Early Childhood Educator Assistant Program

(ECEA)

 

This program does not require approval by the registrar of the Private Training Institutions Branch (PTIB) of the Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills & Training. As such, the registrar did not review it.

Admission Requirements: 

• High school graduation or General Education Development (GED) or BC Dogwood Diploma. Min 19 years if applicants are not high school graduates or possess an equivalent educational qualification.
• Applicants must demonstrate English proficiency through prior education in English at grade 10 level or higher or through an English language assessment (IELTS 5.5 or equivalent standard test.). To be successful in the program, applicants must demonstrate an acceptable level of English language skills. This program is taught in English. 

Standardized Test Scores/ Evidence: 

• Evidence that 3 years of full-time secondary school (Grades 8-12) has been completed in English in a country where English is one of the principal languages.
• Evidence of post-secondary education completed in English in a country where English is one of the principal languages.
• International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic: Minimum overall score of 5.5.
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) IBT: Overall score of 46
• Canadian Language Benchmark Placement Test (CLB PT): Listening 6, Speaking 6, Reading 5 and Writing 5
• Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP): Listening 6, Speaking 6, Reading 5 and Writing 5
• Canadian Academic English Language Assessment (CAEL): Overall Score of 40

To become an Early Childhood Educator Assistant, you must complete only one of the courses listed below: 

(i) Child Development (ECEA 100), or

(ii) Child Guidance (ECEA 200), or

(iii) Child Health, Safety and Nutrition (ECEA 300)

The Early Childhood Educator Assistant (ECEA) course prepares students to work as ECE Assistants in a licensed childcare facility. Each course listed above is an online distance course (asynchronous) for first-time applicants. This program leads to a regulated occupation. The regulator’s website is the ECE Registry. 

One of the requirements to work as an Early Childhood Educator Assistant in a licensed childcare facility in British Columbia is to be certified by the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Registry. The ECE Registry does not recognize the Early Childhood Education program offered by Coastal College of British Columbia. This means that upon graduation, students will have to apply for certification through the ECE Regsitry’s equivalency process. 

CCBC is on the ECE Registry waitlist to provide the entire ECE program. CCBC hopes to offer the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Program in the summer of 2025.

Upon completing an ECEA course, students must apply for official certification through the ECE Registry’s equivalency process by submitting a Early Childhood Educator Certification Application Equivalency. CCBC will guide and support students in completing the equivalency application form for submission to the ECE Registry. This process has successfully led many students to obtain their official certification from the ECE Registry. The equivalency application can also be found on the ECE Registry website. For more information about the certification process, visit the ECE Registry.

Start Date:

Classes begin every Wednesday. Registration closes each week on Sunday at 6 p.m. 

Format: 

This course is 100% online and asynchronous. This course fulfills the academic requirements for first-time applicants seeking official ECEA certification through equivalency from the ECE Registry.

Learning Management System (LMS):

Google Classroom

Credential Earned:

Certificate

Course Descriptions: 

ECEA 100 Child Growth and Development (100 hours)

This course provides a historical and theoretical understanding of development throughout life, focusing on physical, cognitive, language, and socio-emotional development. Students will explore prominent approaches and theories related to lifespan development. Genetic and environmental factors that influence individual growth will be analyzed. Indicators of developmental delays or concerns and associated risks will be explored. Students will also explore strategies that can be used in the classroom to meet the individual needs of students.

Child Growth and Development learning areas:

• range of historical and current theoretical approaches to child growth and development
• child growth and development as part of ongoing life-span development
• growth and development in critical developmental domains, including social/emotional, physical, cognitive, language
• genetic and environmental factors that influence individual growth and development
• indicators of developmental delays or concerns and associated risks

Textbook: Life-Span Development Paperback by John W Santrock (Author), Anne MacKenzie-Rivers (Author), Verna Pangman (Author), Thomas Malcomson(Author), Kwan Ho Leung (Author). Publisher: McGraw-Hill Ryerson; 19th editions ISBN10: 1266347348  ISBN13: 978-1266347344 Copyright: 2023

Students are responsible for purchasing the textbook.

ECEA 200 Child Guidance (56 hours/8 weeks)

This course provides an understanding of Child Guidance. In this course, students will look in-depth at the relationship between the environment and the development of children’s behavior. Students will study strategies, resources, and skills to develop positive approaches to guide a child’s behavior. Caring skills and techniques which support and enable children to develop self-esteem will be analyzed. Students will examine child guidance from infancy to the early primary years. Students will explore what children need from their learning environment to thrive to thrive. The importance of supporting the well-being of the whole child (emotional, social, physical, creative, and cognitive) is explored.

Child Guidance learning areas:

• Relationship between environment and development on children’s behavior

• Development of positive approaches to guide children’s behavior

• Caring skills and techniques which support and enable children to develop self-esteem

• Textbook: The Whole Child: Developmental Education for the Early Years (10th Edition) Paperback – Mar 27, 2013 by Patricia Weissman (Author), Joanne Hendrick (Author). ISBN-10: 0132853426 ISBN-13: 978-0132853422

Students are responsible for purchasing the textbook.

 

ECEA 300 Child Health, Safety and Nutrition (56 hours/8 weeks)

This course deeply studies child health, safety, and nutrition. Students will create and maintain various policies that ensure children’s health and safety. Students will learn and study how to implement universal precautions, hygiene standards, and procedures. Students will explore how to plan, prepare, and serve meals and snacks that meet a child’s nutritional needs. With a focus on prevention, students will examine strategies to assess, manage, and report illness. Child protection responsibilities and licensing requirements will be studied. Students will learn the theoretical principles of health, safety, and nutrition, which they can apply to the early childhood curriculum.

Child Health, Safety and Nutrition learning areas:

• creating and maintaining a safe and healthy environment for children

• creating and maintaining policies that ensure health and safety

• knowledge and practice of universal precautions, hygiene standards, and procedures

• planning, preparing, and serving meals and snacks that meet children’s nutritional needs

• assessing, managing, and reporting illness and injuries with a focus on preventative practice

• knowledge of licensing requirements for child care and child protection responsibilities as outlined in legislation

Sorte, J., Daeschel, I., Amador, C., & Au, L. (2021). Nutrition, health, and safety for young children: Promoting wellness. Pearson. 

Students are responsible for purchasing the textbook.

Employment:

Most graduates work as Early Childhood Educator Assistants (ECEA) in daycares and pre-schools in British Columbia. 

Contact us: 

For further information or to speak with an Academic Advisor, students can email info@coastalcollegeofbc.com. Alternatively, they can call the college Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.