The Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) will qualify you for professional registration as a teacher throughout Australia and be able to teach from Prep to Year 6. You will also be qualified to work in specialist early childhood contexts, including childcare and kindergartens throughout Australia. A unique feature of this course is the opportunity for you to gain a nationally recognized Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care within your first one - two years of the course.

CQUniversity’s Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) is an initial teacher education course usually studied over a period of four years. This course qualifies you for professional registration which is administered in Queensland by the Queensland College of Teachers. You will demonstrate evidence of meeting the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Career Stage) throughout the course of study. On successful completion of the course, you will be eligible for employment in primary schools from Prep to Year 6 and in early childhood settings (long day care settings & kindergartens/pre-prep) throughout Australia.

In addition to building the professional knowledge and skills required to teach effectively, the course is designed to foster dispositions for engaging in and contributing to the teaching profession through a commitment to ongoing professional learning.

The Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) includes 125 days of planned teaching practice in schools and other learning sites and an optional additional 20 days diploma practicum - 15 of which must be spent with children in the birth to 35 months group. You MUST complete a 15-day placement with children in the birth to 35 months group. This 15-day placement fulfils the requirements for Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), which stipulates that students must complete a minimum of 15 days with children in the birth to 35 months group. Professional practice blocks are included in each year of the course structure, and many opportunities for applying theoretical knowledge in practical ways have been embedded in each of the 32 units that make up the course.

A key feature of the Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) is the embedded VET qualification: The Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care. On successful completion of the 9 first-year units and the required diploma practicum and associated tasks, you will receive the Diploma as an interim award. The structure of the course also allows for recognition of prior learning. Applicants who already hold a recent Diploma qualification may be eligible for up to 6 units.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AND OUTCOMES

As a graduate of the Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) you will be qualified to teach in primary school settings from Prep to Year 6 and in specialist early childhood contexts, including childcare and kindergartens throughout Australia.

Like most professions, teaching has specific workforce demands and sometimes oversupply. Before undertaking a course of study, you should check with major employers regarding potential future employment prospects.