“Thrown into the deep end with little mentoring” – what our students tell us about their concerns in becoming leaders in early childhood settings
A School of Education Seminar held on 2 October 2019, presented by Dr Angel Mok
Graduates of early childhood education, being the highest qualified staff members in the setting, are required to take up leadership responsibilities soon after they are appointed the role of an early childhood teacher (ECT). These novice ECTs, despite having a 4-year ECE degree, often lack the confidence and experience to deal with complex leadership responsibilities expected of them. Such ECTs need ongoing professional development support and mentoring in their transition to the leadership roles. In Australia, Victoria and Queensland are the only two states that offer concerted support to early stage ECTs. In NSW, the Department of Education (DET) provides supports to new graduates working in schools but similar support is missing in the ECE sector.
In this presentation, I will share with the audience a project that supported final-stage, low SES, early childhood students at UNE in their transition to leadership roles in early childhood (EC) settings. This project was funded by the Higher Education Participation and Partnership Program (HEPPP) in 2018. 12 students and two current directors participated in this pilot study that adopted a mixed-method approach. Data were collected from online questionnaires, responses in the discussion forums in an online program and three focus groups. Preliminary analysis of the data revealed that students were concerned about the demands and responsibilities they would have to assume once they were appointed the position of ECTs. As well, both students and directors expressed that mentoring would be the most effective and desirable way to support early career ECTs in such transition. This pilot study was the beginning of a process that aims to collect research evidence to advocate for early career ECTs in NSW in their transition to leadership roles.
