I am actually
very content in my current job position.
This is the start of my sixth year teaching preschool in my school
district and I may never leave this job!
I enjoy my coworkers, assistant and the wonderful children and families
in my preschool. In Wyoming teachers are
paid well and since I work for the school district I am paid the same as all
teacher from grades kindergarten through high school. I truly enjoy what I do
and I love working right with the children.
I could one day see myself going to teach kindergarten or being the
supervisor of the preschools in my school district. A preschool supervisor interests me because I
have experience in preschool and I would love to see more preschools available
in our school district. I also feel like
I am gaining knowledge and experience that I could use to help other preschool
teachers. This position would not
require any additional schooling but I believe preschool teaching experience
would be extremely beneficial.
Once I started
looking into organizations in my state it was interesting to learn about some
of the organizations working to improve and promote early childhood
education. It made me realize that there
are many opportunities right here in my state to be more involved in the
promotion of early childhood education. One of those organizations is Wyoming KidsFirst. Wyoming KidsFirst mission is “To lead a
public-private partnership in the development of an accessible and sustainable,
high-quality early childhood system that supports communities and families” (http://www.wyokidsfirst.org).
Later in my career it could be interesting to be the Executive Director
of Wyoming KidsFirst. I am not exactly
sure of the educational requirements for this job but the current director has
a bachelor’s degree, although it is not in education, and she also has a
master’s degree in public administration.
I definitely believe that experience in early childhood education would
be necessary and important.
I have heard a
lot about the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
and have even had the opportunity to attend one of their conferences. It was a great learning experience and
wonderful opportunity to be around so many other early childhood educators. Working for the Wyoming Early Childhood
Association (WYECA) is a job that would interest me because this organization
is a state affiliate of NAEYC. The
requirements for being the president of the WYECA is you must be a member of
NAEYC and WYECA, demonstrate potential in leading the group and previously
served as a board member. I believe in
all of these jobs it is important to have experience as an early childhood
teacher prior to having a supervising role.
I believe you also need to be a good communicator and have good
collaboration skills. In all of these
positions it would be important to be able to work together with other people
to accomplish goals and encourage growth in the early childhood field.
Reference
I am glad you are happy in your current position. I am current happy in my current position but would not mind working in other positions. Also my current position does not pay well enough to have made a Master's degree worth it. Teacher are paid at a low rate in Michigan and preschool teachers are paid at a even lower rate. The school districts in my area do not hire you in as a preschool teacher. They pay you the same wage a day care worker would make which is minimum wage. I have to work for an agency to even make my Bachelors degree worth it. Sounds like I may have to move to your state.
ReplyDeleteHi Courtney,
ReplyDeleteThat is so awesome to hear that preschool teachers in Wyoming are paid the same as grade school teachers. I wish that was the case in Oregon. The two organizations that you found sound great and I agree with you that if someone is looking at an administrative position they need to have experience teaching first. -Mary
Courtney,
ReplyDeleteYour current position sounds wonderful! I am also happy in my current position as a Center Director, but much like Cheryl said about her state not paying well, either does PA. When I was working in a classroom I was making what a Child Care worker would make and now as a Center Director I make a little more than a classroom teacher. Even looking into my local headstarts it wouldn't be helpful. I'm much like Cheryl in needing to find a position that looks at my Masters Degree.
Hi Courtney,
ReplyDeleteIt’s great that you love what you do and where you work, I would really like to be able to say the same thing at some point. I currently work in a public middle school and even though I do feel that I am making a difference in the life of the students I work with and have positive feedback from parents and supervisors, I don’t really feel like I belong there. It is also great that you are interested in different supervisory position in the ECE field, I believe that no matter what position you hold in this field you always have the amazing opportunity to make a difference in a child’s life and their families. Great post!