Early Childhood Education Professional Core, Certificate of Proficiency (ECP)
Effective: Spring 2021
This certificate of proficiency is intended for the early childhood educator currently working in early learning programs who hold an Associate or Bachelor degree unrelated to early childhood education and needs to meet state requirements for Child Care Licensing, Keystone STARS, Pre K-Counts and PreK-4th grade teacher certification. Students will engage in coursework specific to early childhood education with the goal of increasing teacher competence. Coursework can also be applied to the Associate of Art in Early Childhood Education (ECED) if the student chooses to complete the general education requirements.
Completion of the certificate allows the student to be assistants and lead teachers in early learning centers, assistant teachers in K-4th grade settings, certified teachers preparing to test into Prek-4th grade teacher certification and those seeking a PDE Private Academic Schools certificate. This certificate meets the required 30 credits in Early Childhood Education per the Pennsylvania Career Lattice in Early Childhood Education.
- Promote child development and learning.
- Build family and community relationships.
- Observe, document and assess to support young children and families.
- Use developmentally effective approaches to connect with children and families.
- Use knowledge content to build meaningful curricula.
- Act as an early childhood education professional.
The College will award a certificate of proficiency to students who complete 30 credits of an approved career program. These credits will not normally include physical education, developmental, basic and/or continuing education courses and will usually consist of 24 credits in the career specialty and six credits in general education. At least 50 percent of the credits must be earned at Delaware County Community College. The student must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher. At least six credit hours must be in courses that are awarded grade points.
| First Semester | Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ECE 100 | Principles of Early Childhood Education | 3 |
| ECE 130 | Early Childhood Development | 3 |
| EDU 220 | Introduction to Inclusive Education K-12 | 3 |
| Hours | 9 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ECE 140 | Integrated Curriculum and Assessment | 3 |
| EDU 208 | English Language Learners | 3 |
| ECE 110 | Infant/Toddler Care and Education | 3 |
| Hours | 9 | |
| Third Semester | ||
| ECE 111 | Methods and Materials for Teaching | 3 |
| ECE 201 | Children Families and Community | 3 |
| ECE 120 or EDU 215 | Early Childhood Education Laboratory I or Primary Grade Lab and Seminar | 4 |
| Hours | 10 | |
| Fourth Semester | ||
| ECE 121 | Early Childhood Education Laboratory II | 4 |
| Hours | 4 | |
| Total Hours | 32 | |
DELAWARE COUNTY
Marple
Southeast Center
CHESTER COUNTY
Pennocks Bridge
ONLINE*
100% online
- *
Some online courses have field requirements or in-person or proctored testing. Online courses with these requirements have additional information posted under the COURSE DESCRIPTION section when you are registering. Please note these requirements when registering.
The Early Childhood Education program at Delaware County Community College is accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, www.naeyc.org. The accreditation term runs from March, 2017 through March, 2024.