Specialists Training for Teachers and Practitioners Working in Early Childhood Care and Education

This article presents the Special Event "Specialists Training for Teachers and Practitioners Working in Early Childhood Care and Education" at the UNESCO I World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education. It describes the collaborative Russian and Finnish Magister program for preparation of specialists in preschool education and the resolution of the special event.

Summary from the Special Event "Specialists Training for Teachers and Practitioners Working in Early Childhood Care and Education" at the UNESCO I World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education.

The quality of early childhood care and education is largely determined by the professional competence of ECCE personnel. In this regard, specialists’ training for teachers and practitioners working with preschool-aged children is urgent and important. The objective of the Special Event is to consider the current state and prospects of specialists training in the field of ECCE.

Irina A. Burlakova told that the Moscow State University of Psychology and Education (MSUPE) deservedly won the right to develop national standards of preschool education and celebrated the beginning of the first International Magister Program at MSUPE together with the Kajaani University Consortium, Finland.

Milda Bredikyte shared her two-years experience of work on the Magister program in Finland and expressed appreciation of collaboration with the Russian colleagues:

Together with Arkadij Margolis (event moderator), Tatiana Kuzmishina, Pentti Hakkarainen, presented the collaborative Russian and Finnish Magister program.

Special Event Resolution:

• Child development depends on the care and education system existing in the country. Quality of this system is substantially determined not by concrete learning programs, their forms and contents, but by the professional preparation of the educators implementing this programs.
• Preparation of a modern educator, who will be able to create the environment, enhancing wholesome child development, should include profound psychological preparation and be aimed at the development of an educators abilities to interact with children, organize play in accordance with the modern notions on leading activity, use toys in educational work with preschoolers.
• It is important to build a program of modern educators’ preparation according to the module principle. Each module should combine theoretical, practical and research preparation. Such approach gives the opportunity to prepare an educator and researcher, creative, capable of reflection of his practice and ready to work in diverse groups.
• “Developmental Early Childhood Education” program may be regarded as the basis for projecting national programs for preschool educators’ preparation in different countries.
• In the period prior to the convening of the next UNESCO conference on ECCE it is appropriate to prepare and hold a national (or regional) conference, devoted to the issues in development of programs for preschool educators’ preparation.