The early years: developing practice
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| 4 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) | |
| End-of-course assessment | No residential school |
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This course is available for study in the countries shown.
Summary
This course is for anyone currently working with young children aged between birth and seven years in public, private, voluntary and independent settings. You’ll consider practice in relation to working with young children and other adults (including colleagues, other professionals, parents and carers). You’ll develop your knowledge of provision for young children from birth to seven years and explore how they develop and learn. The course looks at the early years curriculum and its underpinning principles and values and is of direct relevance to all UK national early years guidance, including the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Course content
This course is for people working in early years settings with children from birth to seven years. If you are a childminder, pre-school leader/practitioner, childcare worker, unqualified nursery teacher, classroom/teaching assistant, nursery nurse or outreach play worker or working voluntarily in a school, Children's Centre, day nursery or out-of-school context with young children, it will help you develop your professional knowledge, skills and practice.
You will focus on the responsibilities, knowledge and skills underpinning your work with young children and with other adults, including parents and carers and a range of professional colleagues in multi-agency contexts. You will develop your understanding of the role of the early years practitioner, the nature of young children’s learning and development and the importance of early years environments.
Your understanding of the requirements of local and national frameworks (both statutory and non-statutory), that guide the education and care provision of early years settings and the work of children’s services in safeguarding and promoting children’s welfare will be extended and you will develop your awareness of the structure and nature of the wide range of provision for children from birth to seven years.
You will explore these areas through studying printed course materials, audio and video recordings (on DVD and on the course website), and two course readers, and by carrying out activities linked to your work with young children.
After successfully completing this course you will have developed a clear awareness of your own role in working effectively in the care and education of young children. You will be aware of the conditions and contexts which support young children’s learning and development and will be confident of your ability to provide and/or support the provision of an appropriate and effective care and learning environment for children.
Vocational relevance
This course is for practitioners working with young children and their families in a wide range of early years settings across the UK, and its content is directly relevant to practice. The course offers the first step towards the Foundation Degree in Early Years (G01) or the Diploma of Higher Education in Early Years (E37) and will meet the needs of adults seeking to become highly qualified and experienced early years practitioners, including those who aspire to achieve the graduate Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) in England.
Entry
This course is available in the UK and to students working in English-medium, early years settings in Europe and British Forces schools. You must have been working with young children (aged 0–7) in an early years setting prior to starting the course for six months if you have worked full time or 12 months if part time for at least five hours per week. You may have been working in a paid or a voluntary capacity. During the course, you will need to be working in the setting for a minimum of five hours a week in order to carry out the practical activities.
To work in an early years setting you will need to meet the ‘fit person’ criteria for doing so, and this will include obtaining the necessary criminal record clearance required for the setting and country in which you are working. The responsibility to ensure you meet these requirements is yours and your employers, and not the OU’s. If you are in doubt about your eligibility, or to find out more, you should contact the relevant agency in your country for more information. Details of national agencies are listed on a document you can find on the Childhood and Youth website.
Level 1 courses provide core subject knowledge and study skills needed for both higher education and distance learning to help you to progress to courses at Level 2. If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Preparatory work
To undertake the course you must be working in either a paid or a voluntary capacity with young children. You and your employer will need to complete a permission agreement form confirming this before you begin the course. You must also ensure you meet the ‘fit person’ criteria as noted in the Entry section, above. There is no essential preparatory work before the course starts, but it is suggested that you locate and become familiar with the policy and curriculum documents for the early years setting in which you work. Reading practitioner journals such as Nursery World will allow you to acquaint yourself with current issues in the early years sector.
Qualifications
We can award a Certificate in Early Years Practice (C37) to students who successfully complete the course.
E100 is a compulsory course in our
- Foundation Degree in Early Years (G01)
- Diploma of Higher Education in Early Years (E37)
- BA Early Years (B51)
E100 is an optional course in our
It can also count towards most of our other degrees at bachelors level, where it is equally appropriate to a BA or BSc. We advise you to refer to the relevant qualification descriptions for information on the circumstances in which this course can count towards these qualifications because from time to time the structure and requirements may change.
Excluded combinations
Sometimes you will not be able to count a course towards a qualification if you have already taken another course with similar content. To check any excluded combinations relating to this course, visit our excluded combination finder or check with our Student Registration & Enquiry Service before registering.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Please note that this course makes substantial use of audio and visual materials. Written transcripts are available for the audio-visual material. The course materials are available in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader and mathematical, scientific, or foreign language materials may be particularly difficult to read in this way. Large print versions of the course materials can also be provided on request. Other alternative formats may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
You will need to spend considerable amounts of time using a personal computer and the internet. If you have concerns about taking this course please contact your regional or national centre for advice. The Open University also provides a range of sources to support students in developing their study skills and you will be able to access these from the Student website.
If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our booklet Meeting Your Needs which you can download or request from our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
You can also find information about accessible course materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.
Course materials
What's included
Three volumes of print materials, two course readers, other printed materials and a DVD. There will also be a course website.
You will need
A DVD player.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave. Some of your course software will be provided on disk.
You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new Windows computer since 2002 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual. Please note that you can use an Apple Mac or Linux computer if you can run Windows using Boot Camp or similar.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor who will help you with the course material and mark and comment on your written work, and whom you can ask for advice and guidance. If you are new to the OU, you will find that your tutor will be particularly concerned to help you with your study methods. We also offer tutorial support online through online forums and sometimes via group tutorials that you are encouraged, but not obliged, to attend. Where your tutorials are held will depend on the distribution of students taking the course. Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You can choose whether to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) on paper or online through the eTMA system. You may want to use the eTMA system for some of your assignments but submit on paper for others. This is entirely your choice.
The end-of-course assessment (ECA) is a project takes the place of an examination. Equal weighting is given to the TMAs and the ECA and you must pass both parts to pass the course. Assessment is an essential part of the teaching, so you are required to complete all assignments. You will be given more detailed information when you begin the course.
Professional recognition
Students completing E100 will be eligible for the OU’s Certificate in Early Years Practice (C37), a vocationally-oriented qualification which will enhance your existing role and give your career a boost. It takes account of the training needs of a wide range of practitioners working in a variety of early years settings.
The Certificate in Early Years Practice is included in The Children’s Workforce Development Council’s Qualifications List for those delivering the Early Years Foundation Stage. This List has information about qualifications that OFSTED accept for regulatory purposes and guidance about suitable job roles for those who have achieved different qualifications. The OU’s Certificate in Early Years Practice is listed as an acceptable course at level 4.
In Northern Ireland the Certificate in Early Years Practice has qualified status for classroom assistants. In Scotland the Certificate is recognised at Support Worker Level.
E100 is a compulsory Level 1 course in the OU Foundation Degree in Early Years (G01), which has been recognised by the Children's Workforce Development Council as meeting the requirements for an Early Years Sector-Endorsed Foundation Degree.
There is more useful supporting information about the early years courses on the Childhood and Youth website.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The details given here are for the course that starts in October 2010. We expect it to be available at the same time once a year.
How to register
Unfortunately, we are unable to accept online registrations for this course. Instead, please read the Entry section of this course description and contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
About this page
An undergraduate course in Childhood and Youth, Education and Health and Social Care.
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