Masters Degree in Early Childhood Education

A masters degree in early childhood education prepares you for an exciting career teaching preschool, kindergarten, and the early grades of elementary school. This degree differs from other teaching masters programs because it focuses on the education of children during these formative years.

Many early childhood education masters programs are closely aligned with the standards set forth by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, commonly known as NAEYC. This organization has essentially written the book on what constitutes excellence in early childhood education. Daycares and private kindergartens that meet NAEYC’s standards are awarded a much sought-after accreditation. Therefore it is not uncommon for a master of early childhood education to uphold similar standards.

A masters in early childhood education will instruct you on how to effectively manage your classroom, make lesson plans, assess individual student growth, and tailor your teaching strategies in order to reduce the usually sizeable gap between the best and worst students in every class. In addition, this degree will teach the theories of child psychology, child development, and cultural diversity so that you may understand your students better, and therefore provide them with a higher quality education.

Career Options with an Early Childhood Education Masters Degree

The most obvious career path for someone with a master of early childhood education is to teach. There has been an increasing demand in recent years for more highly qualified preschool and kindergarten teachers; parents and school systems want to know that young children are getting the best possible start to more than a decade of learning. With an early childhood education masters, you may choose to work in a daycare, an elite preschool, a private school or a private kindergarten, or even a government-sponsored program such as Head Start. In addition, this degree will give you the credentials you will need if you choose to open up your own preschool or private kindergarten.

Another career option that many people don’t consider is teaching. With a masters in early childhood education, you are easily qualified to teach these same principles to college students and aspiring teachers.

Is a Masters in Early Childhood Education Right for You?

The most common theme among students and graduates of an early childhood education masters program is that they all love kids. If this sounds like you, chances are the work needed to complete this degree, and indeed your entire career, will feel to you like play rather than work. A good candidate for a masters degree in early childhood education may already be a teacher, though of course this is not a necessity. But you should definitely like children enough to want to spend your career teaching them, or at the very least teaching others about them.

Schools offering an Early Childhood Education Masters Degree