Course Syllabus

Summer 2024 | EDU-1030-VO03 - Introduction to Early Childhood Education

Online Class

Online courses take place 100% online via Canvas, without required in-person or Zoom meetings.

Faculty

Everett Ware
View Faculty Credentials
View Faculty Statement
Hiring Coordinator for this course: Gilberto Diaz Santos

Course Description

This course is an overview of early childhood education and the ways in which early childhood experiences can enhance the development of the whole child. Students examine the provision of early education and services for children from conception to age eight. Topics include child development, national and state standards, curriculum development, early intervention, regulation, and career exploration.

Essential Objectives

1. Discuss the cultural, historical, and philosophical evolution of early childhood education.
2. Explore early education programs in the context of family and community relationships, including the need for cultural competence when supporting and collaborating with individuals from diverse backgrounds.
3. Understand the theories of child development and how they relate to the implementation of Developmentally Appropriate Practices (DAP).
4. Discuss national and state standards for the provision of education to young children and how early childhood education programs meet these standards (VELS & NAEYC for children and professionals).
5. Review the elements of early childhood education curricula, the theoretical framework for different approaches to what is taught, and the pedagogy of inclusion and universal design.
6. Analyze evidence-based research on effective models of early education.
7. Examine the early intervention system and the provision of services to support the development of children with diverse abilities and/or affected by trauma.
8. Discuss the regulation of programs, staff, and facilities to ensure health and safety, including the role of the state in policy development and regulation enforcement.
9. Explore careers in the field of early childhood education, the NAEYC Code of Conduct, and dispositions required for work in the field.

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV IT Support page. https://support.ccv.edu/general/computer-recommendations/

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

*** This is a no cost textbook or resource class. ***

This course only uses free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials. For details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

Methods

Weekly course activities will include:

• Materials to review including videos, articles, textbook readings, and other resources
• Weekly forum post discussions

Additional assignments include:

• 6 Reflective journal assignments
• 4 Quizzes (open book, untimed)
• A hands-on project and video presentation to share your learning with the class

Note on textbooks/OER Resources: All resources are free and available in Canvas or through the library. We will use articles, chapters of free ebooks, and other short readings. Viewing some videos and other multimedia materials will also be required. A free OER textbook will be used for this course, titled Principles and Practices of Teaching Young Children. It is available for free as a PDF or Word Document and will be uploaded to the course Canvas. If students would like a paper copy, this is a link where they can have the PDF printed for $12: https://www.lulu.com/shop/jennifer-paris-and-gina-peterson-and-sharon-eyrich-and-cindy-stephens/principles-and-practices-of-teaching-young-children/paperback/product-e2ervz.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Evaluation Criteria

Assignments for this course will be graded in the following weighted categories:

• Forum posts & participation - 30%
• Journals - 20%
• Quizzes - 20%
• Project - 20%
• Final reflection - 10%

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Weekly Schedule

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Participation Expectations

Attendance and participation through online forums is an essential part of the course. You are expected to contribute weekly to the forums, with both your own weekly post and comments on your classmates’ posts. Please see the forum post instructions and rubric for details on the expected quality of your posts.

Forum posts count for your attendance and participation. If you do not post to the forum within the week the post is due, you will be marked absent. If you have more than 2 absences, you risk being unable to complete the course. Please communicate with me about your absence and your plan to make up the work.

Missing & Late Work Policy

Weekly discussion posts are due by 11:59 PM on Thursdays and responses to classmates are due at 11:59 PM on Mondays. All other assignments will be due by their listed due dates on Canvas.

Late Penalties:

• If you don’t request an extension, you will have points deducted from the assignment grade as follows:
  
  • Late or Missing forum posts automatically receive a 0, extensions will not be granted, but a 24-hour grace period will be provided before a 0 is given.
  • Missing work automatically receives a 0.
  • Late work is reduced by 10% for each day it is late, up to a 50% reduction. (All late work after day 5 will be 50% credit)
• Your lowest quiz grade and your lowest journal grade will be dropped from the final grading calculations. You may use these as "skips" if needed.

Communication:

When it comes to grades, I value clear communication above all else. All late penalties will be waived if you communicate clearly with me about your needs. This includes the following:

• Email or Canvas Message before the deadline to negotiate an extension. You do not need to explain why you need the extension, but you do need to communicate with me and tell me when you will be able to complete it.
  • If there is an emergency that prevents you from requesting an extension earlier, please contact me as soon as possible after the deadline.
  • I can extend the extension if needed, but please continue to communicate to let me know that you still need more time beyond the original requested date.
• It's never too late to communicate! I understand that sometimes things get overwhelming, we lose track of deadlines, and work piles up. If you feel like missing assignments are piling up and you’re struggling to catch up, email me as soon as possible to figure out a plan for getting you back on track. As long as you communicate with me about your needs, I will be flexible and support you in catching up without penalty.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/discover-resources/students-with-disabilities/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity