Classes for Early Childhood Education

 Have you ever thought about teacher training education? Have you wondered how people become teachers at the early childhood or elementary levels? Childhood education classes are what makes it possible for teachers to become teachers. If individuals do not take education classes they are likely to just copy what they saw in school themselves. So look back at your own learning career. You probably had some great teachers and some ordinary teachers. Unfortunately you may have had more ordinary teachers. Yet if you want to teach, you want to be one of the great teachers. And that doesn't just suddenly happen. You need to become involved in childhood education classes that challenge you to think and to expand your knowledge. You need to be equipped to change with the times. 
Classes at Granite State College make that possible. The classes are scheduled in the evenings so you can work during the day and expand your skills at night. You can enroll in just one class, at a local campus such as  Portsmouth NH classes or Rochester NH classes, or you can take online classes. 
Recently a student at Granite State College observed in an elementary school classroom and saw the teacher handing out worksheet packets while students got into trouble. She decided that the lesson was a good lesson until she was challenged in her evening class at Granite State to think about what could have been done differently to reach the many needs and learning styles in the classroom. Her thinking was challenged and with her classmates she discussed other options. Now and in the future her own students will have the benefit of her learning and experience. That thinking and reflecting is what makes ordinary teachers great.

Recently Harvard University announced that it was doing away with final exams. They stated that students do not really learning anything by taking final exams. They are better off showing what they know in projects, quizzes and hands on experiences.

This announcement raised an interesting discussion in the Early Childhood Assessment course at Granite State College, Rochester. Should students take final exams? The class members recounted their own experiences at Granite State College. They reported that in most classes in the Teacher Training Education department faculty relied on projects and papers to assess understanding. Most of the students had taken few final exams at Granite State College. They agreed that using projects and papers assessed their understanding of the material they were learning. They realized that final exams were appropriate in some courses but they felt that the faculty was responsive to the material being taught and they were happy that final exams were not always the only way to assess learning in the classes at Granite State College.  What is your opinion of final exams in college? 

The college years of students--younger or older-- in the age of technology abound with opportunities to succeed at Granite State College.  Websites are available--every baby step of the way-- to guide students along but only if they choose to investigate them.
 
I have attached a link about Career Advice that may be helpful to students who are undecided about which course or academic direction they may want to take, whether they are attending classes in Rochester NH college, Concord NH college, Claremont NH college, or Manchester NH college campuses.

It is necessary to have a sense of what direction to take.  Perhaps the use of a website like this one could help students decide whether they have a better aptitude for the Behavioral Sciences offered through Granite State College or maybe  they are more inclined to pursue Early Childhood Education Classes there.  Either way, the technology abounds to provide information when college Advisors are not available at the end of a telephone line.  At least this website gives students someplace to start.     

http://career-advice.monster.com/job-search/Getting-Started/Try-This-4-Year-Career-Checklist/article.aspx

Adult Education is all about independently acquiring information, skills, and success. Technology is available to also help students form questions they need to ask of their Advisors.

Why not click on this website, dip your toes in and get yourself organized for the the Fall Semester.  Granite State College empowers students to ask questions and achieve answers. 

I can't say enough about the classes for Early Childhood Education that we offer at Granite State College.  Not only is this Bachelors Degree available in the form of evening college classes or online classes focused on adults, we have such wonderful Faculty as well.  I'm thinking for example of Catherine Yeaton, who is currently teaching EDU 553, Creative Arts in Early Childhood Education, which we are offering this Summer at our Rochester NH College.  Catherine runs the well-know Building Blocks School - located in southern New Hampshire.   

But here is the key detail that might surprise working childcare professionals looking for career advancement programs: Granite State College has a program that will jump start your Early Childhood Degree.  If you are employed at least 20 hours a week in a NH licensed or license-exempt child care center or family child care program, GSC will pay for half the costs of your first class, or even the full cost, depending on the class.  Click this link for details. 

Let me be specific about Fall Term, because registration is open right now.  Here are two classes that you can sign up for using the ECE Tuition Assistance Program:  

PSY 508, Child Development, 4 credits 
(GSC Rochester, Tuesday nights, starting Sept. 14th)

EDU 601, Observation & Assessment in Early Childhood Education, 4 credits
(GSC Rochester, Monday nights, starting Sept. 13th)

You do NOT need to be enrolled in a degree program to take these courses - but if you ARE interested in career advancement education, give us a call (603.332.8335) or register online.

Are you an early childhood professional, a paraprofessional, or a classroom teacher about to be out for the summer? Have you thought about what you are going to do? Maybe you are going to sit on the beach and read a good book, or just sleep late and relax. Have you thought about taking a course at Granite State College? Maybe you are interested in furthering you teacher training education, or maybe you are just thinking about improving your skills or pursuing an area of interest with a fun course or two. Well, I may have an answer for you. Try an online college course at Granite State College, or maybe a classroom course in Portsmouth, or Rochester or Concord. So many choices. So don't just sit on the beach with any old book, instead get college credit for all that reading you will be doing anyway! See you in class!

General Education Requirements - GenEds - are a part of every college degree be it associates or bachelors, Management or Early Childhood Education. English, math, computer, communications, and Critical Thinking are the 5 core GenEd courses required at Granite State College. Other requisite GenEds are in the areas of Arts & Culture, Literature & Ideas, History & Politics, Science, Global Perspectives, and Social Science. Why are students required to take these courses? What purpose do they serve the major? How quickly can they be taken to just get them out of the way?

I hear similar questions frequently from the students I advise and do not always know how to respond.  I cringe however when I hear myself saying "Intro to Sociology is offered in Portsmouth this term.  You could take it now to get your social science GenEd out of the way." Ouch! Does that mean if you aren't a Behavioral Science major and don't need Intro to Sociology for your major that it isn't an important class? Of course not! So I am trying not to say that any more and instead encourage students to use their GenEd choices to take classes that sound interesting or subjects they have never studied before. I want to tell students to use these classes to enrich their lives, gain understanding of topics outside the focus of their degree, find interests and talents that they never knew they had and, most of all, savor the learning experience.  GenEds round out any degree and enable us to pursue subjects that are sometimes outside our comfort zone or to enhance the degree in creative ways. GenEd courses should be chosen thoughtfully and not taken just get it out of the way...

More on this topic in future posts.

 Did you ever wonder what type of people make up a class at Granite State College? Of course I am talking about Early Childhood Education because that is what I teach, but the students in the evening classes at Granite State as are varied as the faculty. In my present class the youngest student is right out of high school. She is just starting her career and is interested in Early Childhood education. On the other end of the spectrum there is a mom with 4 children. She is a para professional working with special needs children. In between there are mothers with young children, one person interested in the behavioral sciences classes,  young women who want to finish a bachelor's degree in elementary education, and several students who are just interested in adult education classes and taking a course to see if returning to college is right for them.

 Starting a new term is always an exciting time at Granite State College. There are new terms for fall, winter, spring and summer so if you are thinking of taking an evening course or an adult education course there are lots of options. This semester I am teaching Child Development. There are people in the course who are enrolled in the Early Childhood Education program, the Elementary Education program, Behavioral Science and those who are just taking a course but are not enrolled in a degree program at all. That is part of the fun of a new semester, getting to know a new set of students and finding out about their backgrounds, and interests. So, as the new term begins, I am excited by the energy and enthusiasm of a new set of students, and I am also glad to reconnect with my students from past semesters.

I am planning to teach a new course at Granite State in Rochester for next term. It is not a new course to the college, or to me,  but it is not one I have taught before here. So as I am gathering notes, media and information for the course I stop to think about the students I will have. These are students who are looking at career advancement programs, or adult education courses, adult continuing education courses, or classes for early childhood, or elementary education. What does that mean to me as a course planner?

Well, I want to meet the needs of my students. If they are taking a course to advance their careers, they will want practical knowledge that can be applied to what they do all day. If they are taking the course for continuing education, they may want a wide knowledge base but not the day to day focus. So, for all the students about to take a course, I want to make sure the course is meaningful and worthwhile.

The planning for my new course will take all these things into consideration so that on any given day the course will include a wide knowledge base and the hands on applications that students need. 

 Juggling is one of the things that adult learners are good at. It is also something that the faculty at Granite State have to be good at. For me, I juggle the course I teach at the Rochester NH college site, with a full time teaching job in the York, Maine Public Schools, and a family. 
For my students, they are almost always juggling a job with the college evening classes  they are taking. Many of them are working in day care centers that don't even close before they need to be in class. Often, they are running out of work, driving up to 40 minutes, and then coming in to class. They occasionally run in  even a little late because the last child was picked up late from daycare.

One thing that all this juggling causes, is a lack of time to eat. Students and faculty come from one job to another and arrive at their  early childhood education classes without having eaten dinner. Often they bring something to eat in class, maybe a sandwich, a bagel, or even macaroni. 

Well, these jugglers are also resourceful. In a class I taught last spring, one week a student arrived, not only with food for herself, but she brought a huge fruit salad, enough for everyone. The idea caught on and a few weeks later we were treated to homemade lasagna. 

The students at Granite State are jugglers, but they are also caring. It is amazing to see how quickly students become friends, and reach out to support and help one another as they juggle all the many demands in their lives.

Just a note to remind all about our upcoming Student Activities Committee meeting on Feb. 18 from 4:30-5:30pm at the Rochester Regional Center.  I am anxious to see how many students will turn out for the first meeting.  I often hear from students in our region that they would love to connect with eachother more outside of the classroom.  We have also invited alumni to attend this meeting and we are putting the word out to all students that this type of opportunity to engage with the college is available.  Lena Grenier is the student responsible for pulling the group together and suggested the idea after a recent Rochester photoshoot.  What a great way to start student initiatives to make our non-residential campus feel more like a learning community!  Typically, Business, Behavioral Science Classes and classes for Early Childhood Education are our most popular majors-- so I'm hoping those groups turn out next Thursday!

See you there!

Nicole

I had an interesting conversation with a student this evening at our Portsmouth NH College.  I asked about her experience taking adult college classes with Granite State College, and her response made me sit up and pay attention.  Because I hire Faculty that teach in both Portsmouth and our Rochester NH College, I was fascinated by her take on teaching at this particular NH State College.  For her, the individuals that teach our adult college classes are "fresh."  

I thought - well isn't that something for New Hampshire Colleges and Universities to consider.  Granite State College does indeed have unique people in our classrooms bringing current, "fresh" and unique perspectives with them.  I believe it was this student's view that our Faculty truly want to be in our classrooms, and offer a great deal.  

This student asked me in return - so, what do I look for when I hire Faculty?  Clearly I'll now be thinking about a "fresh" perspective. . .but rather than list particular qualities, I thought I would be specific.  Whether you are interested in classes for early childhood education, or behavioral science or management, chances are, you might consider a Sociology class as part of your adult college degree.  If that class is with Granite State College in either Rochester or Portsmouth, you could have the pleasure of hearing a "fresh" perspective from Dr. Nena Stracuzzi.  Take a listen here to Nena talking about her research involving students from Northern New Hampshire.  This is how we keep teaching at Granite State College fresh, and why I feel so fortunate to have individuals like Nena Stracuzzi as our Faculty.