Diploma in Early Childhood Education (Fast-Track)

at George Brown College - Ryerson Campus Canada

The Early Childhood Education (Fast-Track) program is designed for graduates with a diploma or degree in a related field.

In this condensed diploma program, you will learn how to support children as they grow. You’ll study the physical, cognitive, social and emotional development stages of infants (from six weeks), toddlers, preschoolers and school-aged children (to 12 years) and will learn to recognize key behaviours associated with each developmental stage.

We have structured this program to alternate between in-class learning and field placement. This method of teaching helps you to develop confidence in your skills as you learn to apply key concepts from the classroom to a real-world setting. Employers value this approach because it makes our graduates ready to work as early childhood educators on day one.

Your Field Education Options
Students complete a seven-week field placement in each semester of the program. During this time, they will have the opportunity to work with children of different age groups in a variety of settings.

Field placement provides a continuum of experience that gives students the opportunity to integrate and apply theory to practice.

To support student learning outcomes and ensure you have access to facilities that reflect the best practices we consider essential, we own and operate 12 child care centres located across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). These lab schools expose you to the kinds of environments where you will eventually work and provide valuable services to the families and communities that they serve.

Program Learning Outcomes
The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:

• Create learning contexts to enable, build and maintain caring, responsive relationships in partnerships with children, families and communities that value and respect social, cultural and linguistic diversity including Indigenous peoples' world views and Francophone identity.
• Co-create, facilitate and reflect upon inquiry and play-based early years and child care programs and pedagogical approaches to support children's learning, holistic development and well-being following children's capabilities, interests, ideas and experiences.
• Co-design and maintain inclusive early-learning environments to value and support equitable, accessible and meaningful learning opportunities for all children, their families and communities in a range of early years and child care settings.
• Collaborate with children, families, colleagues, agencies and community partners to create, maintain, evaluate and promote safe and healthy early-learning environments to support independence, reasonable risk-taking and healthy development and well-being.
• Use observation strategies to identify children's strengths and challenges and to ascertain when children and families might benefit from additional support or community resources.
• Use professional communication in interactions with children, families, colleagues, employers, the regulatory body, government authorities and children's service agencies to meet legal and ethical standards of the early years sector.
• Act in accordance with relevant legislation, regulations, College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, agency policies and procedures and principles of evidence-informed practice and reflect upon their impact on one's own role in early years and child care settings.
• Identify, report and document when a child is in a situation of perceived risk for, or actual neglect or abuse, in accordance with legislation, the College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, policies and procedures.
• Create and engage in partnerships with families, communities, colleagues, interdisciplinary professionals, authorities and child service agencies to advocate for quality early years and child care programs and services.
• Engage in reflective practice and continuous professional learning in accordance with principles of lifelong learning, evidence-informed practices in the early years sector and requirements of the College of Early Childhood Educators.

Early Childhood Education (Consecutive Diploma/Degree) is a four-year program that leads to both an Early Childhood Education (ECE) diploma and an Honours Bachelor of Early Childhood Leadership (ECL) degree from George Brown College.

This program offers some distinct advantages:

• College-level tuition fees for the first two years, rather than higher university fees
• Classes with George Brown College faculty who are national leaders in applied ECE
• Practical training at one of George Brown’s 12 child-care lab schools located across the Greater Toronto Area
• Direct entry into the third year of the George Brown College degree program
• Expanded career scope and direction by earning both a diploma in ECE and a degree in ECL

Early Childhood Education (Consecutive Diploma/Degree) is a four-year program that leads to both an Early Childhood Education (ECE) diploma from George Brown College and a Bachelor of Arts Early Childhood Studies degree from Ryerson University.

As a student in this program, you will spend the first two years earning your ECE diploma at the?Sally Horsfall Eaton Centre for Studies in Community Health, located at George Brown's Ryerson Campus (co-operatively managed with George Brown), and the latter two years completing your Early Childhood Studies degree at Ryerson University.

This program offers some distinct advantages:

• College-level tuition fees for the first two years, rather than higher university fees
• Classes with George Brown College faculty who are national leaders in applied ECE
• Practical training at one of George Brown’s 12 child care lab schools located across the Greater Toronto Area
• Direct entry into the third year of the Ryerson degree program
• Expanded career scope and direction by earning both a diploma and degree in ECE

Our system of alternating blocks of classroom theory and field practice will give you the knowledge and skills you need to work with with infants, toddlers, preschool and school-aged children in a variety of early childhood education settings.

Your Field Education Options

• Field placement plays a significant role in this program by providing students the opportunity to integrate and apply classroom theory to practice. Placements are offered in Semesters 1, 2, 3 and 4 for three days per week, seven weeks per semester. During this time, students will have the chance to work with children of different age groups in a variety of settings.
• To support student learning outcomes and ensure that our students have access to facilities that reflect the best practices we consider essential, we own and operate 12 child care centres located across the Greater Toronto Area. These lab schools expose you to the kinds of environments where you will eventually work and provide valuable services to the families and communities that they serve.

Program Learning Outcomes

• The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
  • Create learning contexts to enable, build and maintain caring, responsive relationships in partnerships with children, families and communities that value and respect social, cultural and linguistic diversity including Indigenous peoples' worldviews and Francophone identity.
  • Co-create, facilitate and reflect upon inquiry and play-based early years and child care programs and pedagogical approaches to support children's learning, holistic development and well-being following children's capabilities, interests, ideas and experiences.
  • Co-design and maintain inclusive early learning environments to value and support equitable, accessible and meaningful learning opportunities for all children, their families and communities in a range of early years and child care settings.
  • Collaborate with children, families, colleagues, agencies and community partners to create, maintain, evaluate and promote safe and healthy early learning environments to support independence, reasonable risk-taking and healthy development and well-being.
  • Use observation strategies to identify children's strengths and challenges and to ascertain when children and families might benefit from additional support or community resources.
  • Use professional communication in interactions with children, families, colleagues, employers, the regulatory body, government authorities and children's service agencies to meet legal and ethical standards of the early years sector.
  • Act in accordance with relevant legislation, regulations, College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, agency policies and procedures and principles of evidence-informed practice and reflect upon their impact on one's own role in early years and child care settings.
  • Identify, report and document when a child is in a situation of perceived risk for, or actual neglect or abuse, in accordance with legislation, the College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, policies and procedures.
  • Create and engage in partnerships with families, communities, colleagues, interdisciplinary professionals, authorities and child service agencies to advocate for quality early years and child care programs and services.
  • Engage in reflective practice and continuous professional learning in accordance with principles of lifelong learning, evidence-informed practices in the early years sector and requirements of the College of Early Childhood Educators.

Early Childhood Education (ECE) is a diploma program that combines alternating blocks of classroom theory and field practice to provide students with both theoretical and practical training. This program stream allows students to complete the program more quickly by studying for 16 consecutive months with no breaks in between (September 2020 through December 2021).

Students learn to work with infants, toddlers, preschool and school-aged children in a variety of early childhood education settings. 
Each semester is divided into blocks of seven weeks. One block is for academic study, the other is for field placement.

Your Field Education Options

• Our Early Childhood Education students complete a seven-week field placement in each semester of the program. During this time, students have the opportunity to work with children of different age groups in a variety of settings.
• Field placement provides a continuum of experience that gives students the opportunity to integrate and apply theory to practice.
• To support student learning outcomes and ensure you have access to facilities that reflect the best practices we consider essential, we own and operate 12 child care centres located across the Greater Toronto Area. These lab schools expose you to the kinds of environments where you will eventually work and provide valuable services to the families and communities that they serve.

Program Learning Outcomes

• The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
  • Create learning contexts to enable, build and maintain caring, responsive relationships in partnerships with children, families and communities that value and respect social, cultural and linguistic diversity including Indigenous peoples' worldviews and Francophone identity.
  • Co-create, facilitate and reflect upon inquiry and play-based early years and child care programs and pedagogical approaches to support children's learning, holistic development and well-being following children's capabilities, interests, ideas and experiences.
  • Co-design and maintain inclusive early learning environments to value and support equitable, accessible and meaningful learning opportunities for all children, their families and communities in a range of early years and child care settings.
  • Collaborate with children, families, colleagues, agencies and community partners to create, maintain, evaluate and promote safe and healthy early learning environments to support independence, reasonable risk-taking and healthy development and well-being.
  • Use observation strategies to identify children's strengths and challenges and to ascertain when children and families might benefit from additional support or community resources.
  • Use professional communication in interactions with children, families, colleagues, employers, the regulatory body, government authorities and children's service agencies to meet legal and ethical standards of the early years sector.
  • Act in accordance with relevant legislation, regulations, College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, agency policies and procedures and principles of evidence-informed practice and reflect upon their impact on one's own role in early years and child care settings.
  • Identify, report and document when a child is in a situation of perceived risk for, or actual neglect or abuse, in accordance with legislation, the College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, policies and procedures.
  • Create and engage in partnerships with families, communities, colleagues, interdisciplinary professionals, authorities and child service agencies to advocate for quality early years and child care programs and services.
  • Engage in reflective practice and continuous professional learning in accordance with principles of lifelong learning, evidence-informed practices in the early years sector and requirements of the College of Early Childhood Educators.

FAST-TRACK – DIRECT ENTRY (10 MONTHS)

• You may qualify for the fast-track program if you have a diploma or degree in a related field. For details visit program C130.

Early Childhood Education is a two-year diploma program that combines alternating blocks of classroom theory and field practice to provide students with both theoretical and practical training. Students learn to work with infants, toddlers, preschool and school-aged children in a variety of early childhood education settings.

Each semester is divided into seven-week blocks: one block for academic study and the other for field placement.

Your Field Education Options

• Students complete a seven-week field placement in each semester of the program. During this time, students have the opportunity to work with children of different age groups in a variety of settings.
• Field placement provides a continuum of experience that gives students the opportunity to integrate and apply theory to practice.
• To support student learning outcomes and ensure you have access to facilities that reflect the best practices we consider essential, we own and operate 12 child care centres located across the Greater Toronto Area. These lab schools expose you to the kinds of environments where you will eventually work and provide valuable services to the families and communities that they serve.

Program Learning Outcomes

• The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
  • Create learning contexts to enable, build and maintain caring, responsive relationships in partnerships with children, families and communities that value and respect social, cultural and linguistic diversity including Indigenous peoples' worldviews and Francophone identity.
  • Co-create, facilitate and reflect upon inquiry and play-based early years and child care programs and pedagogical approaches to support children's learning, holistic development and well-being following children's capabilities, interests, ideas and experiences.
  • Co-design and maintain inclusive early learning environments to value and support equitable, accessible and meaningful learning opportunities for all children, their families and communities in a range of early years and child care settings.
  • Collaborate with children, families, colleagues, agencies and community partners to create, maintain, evaluate and promote safe and healthy early learning environments to support independence, reasonable risk-taking and healthy development and well-being.
  • Use observation strategies to identify children's strengths and challenges and to ascertain when children and families might benefit from additional support or community resources.
  • Use professional communication in interactions with children, families, colleagues, employers, the regulatory body, government authorities and children's service agencies to meet legal and ethical standards of the early years sector.
  • Act in accordance with relevant legislation, regulations, College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, agency policies and procedures and principles of evidence-informed practice and reflect upon their impact on one's own role in early years and child care settings.
  • Identify, report and document when a child is in a situation of perceived risk for, or actual neglect or abuse, in accordance with legislation, the College of Early Childhood Educators Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, policies and procedures.
  • Create and engage in partnerships with families, communities, colleagues, interdisciplinary professionals, authorities and child service agencies to advocate for quality early years and child care programs and services.
  • Engage in reflective practice and continuous professional learning in accordance with principles of lifelong learning, evidence-informed practices in the early years sector and requirements of the College of Early Childhood Educators.

Accelerated Option (16 Consecutive Months)

• For students who are eager to enter the field of Early Childhood Education and are able to study without any significant breaks, we offer an accelerated stream that runs for 16 consecutive months (4 continuous semesters). For more details visit our Early Childhood Education (Accelerated) (C160) program.

Fast-Track - Ditect Entry (10 Months)

• You may qualify for the fast-track program if you have a diploma or degree in a related field. For details visit program C130.

Honours Bachelor of Early Childhood Leadership (Fast-Track) is a two-year program suitable for those with an Early Childhood Education diploma wishing to pursue a degree in early childhood leadership. This program will prepare you to become a progressive leader in this complex and evolving sector.

We believe that to be a successful leader in this sector, you need to have a deep understanding of both human development and teaching & learning. We’ll guide you through a comprehensive look at each subject as it pertains to early childhood education and practice.

Human Development
As human development plays an ongoing and integral role in our lives, and in particular in a child’s early years, we will expose you to this important topic from a variety of perspectives including:

• Developmental psychology
• Population health
• Neurobiology
• Sociology
• Anthropology

Teaching and Learning

• You’ll also study teaching and learning through an early childhood lens. This will encompass a thorough overview of curriculum planning and design as this forms the foundation of early childhood leadership.
• Prior to completing your degree, you’ll have the opportunity to conduct research that will ultimately support your final thesis.

Your Field Education Options

• To support student learning outcomes and ensure you have access to facilities that reflect the best practices that we consider essential, we own and operate 12 child care centres that are located across the Greater Toronto Area. These lab schools expose you to the kinds of environments where you will eventually work and provide valuable services to the families and communities that they serve.
• Field placement is offered in each year of the program with the longest being a 14-week full-time internship that takes place between Semesters 6 and 7. This internship may be local, elsewhere in Canada or in an international setting.
• While on placement, students are expected to demonstrate their learning through exemplifying the leadership skills they have been taught in class.

Program Learning Outcomes

• The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:
  • Analyze the interacting social and biological forces that collectively shape early brain development and set the stage for lifelong learning, behaviour and health.
  • Respect families’ central role in child-rearing and early learning and the impact of family structures, community support systems, culture and socio-economic status on parenting.
  • Lead the design and implementation of inclusive, effective curricula for young children, based upon a critical analysis of historical perspectives, observation, current research, and understandings of early human development.
  • Develop inclusive early intervention programs that respond to children with identified special needs.
  • Evaluate early childhood programs, engaging stakeholders in the process and addressing diverse needs of young children and families.
  • Acquire self-knowledge, critical thinking skills and professional habits of mind essential to the practice and leadership of early childhood education.
  • Apply research skills, including assessment of the research process, formulation of research questions, and collection and interpretation of data, in a variety of research projects.
  • Establish responsive and reciprocal relationships with children, families, colleagues and other stakeholders.
  • Perform responsibilities in a manner consistent with ethical and professional codes of conduct; in compliance with legislative and legal requirements; and, within the defined scope of practice limitations.
  • Advocate on behalf of children, families, colleagues and the broader community, promoting the principles of quality in early childhood programs.
  • Apply the principles of human resources, financial and facilities management to the operations of an early childhood program.
  • Collaborate with early childhood educators and other professionals in multi-disciplinary or cross-sectoral environments and across diverse domains of practice.
  • Communicate in a professional manner in all verbal, non-verbal and written mediums.