PEI: kindergarten jitters aren’t only for kids

Photo courtesy of Liz Dail

As September approaches, early childhood educators (ECEs) on Prince Edward Island are feeling unsure about what the future holds. That uncertainty comes from the decision to move kindergarten, which has been taught in childhood centres and daycare until now, into the public school system.

Since it is required for anyone teaching kindergarten in the public schools to have their Bachelor of Education, current kindergarten teachers are worried that their college diploma and experience won’t be enough to secure a job in the fall.

So kindergarten teachers have to think about hitting the books again and going back to school.

Susan Gallant, early childhood educator and co-owner of Bright Futures Children Development Centre in Charlottetown, has been teaching kindergarten for over 15 years. She said she has a few questions before agreeing to anything.

“I mean, you’re going to have a certain amount of unknowns but it would be nice to know, ok do I have to go back to UPEI, is there a program there for me? What is my salary at the end of this? What am I entitled to? What does this give me? Where am I? How secure am I in the job I’m going to get?” said Gallant.

Susan Gallant, Photo courtesy of Liz Dail

Unanswered questions aren’t the only worry for early childhood educators. Many ECEs were anxious over the process of applying. They had to write an essay and be interviewed by a panel of at least four people. And their anxiety continued as they waited…and waited.

The government and UPEI have drafted a specialized program for early childhood educators to complete their Bachelor of Education in six years while working full time. They have four years to complete it and a two year span in case “life happens”. For most that would mean a course in the fall, winter, spring, and two courses in the summer. Gallant says this is where a bigger hole can be found in the government’s plan.

“The problem is July and August when we’re trying to get the rest of our staff out on vacation and you come to me as an employee and say I’m leaving you in September but I need three weeks off to go to school in order to take my new job in September. As an owner/operator, am I going to say sure go on move ahead to your new career, or am I going to say listen, you might as well finish now, because I need to staff for September. It’s very complicated,” she said.

Gallant is worried about the early childhood centres and the hole that will be left when ECEs move to the schools for higher paying jobs.

Photo courtesy of Liz Dail

Gallant and many ECEs are excited about the opportunity and the benefit of getting their degree and making a teacher’s salary. And parents agree. Jill MacMillan’s first son went to kindergarten program and loved it. Her new baby will experience kindergarten in the schools but MacMillan isn’t worried. She said the teachers are just as qualified with or without a degree, but it’s about the opportunity for them.

“When else are they going to get an opportunity to do that? They’re trained in the kindergarten curriculum and if they want to they will and if they don’t then they won’t. It’s totally a personal choice. If I was a childhood educator teaching kindergarten I would want to have that opportunity to go back to school and get my degree,” said MacMillan.

The looming deadline of September still has ECEs like Gallant worried about the smooth transition. There are classrooms to build, equipment to buy, and transportation to figure out. And they have five months to do it. Gallant said the answer is in what they’ve been told all along; to wait.

Photo courtesy of Liz Dail

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Posted by Liz Dail on Mar 27, 2010. Filed under News, This Week's Edition. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.