Early Childhood Education

Course Description

In recent years, Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Malta has gained importance and is frequently being acknowledged as providing crucial foundations as well as being an important proponent of lifelong learning. A practitioner working in ECE needs to be equipped with the appropriate competences, knowledge, and skills as well as attitudes and characteristics on how to approach the field. Apart from being skilled in how to approach the field, a practitioner also needs to understand the ECE field from a historical, philosophical, and sociological perspective while acknowledging the limitations and opportunities related to the local context.

The course provides learners with a sound understanding of how to provide and foster quality education within ECE settings in Malta (Kindergarten settings). By doing so, the course paves the way for practitioners to be able and fully competent to work with young children up until completion of Kindergarten education. The course may attract both those who are about to embark on the journey of ECE as well as more experienced practitioners who would like to better their practice while following an accredited course. During the course, the course participants will be provided with multimodal ways on how to approach the field while presenting them with various pedagogical tools, ways how to collaborate with other stakeholders, assessment strategies to observe and document young children’s learning and case studies to reflect on their practice. The course participants will immerse themselves in debates about contemporary issues in the ever-changing field of ECE.

Holders of the MCAST MQF5 Higher Diploma in Advanced Studies in the Early Years qualify for a shorter route requiring only 96 ECTS to complete.  For more information regarding exempted modules, duration and cost kindly contact our Student Recruitment Advisors on: 2145 6310.

Entry Requirements

Candidates who apply for this course will possess:

• A full qualification at MQF level 4 in Early Childhood Education and SEC/Ordinary Level passes in Mathematics, English and Maltese.

OR

• 2 Advanced Level passes and 2 Intermediate Level passes including 2 subjects from Mathematics, English, Maltese.
  A pass at SEC/Ordinary Level in the subject that is not presented at advanced/intermediate level from the 3 specified above.
• In the case of students who do not possess all the formal required academic qualifications, then the RPL process could be applied such that if evidence of equivalent learning, related to the area of study of this programme, is found then the applicant could still be accepted in the course. Such RPL process will subject applicants to an interview held with a board of experts within the field, chosen specifically by IDEA Academy, so as to verify their experiences and prior learning.

IDEA Academy’s RPL policy can be accessed through this link

Furthermore, it will be advised to students at entry point that before going on placements, they will need to be in possession of:

• The POMA (Protection of Minors Application) certificate.
• A first-aid certificate prior to commening placement practice.
• A valid police conduct certificate.

Target Audience

This programme has the following target groups:

• Individuals who are approaching the field of Early Childhood Education.
• Individuals who have been working in the field as a means of capacity building.
• Individuals looking to advance to Kindergarten Educator III role.

Career Paths

This programme aims to equip the target audience with the knowledge, skills and competences listed in this application.

The possible posts that this course prepares for are:

• Kndergarten Educator III

Modules

You are required to complete all 26 compulsory modules (162 ECTS), as well as the dissertation (18 ECTS) to fulfil the requirements of this bachelor’s degree.

Overall assessment of this programme consists of two main components:

1. . Modular Assessment carries 90% of the final grade.
2. The Dissertation carries 10% of the final grade.

1. Modular Assessment

For the majority of modules, lecturers are guided to develop and assign a minimum of two assessment tasks. Once the assessment tasks are developed by the lecturer, these go through a rigourous internal verification process to make sure that they are subject, level, and load appropriate.

All formative and summative tasks aim to provide the learner with an opportunity to produce evidence of his/her competences aligned to the learning outcomes of the modules and enhance his/her learning in the process. Furthermore, the tasks may include different forms of assessment which allow and promote students’ knowledge in the area, critical engagement and other transversal skills that are required in the field (e.g., online discussions, in-class discussions, case studies, etc.).

The mode of assessment varies and may include in-class tasks and home-based written assignments using diverse assessment tools which may include case studies, reports, proposals, essays, presentations, group work, etc., as applicable to the diverse modules.

Students will be assessed in other forms during the placement.

The modular score achieved at the end of the study programme modules is calculated by summing up and working an average of the overall grades obtained in all of the study modules.

The final grade achieved by the modular component of the programme is calculated by working out 90% of the modular score obtained for the study modules.

For successful completion of a study module the student is required to achieve an overall pass mark of 50% except in the Placement where the student is required to obtain a minimum of 50% in both assessments.

All assessments aim to provide the learner an opportunity to produce evidence of his/her competences aligned to the learning outcomes of each individual Module.

2. Dissertation Assessment

Assessment of dissertations is primarily based on:

• Depth of understanding of the theoretical framework;
• Application of appropriate research tools;
• Critical approach to analysis, interpretation and evaluation of research findings;
• Depth and level of argumentation build-up;
• Scholarly presentation meeting academic standards.

Assessment of Dissertation is described in further detail in Section 27: Dissertation at the end of the Study Programme.

The overall grading system for this programme is as follows:
86-100% Pass with Distinction
56-85% Pass with Merit
50-55% Pass
0-49% Fail