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Childhood Education (Early Years Education; Assisting Teaching)

Course Code: TLEDC
  • Level: 3
  • Qualification: T Level
  • Awarding body: Northern Council for Further Education (NCFE)
  • Duration: Two years
  • Course type: Full-time
  • Time of day: Daytime
  • When you'll study: TBC
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What's it all about?

Do you want a rewarding career in childcare and education? Gain the knowledge, behaviours and skills you need to be a successful childcare or education practitioner covering key areas such as child development, safeguarding, and supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities.

In addition to core knowledge, you will choose between the following occupational specialisms:

  • early years education and childcare.
  • assisting teaching.

T Levels are a brand-new qualification designed to give you a head start towards the future you want. They follow GCSEs and are equivalent to three A Levels.

This two-year T Level qualification brings classroom and work placement together on a course designed with employers and businesses.

You’ll spend 80% of your time in the classroom and 20% on a 45-day placement to give you the skills and knowledge employers are looking for.

Your T Level will help you to step straight into your chosen career, an Apprenticeship or a degree.

Work placements

You will attend a minimum of 315 work placement hours of the period of two years. You will be expected to source a placement yourself however, there is a work placement team at the College to support you throughout.

Course information

You will develop an understanding of:

  • the education and childcare sector from ages 0 to 19
  • child development
  • how to support children and young people’s education
  • safeguarding, health and safety and wellbeing
  • understanding and managing behaviour
  • observing and assessing children and young people
  • equality and diversity
  • special educational needs and disability
  • English as an additional language
  • working with parents, carers and wider families
  • working with agencies and services that support children, families and carers
  • reflective practice and other forms of professional development.

You will choose between the following occupational specialisms:

Early Years Educator:

You will develop an understanding of:

  • supporting and promoting children’s play, development and early education
  • developing relationships with children to facilitate their development
  • planning, providing and reviewing care, play and educational opportunities to enable children to progress
  • safeguarding and promoting the health, safety and wellbeing of children
  • working in partnership with colleagues, parents, carers and other professionals to support children’s development.

Assisting Teaching:

You will develop an understanding of:

  • supporting the class teacher to enhance children’s education, both one-to-one and in small groups
  • planning, providing and reviewing educational opportunities in collaboration with teachers and other adults
  • the importance of ongoing assessment and how to respond
  • safeguarding and health and safety and wellbeing of children and young people
  • recognising, adapting and responding to individual children’s needs, including those with SEND and EAL to ensure all are able to progress.

In our experience, to be successful on this level of programme you will need an appropriate functional level in English and maths to be able to fulfil the coursework requirements. We welcome applications from those who have one or more of the following:

  • five GCSEs at grades 9-4; you must gain a minimum of a 5 in English and maths and a grade 4 in science
  • a BTEC Level 2 certificate or equivalent graded merit or above
  • successful completion of an Apprenticeship programme.

As with any care or childcare course, once you have accepted the offer of a place, you will need to undergo an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check; this will be discussed at interview and you will be expected to contribute £22 towards the DBS check.

Since October 2014, all students undertaking work experience in childcare settings are required to sign an additional declaration to confirm that they are not disqualified from working with children by association: this means that you confirm, to the best of your knowledge, that you are not living in the same household as an individual who is disqualified from working with children/young people.

This course is currently only for 16 to 18-year-olds.

Assessment will be through written and practical examinations, employer projects, group work, presentations and analysis.

Click here to visit the official NCFE website.

On successful completion of the T Level you may progress to:

  • university-level study in a related subject area across the UK
  • an Apprenticeship
  • employment in a variety of jobs, for example: teaching assistant, early years educator, family support worker, nanny, childminder or one of many other childcare and education careers.

Please note fees are quoted for one year only.

Download course PDF

Future careers

What you could earn:

Child and Early Years Officers

£42,627.29

Potential salary

£16,563.79

Entry level salary

£29,659.99

Average salary

7

Annual openings in Plymouth

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