Preschool or nursery school educators are not only responsible for imparting knowledge and building the fundamentals of the young child but are also experts in taking utmost care of them. Preschool or nursery comprises generally of the children aged between 3 to 5 years. This professional looks after the health, nutrition and all-round development of the child. There are extensive opportunities available for these specialists; however, they need to have the desire and right qualifications to progress in this career path.
This job requires you to be attentive and cultivate patience to counsel parents and manage the little children. You will be responsible to shaping up their foundation so that they can grow strong in their career. You are also accountable to their parents cooperating with them to understand the strength and weaknesses of their child. You are the one on whom the child will depend for a major chunk of the day and you are the one who is going to assist them to work on their grades and progress. Hence, the job needs a lot of effort and self-initiative from your side. So before you set your foot in this career assesses your capabilities whether you will love to be in this job. Before anything else your inner drive is an essential factor to grow in a particular career.
You can consider the following points while assessing your potential for the role of a nursery teacher:
- You need to toil hard and at times you have to work for extended hours. You have to put in efforts to understand the child and its thought process.
- Since you are the one who is building up the initial steps of his or her career you have to be completely dedicated to your job as it is from this time on that the child will be moving up into the path of seeking knowledge.
- You have to be an efficient planner drafting a structured and well-thought course and session plan.
- You have to abide by the ethical work practices maintaining decorum in the class.
- Encourage good mannerisms, behavior in students and they should be nurtured through self-improvement activities.
- Counsel parents about the progress of the child and guide them to prepare the child for a bright career.
- Manage records and databases of the students. Plan and supervise extracurricular activities like trips, excursions, picnics, competitions, sports day etc.
- Enroll for the various training and seminars to improve your skills
If you are fine with the aforementioned factors then the next thing you should seek for is the right qualifications and skills to be the adept teacher.
So what are the qualifications that will help you to get this job?
Teaching is one of the reputed profession through which you impart knowledge to the society. While opting for this career, you should do your research well as to which course to pursue to help you build a successful career.
The minimum requirement is to be a graduate with a 50% in the aggregate to manage a nursery class. You can opt for a B.Ed degree after that to work your way up the ladder. This degree will make you a specialist in teaching inculcating the various teaching style, soft skills, techniques and many more. You can acquire the degree through any reputed institute, university or online program.
You can also go for a postgraduate degree or an M.Ed. A prior teaching experience with any educational institute is a mandate and it is better if you can associate with voluntary activities. The various diploma programs that will make you an expert in this field are- classroom planning, curriculum expert, management, and operations, counseling to converse with parents, psychological and educational aspects to understand the student better.
This career has a great future prospect. One fine day if you feel like teaching higher classes then you can very well prepare yourself for the higher education. For instance, if you want to go for lectureship in India then you need to qualify the NET exam along with the required qualifications. There are extensive opportunities available for teachers in Delhi, Kolkata, Rajasthan, Mumbai, Bangalore and almost all parts of the nation. Every state and university conducts their own test and has their own way of assessing. It is a highly valued profession in this country. You need to have the right temperament and the prowess to make it big in this career.