Diploma in Education - Early Childhood Education
Building a strong foundation for the holistic development of children in school education.
Introduction
Early childhood education plays a critical role in the holistic development of young children and in building a strong foundation for their school education. The National Education Policy, 2020 has proposed several measures to achieve universal provisioning of quality early childhood development, care, and education.
There is an acute shortage of well-trained preschool teachers and functionaries of early childhood education who can fulfil the promise of delivering high quality services to the very large population of children in the 3 – 8 years age group in the country.
The Diploma in Early childhood Education offered by Azim Premji University aims to fulfil the need for good quality professional development programmes in Early Childhood Education in India.
The programme offers a comprehensive, holistic and engaging curriculum covering all important aspects of the Early Childhood Education domain that will help ECE practitioners build perspective, sensitivity, and acquire knowledge, skills and capabilities to work with children in the age group of 3– 8 years. The programme is taught by highly experienced academics and practitioners of ECE.
The Diploma in Early Childhood Education is designed for teachers working with children in the age group of 3 – 8 years and early childhood education professionals looking to make a meaningful contribution in their specialized domain. A proven interest in working with young children and/or relevant work experience of 2 years or more, is essential.
- Deepen understanding about the domain of early childhood education and the important concepts and theories relevant to ECE practice.
- Build capability to design and implement suitable learning experiences for children in early years and interactions with families and the community.
- Develop capacity to identify young children with different learning needs and adopt and implement inclusive practices in early childhood education settings.
- Enable participants to become self-motivated and reflective practitioners.
- Build skills and knowledge to set up and manage small scale ECE programmes.
The programme is open for teachers from public and private school systems working with children in the age group of 3 – 8 years and for ECE professionals with minimum 2 years of relevant work experience. The eligibility criteria are:
- Undergraduate in any discipline (preferred)
- Working knowledge of English (reading, writing and speaking)
ADMISSION PROCESS
- Step‑1: Online application form with statement of purpose.
- Step‑2: Panel Interview in online mode.
FEES
- Fees for the Diploma programme — INR 60,000 (incl. GST)
- Fees for the Certificate programmes — INR 20,000 (incl. GST) per certificate
Note: GST rates are in line with Government guidelines and are subject to change.
Programme Calendar (Tentative)*
| Certificate Programme | Programme cycle | Face to face interaction (at Bangalore)* |
|---|---|---|
| Early Childhood Education: Development and Learning in the Early Years | 01 Feb — 30 Apr, 2024 | 18 Mar — 23 Mar, 2024 |
| Curriculum and Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education | 01 May — 31 Jul, 2024 | 24 Jun — 29 Jun, 2024 |
| Early Identification, Intervention and Inclusion | 01 Aug — 31 Oct, 2024 | 16 Sep — 21 Sep, 2024 |
| Programme Management and Professional Development in Early Childhood Education | 01 Nov, 2024 — 31 Jan, 2025 | 16 Dec — 21 Dec, 2024 |
*Above dates are indicative and may change. Dates will be re-confirmed one month in advance of each Certificate.
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Course structure
The 24 credits, 12 months Diploma is offered in a blended mode, with online and on-campus interaction.
The Diploma programme comprises four certificate programme (12 weeks duration, 6 credits each) covering key aspects of Early Childhood Education.
Participants have the flexibility of joining the diploma programme or taking one or more certificate programmes.
- Successful completion of the four certificate programmes leads to award of the Diploma. The Diploma can be completed with a maximum time period of 2 years.
- The on campus components will be held at Azim Premji University, Bengaluru and Bhopal.
Pedagogy
The programme will be offered in blended mode:
- Online — This will be conducted through lectures, group work, workshops, presentations, readings, participation in discussion forums on Learning Management Systems, audio/video material and regular assessment.
- Face to face interaction — Each certificate programme will have one week on-campus engagement, providing opportunities for sharing of learning through intensive group work and interaction with experts and practitioners from the field.
- The on-campus components will be held at Bengaluru and Bhopal. Participants will attend these classes in the enrolled location as indicated in the application form.
- Registering for individual certificate programmes, would entail mandatory attendance in the face-to-face component for the respective certificate.
- Registering for the entire diploma programme would entail mandatory attendance in the face-to-face component in minimum of the two certificate programmes. The participant will have the flexibility of choosing to attend the face-to-face session or completing a project for the remaining two certificate programmes.
- Course 1: Understanding ECE: Themes and Issues (3 Credits)
- Course 2: Principles and Perspectives of ECE (3 credits)
- Course 1: Perspectives in Curriculum and Pedagogy in ECE (2 credits)
- Course 2: Curriculum for Fostering Physical/Motor, Cognitive Development and Early Math (2 credits)
- Course 3: Curriculum for Fostering Social Development, Language and Early Literacy (2 credits)
- Course 1: Early Inclusion (3 credits)
- Course 2: Early Identification and Intervention (3 credits)
- Course 1: Programme Planning and Management (3 credits)
- Course 2: Professional Development of Early Childhood Educators ( 3 credits)
Total 24 credits
