PURPOSE: This two-year degree prepares students for jobs working with young children (birth to age eight) in preschools, elementary schools, child-care centers, and before- and after-school programs. Jobs include director, assistant director, lead teacher, and assistant teacher. This program is offered at the Chester Campus. This career-technical degree is guided by an advisory committee comprised of local education leaders.
CREDENTIALS: An Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree is a major in a career-technical area that takes two years for full-time students to complete. Although the purpose of an AAS degree is to gain skills for employment, some transfer institutions may accept some or all of the courses from an AAS major. The AAS degree in Early Childhood Development is at Level 6 of the Virginia Career Pathways for Early Childhood and Out-of-School Time Practitioners. Level 7 is a Bachelor’s Degree.
TRANSFER INFORMATION: This program is not intended for transfer. Students desiring to transfer should consult their academic advisors and their intended transfer institutions for specific direction in program and course selection. More information can also be found at www.jtcc.edu/academics/transfer/
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS AND SPECIAL CONDITIONS: Students must meet JTCC admission requirements. Students may need to complete placement tests in English and mathematics. Visit www.jtcc.edu/placement for all course placement options. If students have deficiencies in English and/or mathematics, JTCC offers developmental and prerequisite courses to prepare students for the curriculum. New students should visit the Advising Center and returning students their faculty advisor for more information.
PROGRAM OUTCOMES: By the completion of this program, students will be expected to demonstrate an intermediate level of competency in the following skills:
- Apply developmental knowledge to create healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging learning environments for young children
- Create strategies for building relationships and involving diverse families in their children’s development and learning
- Use systematic observation and documentation to assess the development of all children
- Implement a wide array of developmentally appropriate approaches, instructional strategies, and tools appropriate for individual children
- Design, implement, and evaluate developmentally appropriate and meaningful curriculum for each child
- Analyze professional experiences and practices for alignment with best practices, ethical standards and other early childhood professional guidelines
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