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A report from New America released today examines the growth of college degree requirements for early childhood education workers.
The report comes on the heels of a new regulation in the District of Columbia that sets an associate degree as the minimum credential for a lead teacher in a child-care center. Although there are concerns surrounding the reliance on an associate degree, the report found that the decision to increase the qualifications for early-education providers was "grounded on evidence that well-trained educators can make a real difference in putting young learners on a solid path." And setting qualification requirements is a straightforward way to accomplish that.
But the report also argues for what the researchers describe as a more equitable and quality approach: apprenticeships. "Apprenticeships could be game changers in early education, front-line health care and other fields where a skilled work force is essential for reaping the rewards of public investment but where wages remain low and working conditions poor," the paper said. The researchers point to Philadelphia's Early Childhood Education Career Pathways Partnership as an example of how apprenticeships could transform the early-education work force in a more efficient, affordable and equitable way. The apprentices in the program will begin this summer working at an early-education center, while also enrolled at the Community College of Philadelphia.
