Aboriginal

Early Childhood Education  

(AECE)

AECE is a collaborative program offered by the College of New Caledonia, Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, Northern Lights College, and Yukon College

Benefits of taking the AECE program:

• Preparation to work with Aboriginal and mainstream children
• Eligibility for licencing as an Early Childhood Educator in BC and YT
• One year cetificate program
• Offered online (with excellent student support)
• Provides 50 college level credits
• Offered full or part time

AECE provides you with the knowledge and skills for a job as an Early Childhood Educator working in settings such as:

Benefits of the AECE program:

• Daycare centres
• Preschools
• Supported childcare programs
• Family development programs
• Social service agencies
• Libraries
• Hospital playrooms
  

What will you gain from taking the AECE Certificate?
 
Upon completion of the certificate and 500 hours working in the field, learners will become eligible for licensing as Early Childhood Educators in the province of British Columbia and Yukon Territory.  This program will provide learners with the skills and knowledge needed to work with the fastest growing population in Canada, Aboriginal children.  Aboriginal settings will be the focus of the program; however, students will develop the necessary skills and knowledge for working with children from all cultures.
 
Program Philosophy:

The AECE program recognises the growing population of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis (Aboriginal) children in our society, and values the wealth of knowledge and tradition derived from Aboriginal peoples.  In promoting the development of the whole child, it is essential that children have their cultures affirmed and supported in the early years. 
 
Furthermore, the AECE program recognises that individual Aboriginal cultures are diverse and distinct.  A program in Early Childhood Education could not possibly provide in-depth understanding of all Aboriginal cultures.  This program was created to encourage Early Childhood Educators to function with due care as they practice their profession in urban and rural Aboriginal communities and to embrace the cultural roots of Aboriginal children in their care.
 
The Aboriginal ECE program is designed to train women and men to be skilled, sensitive teachers of young children in Day Care Centers, Preschools, Child Development Centers, and other Early Childhood settings.  While the focus is on teaching young children in Aboriginal settings, students will also be prepared to work in mainstream programs.
 
The program values the life experiences of its students and encourages students to draw conclusions based on the connections made between personal life experience and academic learning.  This originates from Freire’s philosophy of education, Freire believed that education could be a process that treats students as “equals with rich experiences and capacities and involves them fully as subjects in all aspects of their education.”
 
The program embraces the knowledge, skills, abilities, and practices of Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal people in their desires to care for and educate their children.  A broad scope of cultural diversity and perspectives will be inherent within the curriculum and acknowledged through the inquiry of practice.
 
As difficult as it may be, governments, institutions, and individuals now must start to let go and allow the process of empowerment to begin as we, the Aboriginal peoples, take back control and rediscover our natural ability to teach our children, using the best of our heritage skills and applying them to today’s challenges. (Watt-Cloutier in Aboriginal Education, 2000)
 
These concepts of Aboriginal cultural inclusion are further supported by our experiences working with Aboriginal students and communities, and Charles Taylor’s politics of recognition.
 
…misrecognition shows not just a lack of due respect.  It can inflict a grievous wound, saddling its victims with a crippling self-hatred.  Due recognition is not just a courtesy we owe people.  It is a vital human need. (Taylor in Gutman, 1994)
 
Furthermore, Dion states,
 
Only when literature written by First Nations writers and art produced by first nations artists become part of the curriculum and are found in all subject areas will students begin to recognise that there is far more to being first nations then beads and feathers and that our identity is not something that can be pulled on and off like a pair of jeans. “(Dion in Goldstein, 2000, p. 354).
 
 
Entrance Requirements:
 
Students admitted into the Aboriginal Early Childhood Education program will require proficiency in English including reading, comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar.  Our goal is to provide an accessible program where students will find success.
 
The entrance requirements for AECE will be as follows:
 
Successful completion of one of the following:
 

• Grade 12 (with English 12 with a minimum “C” grade) or

• ABE/CCP Advanced Certificate plus English 050 with a minimum “C” grade or

• GED certificate plus completion of an English assessment, administered by the college (students, whose assessments show difficulties in English, must participate in English upgrading before entering the program) or

• Mature Student Status plus completion of an English assessment, administered by the college (students, whose assessments show difficulties in English, must participate in English upgrading before entering the program).