Early Childhood Education (ECE)

About the Program

In this four-semester diploma program, you will learn about the physical, cognitive, social and emotional needs of children. You will understand how to develop and implement inclusive programming in order to support the healthy development of children ranging in age from infancy to school-age.

Your studies will include courses in child development, curriculum. philosophy of education, communication, working with families and administration.

If you choose to study in the summer, you will have the option to earn your Early Childhood Education (ECE) diploma in 16 months.

As a graduate of this program who meets GPA requirements, you are eligible to pursue internal pathway opportunities at Seneca, including the Honours Bachelor of Child Development and Honours Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies.

To practice in Ontario as a Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) graduates must apply for registration with the College of Early Childhood Educators (CECE). Graduates of this program will meet the educational requirement for membership.

Note: If you are currently working in child care and would like to work towards your Certificate of Apprenticeship and ECE diploma at Seneca, please contact your local Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities Apprenticeship Office:

Toronto 416.326.5800
Peel 1-800-736-5520
Markham 905-513-2695

Part-time option is available >

Credential Awarded

Ontario College Diploma

Duration

4 Semesters (2 Years)

Starts

January, May, September

Program and Course Delivery

This program is offered in person. Students are required to come on campus to attend classes.

Skills

Throughout this program you will develop the following skills:

Design healthy, safe, inclusive and engaging environments for children from infancy to school age.
Plan and implement inclusive programming to support children’s development using current theories.
Build positive relationships with children, families, colleagues and other professionals

Work Experience

Field Placement

Field placement is central to the learning experience. You will obtain over 500 field placement hours in a variety of Childcare and Early Years professional settings. These experiences will provide you with the opportunity to integrate classroom learning into practice with groups of children within the community.

Your Career

When you graduate from this program, these are the types of career options you can explore:

Child care centres
Family resource programs
Settlement centres
EarlyON centres
After-school programs
Nursery schools
Parent co-operative centres
Private home child care
Centres for children with special needs
Kindergarten in the elementary school system

Affiliations/Associations

Upon graduation you will qualify to join the following affiliations and associations:

Association of Early Childhood Educators Ontario (AECEO)
The Canadian Association for Young Children (CAYC)
Canadian Child Care Federation (CCCF)
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
The College of Early Childhood Educators (CECE)

Program of Study

Course List
Course Code	Course Name	Weekly Hours
Semester 1
COM101	Communicating Across Contexts	3
or COM111	Communicating Across Contexts (Enriched)
ECE106	Preparation for Early Learning and Care Practice	2
ECE110	Visual Art: In Relationship with Art, Story and Materials	3
ECE112	Wellbeing and Ethics of Care	3
ECE113	Foundations of Pedagogy and Care	3
ECE114	Introduction to Childhood Development	3
plus: General Education Course (1)		3
Semester 2
ECE209	Human Rights and Social Justice in Early Learning and Care	3
ECE213	Pedagogy and Care in Practice	3
ECE214	Observation and Documentation of Children's Development	3
ECE215	Responsive Interpersonal Relationships	3
ECE216	Field Placement: Pre-School Environments	1
plus: General Education Course (1)		3
Semester 3
ECE310	Music and Movement: Experiences Throughout Childhood	3
ECE312	Child Protection: Upholding Responsibilities to Children	3
ECE313	Pedagogy and Care: Infant and Toddler Focus	3
ECE314	Observation and Development: Birth to 3 Years	3
ECE315	Child, Family, and Community	3
ECE316	Field Placement: Infant and Toddler Environments	1
plus: General Education Course (1)		3
Semester 4
ECE409	Philosophy and Models of Early Childhood Education	3
ECE412	Legislation, Advocacy and Social Policy	3
ECE413	Pedagogy and Care: School Age Focus	3
ECE414	Critical Perspective of Childhood Disablement	3
ECE415	Ethics, Professional Practice and Leadership	3
ECE416	Field Placement: School Age Environments	1

¹: This course will not fulfil a General Education requirement.

Note: The following courses will also not fulfil a General Education requirement: COM470 Interpersonal Communication, EAC470 Interpersonal Communications, PSY122 Interpersonal Communications and Group Dynamics, PSY172 Group Dynamics, PSY205 Interpersonal Communication, SOC270 Interpersonal and Intercultural Communications.

Additional

A Standard First Aid Certificate and CPR Basic Rescue Certification are required to graduate from this program.

Program Learning Outcomes

This Seneca program has been validated by the Credential Validation Service as an Ontario College Credential as required by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities.

As a graduate, you will be prepared to reliably demonstrate the ability to:

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.
To 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.
To 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.
To 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.
To 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.
To 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.
To 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.
To 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.
To create and engage in partnerships with families, communities, colleagues, inter-disciplinary professionals, authorities and child service agencies to advocate for quality early years and child care programs and services.
To 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.

Admission Requirements

Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD), or equivalent, or a mature applicant
English: Grade 12 C or U, or equivalent course

Canadian citizens and permanent residents may satisfy the English requirements for this program through successful Seneca pre-admission testing.

Additional Information

To comply with the requirements of field placement organizations, you must have these documents prior to the start of the term. Documents must be valid for the duration of the placement semester:

Vulnerable Sector Police Record Check
Medical form: which includes current immunization and chest x-ray or tuberculin skin test reports
Standard First Aid and CPR-C
International students will need a valid Co-op Work permit.

To prepare for field placement students will receive an email invitation to attend an online Field Placement Orientation session. This session will provide you with helpful tips on how to complete these important documents.

If you are a current or recently accepted student and have questions about field placement documents, please email the field placement team.

Notes

If you have completed a postsecondary degree or diploma, you may apply to the three-semester Early Childhood Education Accelerated (ECYA) program.

International Student Information

International admissions requirements vary by program and in addition to English requirements, programs may require credits in mathematics, biology, and chemistry at a level equivalent to Ontario’s curriculum, or a postsecondary degree or diploma, equivalent to an Ontario university or college. Program-specific pre-requisite courses and credentials are listed with the admission requirements on each program page. To review the academic requirements please visit: Academic Requirements - Seneca, Toronto, Canada (senecapolytechnic.ca).