Description
Early childhood educators plan, organize and implement programs for children between the ages of infancy and 12 years. Early childhood educator assistants provide care for infants and preschool- to school-age children under the guidance of early childhood educators. Early childhood educators and assistants lead children in activities to stimulate and develop their intellectual, physical and emotional growth and ensure their security and well-being. They are employed in child-care centres, day-care centres, kindergartens, agencies for exceptional children and other settings where early childhood education services are provided. Supervisors of early childhood educators and assistants are included in this unit group.
Job Titles
- Child care worker – daycare
- Daycare attendant
- Daycare coordinator
- Early childhood educator (ECE) assistant
- Early childhood supervisor
Main Duties
- Develop and implement child-care programs that support and promote the physical, cognitive, emotional and social development of children
- Lead activities by telling or reading stories, teaching songs, taking children to local points of interest and providing opportunities to express creativity through the media of art, dramatic play, music and physical activity
- Plan and maintain an environment that protects the health, security and well-being of children
- Assess the abilities, interests and needs of children and discuss progress or problems with parents and other staff members
- Observe children for signs of potential learning or behavioural problems and prepare reports for parents, guardians or supervisor
- Guide and assist children in the development of proper eating, dressing and toilet habits
- Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with co-workers and community service providers working with children
- May plan and organize activities for school-age children in child-care programs before and after regular school hours
- May supervise and coordinate activities of other early childhood educators and early childhood educator assistants.
Workplaces
- Centres for exceptional children
- Child-care centres
- Day-care centres
- Kindergartens
Skills
- Learning and Teaching Strategies
- Instructing
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordinating
- Critical Thinking
Abilities
- Auditory Attention
- Categorization Flexibility
- Deductive Reasoning
- Far Vision
- Fluency of Ideas
Personal Attributes
- Adaptability
- Concern for Others
- Service Orientation
- Social Orientation
- Collaboration
Similar Occupations
- Elementary school and kindergarten teachers (41221)
Source: OaSIS
Employment Outlook
The employment outlook will be very good for Early childhood educators and assistants (42202) in Prince Edward Island for the 2022-2024 period.
The following factors contributed to this outlook:
- Employment growth will lead to several new positions.
- A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
- There are a moderate number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.
- High employee turnover in this occupation could lead to additional employment opportunities.
The federal-provincial Early Learning and Child Care Agreement will be implemented over the forecast period, resulting in the creation of new child-care spaces and early childhood educator positions in the province. The P.E.I. government is planning to add up to 300 new childcare spaces across the Island over the forecast period. Furthermore, educators and staff received wage increases in October 2023. The prospect for employment in this occupation is very good and new graduates should experience little difficulty finding employment in most areas of the province.
On P.E.I., there is an increasing demand in the industry for qualified individuals who have a diploma in early childhood education. Some employers, especially those in rural areas, experience difficulty in finding certified early child care staff. Job prospects will be better for those workers with post-secondary qualifications and those with enhanced skills such as a second language or experience with special needs children.
Here are some key facts about Early childhood educators and assistants in Prince Edward Island:
- Approximately 1,000 people work in this occupation.
- Early childhood educators and assistants mainly work in the following sectors:
- Social assistance (NAICS 624): more than 95%
- The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
- Full-time workers: 84% compared to 84% for all occupations
- Part-time workers: 17% compared to 16% for all occupations
- 52% of early childhood educators and assistants work all year, while 48% work only part of the year, compared to 59% and 41% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 40 weeks compared to 41 weeks for all occupations.
- 8% of early childhood educators and assistants are self-employed compared to an average of 13% for all occupations.
- The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
- Men: less than 5% compared to 51% for all occupations
- Women: more than 95% compared to 49% for all occupations
- The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
- no high school diploma: less than 5% compared to 11% for all occupations
- high school diploma or equivalent: 30% compared to 28% for all occupations
- apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 8% compared to 11% for all occupations
- college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor’s: 44% compared to 25% for all occupations
- bachelor’s degree: 11% compared to 17% for all occupations
- university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: less than 5% compared to 8% for all occupation
Source: Job Bank
Prevailing Wages
| AREA | LOW | MEDIAN | HIGH |
|---|---|---|---|
| PEI | $15.00 | $18.00 | $27.06 |
| Canada | $15.00 | $21.00 | $27.75 |
Training
| TRAINING PROGRAM | INSTITUTION | CREDENTIAL |
|---|---|---|
| Early Childhood Care and Education | Holland College | Diploma |
| Child and Youth Care Worker | Holland College | Diploma |
| Human Services | Holland College | Diploma |
| Early Childhood Educator | Collège de l’Île | Diploma |
| Special Education Technician | Collège de l’Île | Diploma |