-check .
- Due to the course study requirements and individual employer workplace policy, clients must be able to satisfy the above LLN requirements prior to gaining entry to the course and the First Aid and WWCC prior to work placement.
Cost of Childhood Education and Care course
ACSE (Australian College of Skills and Education) cost for Childhood Education and Care course is $3,500
aibtglobal.edu.au cost for the course is $12,000.
www.tafensw.edu.au cost for the course is $ 4,970.
Some universities units of study are:-
Ensure the health and safety of children, Provide care for children, Provide care for babies and toddlers, Promote and provide healthy food and drinks, Identify and respond to children and young people at risk, Work with diverse people, Promote Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander cultural safety, Develop cultural competence, Use an approved learning framework to guide practice, Work legally and ethically, Provide an emergency first aid response in an education and care setting, Support the holistic development of children in early childhood, Provide experiences to support children’s play and learning, Use information about children to inform practice, Develop positive and respectful relationships with children, Establish and implement plans for developing cooperative behavior, Foster the holistic development and wellbeing of the child in early childhood, Implement strategies for the inclusion of all children, Analyze information to inform learning, Nurture creativity in children, Promote children’s agency, Establish and maintain a safe and healthy environment for children, Embed sustainable practices in service operations, Maintain work health and safety, Facilitate compliance in an education and care service, Reflect on and improve own professional practice, Design and implement the curriculum to foster children’s learning and development, Work in partnership with families to provide appropriate education and care for children
Child Care in-depth Report and Key insights
This report covers Australia’s childcare sector, summarizing trends based on statistics from IBIS World, the Australian Bureau of Statistics and other reputable sources.
More than 1.2 million children are enrolled and attend a childcare centre across Australia, with the majority of those aged between 0 and 5. Record female participation in Australia’s labour market and the growing number of children aged between 0 and 12 saw revenue grow
by 12.0% to $12.4 billion in the year to June 2017. This created an 8.1% surge in childcare employment in the year to August 2017.
The significant rise in industry revenue comes despite sluggish income growth and declining fertility rates across the nation. Western Australia continues to experience strong growth in the childcare sector, with the state recording the highest increase in number of childcare centres in the three years to December 2016 of 29.4%. Additionally, WA has the highest
fertility rate of all mainland states of 1.87, giving investors’ confidence that yields will outpace those on the east coast in the future.
Looking ahead, the number of children aged 12 and under will grow by 7.8% in the five years to June 2022, creating the need for 100,000 more childcare placements across the
industry. However, growth will not simply come organically. Providers have the opportunity to diversify their service and activity offerings to drive revenue growth.
Additionally, increased demand for vacation care and family day care centres, as well as the new Family Assistance Bill will create greater need for childcare centres to understand their customers and whether they should position themselves as having a cost competitive or value add focus.
Industry overview
This report covers the childcare industry, which includes long day care, family day care, vacation care, occasional care, in home care and out of school hours care (OSHC).
There is a growing appetite for parents enrolling their children in childcare outside of school hours. The number of children attending vacation care increased by 15.7% in the year to December 2016, while OSHC increased by 7.3% during the same period. New regulations affecting educator to child ratios in family day care centres in January 2016 saw the number of children attending family day care centres fall by 3.2%.
Number of children attending childcare by childcare type:
There are approximately 1.2 million children across Australia using government approved childcare services and this figure is growing. The rising number of parents using childcare services has underpinned revenue growth of 12.0% to $12.4 billion in the year to June 2017 and employment growth of 8.1% during the same period.
What’s driving industry growth?
Growth in the number of children aged under 12 is driving demand for childcare in Australia.
Total children under 12 = 3.7 million
Revenue growth in childcare has far outpaced the increase in Australia’s under 12 population.
A notable driver of this has trend been an increase in Australia’s female participation rate to 59.9%,
up 1.2 percentages points in the five years to October 2017. The introduction of flexible working practices among Australian employers is allowing parents to stay in the workforce and use childcare when required. The number of Australians who cited workplace flexible working options as important in accepting a job increased by 21.0% in 2016.
Female participation rate (2012 – 2017)
QUICK FACT: Families are preferring more intimate care arrangements and longer operating hours, with some childcare centres mixing the ages of children within the rooms to simulate an ‘at-home’ environment.
Spotlight on Australia
Childcare centres have had to deal with rising costs due to regulation requiring lower educator to child ratios and increased skill requirements for childcare facilities. Childcare services saw costs rise by 29.2% in the five years to September 2017, compared to an average of 18.9% across all industries.
Producer Pride Index, Childcare & All Industry (2012 – 2017)
Rising demand for childcare services saw costs for long day childcare rise by 3.7% in the year to December 2016 and 9.5% compared to 2014. Growing childcare use has also coincided with a decline in the use of informal care (i.e. babysitters) over the last 10 years.
Growth rate in services (2013 – 2016)
Family day care centres have seen the largest growth in approved services, growing by 77.6% in the three years to December 2016, likely driven the new National Quality Framework (NQF) standards.
Spotlight on Western Australia
Western Australia has seen the largest increase in new childcare centres in the three years to December 2016, rising by 29.4%, with the next largest increase of 17.1% in the ACT.
Increase in childcare services 2013-2016 (%)
Western Australia’s strong growth in childcare has been underpinned by the highest growth rate of its population under the age of 12 nationwide. The number of kids under 12 in WA grew by 11.9% in the five years to June 2016, compared to the national average of 9.7%. This trend is expected to continue, with WA’s under 12 population projected to grow by 14.8% in the next 5 years, compared to an increase of just 7.5% nationally.
What does the future hold?
Growth in Australia’s younger population will underpin strong growth in the industry in the next 20 years, providing opportunities for all childcare centers to grow.
Australian population aged 12 or under (2017 – 2037)
Government childcare fee assistance to increase
From 1 July 2018 the childcare subsidy will replace the existing childcare benefit and childcare rebate. The government’s childcare fee assistance is expected to rise by 38.8% in the four years to June 2021 to $10.0 billion, up from $7.2 billion in June 2017.
The introduction of the new Family Assistance Bill will drive industry revenue as well as establish a two-tiered system, creating a need for childcare centres to understand if their customers have the capacity to pay beyond the subsidised rate.
What challenges does the industry face?
The success of Australian childcare providers will depend on their ability to overcome industry challenges and retain quality staff. Australia’s childcare industry experienced several strikes in 2017 due to:
QUICK FACT:
Growing concern with nutrition and meal options at childcare centres is creating an opportunity for centres to promote and provide balanced eating options for children and differentiate through their menus. A recent study found that only 5.0% of childcare services were satisfying Australian government nutritional benchmarks.
Where do the opportunities lie?
Australia’s childcare industry is in a growth phase, however limited barriers to entry, regulatory change and low wage growth mean childcare centres must constantly look for opportunities to diversify, grow and add value.
Childcare providers should consider offering value-added services and activities to drive revenue growth and play a larger role in secondary education services. Activities that some providers are looking to introduce include:
- Secondary language classes
- Sport classes
- Cooking activities
QUICK FACT: A more subdued property market, the largest fertility rate of all mainland states of 1.87 and strong investor expectations are tipped to provide strong yields for WA childcare centres upwards of 6.0% in the short term.
Projected growth in Australia’s childcare population
Future growth in Australia’s younger population continues to create opportunities for childcare centres to cater to the care needs of parents of the under 12s.
Forecasted industry growth
Continued growth in Australia’s younger population, rising female participation rates and increased service offerings will drive industry demand with revenue projected to reach $16.4 billion by 2022, a 32.4% increase on the June 2017 revenue of $12.4 billion.
Childcare revenue in Australia (2007 – 2022)
Growth in industry revenue will outpace growth in providers, leading to a 18.7% rise in the scale of providers in the five years to June 2022.
Revenue per provider (2012 – 2022)