We
are excited to announce that the development of Nevada's
Core Knowledge Areas and Core Competencies for Early Care and Education
Professionals is complete!
This
document is designed to be a practical self-assessment tool that may
be used in a variety of ways regardless of your role (caregiver, supervisor,
trainer, career counselor, Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE)
faculty, etc.) or the setting in which you work. Use of this document
is completely voluntary at the time of its approval in June 2006.
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| What are Core Knowledge Areas (CKA) and Core Competencies? |
The CKA and
Core Competencies were developed in response to research findings indicating
that professional education for Early Care and Education (ECE) practitioners
is essential to the quality of care and education provided. Caregiver
actions have also been shown to make a difference to the future learning
capabilities and success of children (Barnett, 2003). Core Knowledge
Areas differ from Core Competencies in the following ways:
Core
Knowledge Areas (CKA) are a set of content areas that define
what caregivers should know and understand in order to provide quality
experiences for children, regardless of the setting in which care
and education occurs. Distributing learning across all CKA helps
professionals build a balanced approach to providing quality Early
Care and Education.
Core
Competencies are a set of observable skills that reflect
a caregiver’s knowledge and understanding of the Core Knowledge
Areas. The competencies identify skills at the beginning, intermediate
and advanced levels of professionalism related to providing quality
Early Care and Education and help to standardize the expectations for ECE professionals. Competencies are based on nationally accepted standards and best practice in the field of ECE.
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| Linkages |
Core Knowledge
Areas (CKA) and Competencies were developed as part of the growing professional
development system in Nevada. Consideration was given to how these components
support, enhance and otherwise affect other parts of the system. As noted
below, there are several clear linkages that can be made at this point. |
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Connection to the Career Ladder |
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The CKA and Competency
levels support the framework of the Nevada Early Care and Education
Professional Career Ladder and provide the foundation for the professional
development system. They provide a roadmap for individual professional
growth that becomes increasingly more specialized as higher levels
of formal education are achieved. Completion of formal education in
ECE results in advancement along the Career Ladder. |
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Connection to Nevada's Training Approval System |
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The CKA are an important part of Nevada’s training approval system and
are reflected in all training that is approved by The Nevada Registry. Because
approved training is categorized by CKA, caregivers and trainers can search
for training by CKA on the Registry’s website and use that information
to distribute their learning and instruction across all eight areas. This helps
create a balanced approach to participating in professional development opportunities
as well as affords trainers the opportunity to identify gaps and offer training
in areas where there is limited availability to better meet the needs of professionals
in the field. |
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Connection to Nevada's Pre-Kindergarten Standards |
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Nevada’s
Pre-K Content Standards are a joint effort supported by the Nevada Department
of Education’s Office of Special Education, Elementary and Secondary
Education, and School Improvement Programs, as well as the State of Nevada,
Department of Health and Human Resources, Welfare Division, Office of
Early Care and Education and it’s contractors. These agencies were
challenged by the Federal Good Start, Grow Smart initiative to work together
to develop standards to be used by all early childhood education programs
in Nevada as a guide for child outcomes for preschool. The Pre-K Content
Standards are guidelines for teachers to use when developing learning
experiences for young children that are grounded in the following guiding
principles: |
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Children are active
learners |
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Development and
learning are inter-related |
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Growth and learning
are sequential |
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Each child is an
individual learner |
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Development and
learning are embedded in culture |
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Family involvement
is necessary |
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Children’s
learning can be clarified, enriched, and extended |
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Knowledge
of the Pre-K Standards is embedded within the Core Competencies.
While the Pre-K standards act as a guide for child outcomes, the core
competencies
focus on the preferred outcomes for the adults who care for young
children. It is believed that early childhood teachers who provide
quality learning
environments and experiences for young children will help those children
meet the goals set forth in the Pre-K Standards. |
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For
more information or to request additional copies, please contact The
Nevada Registry at
(775) 448-5275 or (800) 259-1906. |
