EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIALIST DEFINITION:
Under direction, provides services to day care centers, with regard to teaching techniques, to aide teachers in communication with children and staff; edits an in-house newspaper; does other related duties as required.
NOTE: The examples of work for this title are for illustrative purposes only. A particular position using this title may not perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all duties performed on the job may not be listed.
NOTE: Appointments may be made to positions requiring bilingual skills.
07424 - Bilingual in Spanish and English SPECIAL SKILL Applicants must be able to read, write, speak, understand, or communicate in Spanish and English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position.
EXAMPLES OF WORK:
Visits day care centers in the county to observe educational programs.
Assesses and identifies needs for staff development, curriculum, assistance, and program enrichment, for long range and short term planning to meet needs.
Discusses content of the observation with day care staff.
Plans and develops training programs and workshops to meet needs of day care centers.
Maintains a Child Care Directory of private and public programs serving children.
Maintains community resources that can be used by day care centers containing library books, filmstrips, records, pamphlets, and flyers.
Collects information from the day care centers and other units concerning new programs, attitudes, and special projects.
Edits in-house paper.
Helps to implement health and nutrition education workshops with the Head Coordinator.
Provides assistance to the advisory council in the development of specific programs.
Confers with parents and community groups to get them involved with day care centers.
Attends meetings to discuss program goals and objectives.
Prepares written reports of activities for submission to the Director.
Keeps records and files.
Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
REQUIREMENTS:
NOTE:Applicants must meet one of the following or a combination of both experience and education. Thirty (30) semester-hour credits are equal to one (1) year of relevant experience.
Five (5) years of professional experience in coordinating programs in early childhood education on an administrative level.
OR
Possession of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university; and one (1) year of the above-mentioned professional experience.
OR
Possession of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university; and two (2) years of professional experieince as a teacher.
NOTE:"Professional experience" refers to work that is analytical, evaluative, and interpretive; requires a range of basic knowledge of the profession's concepts and practices; and is performed with the authority to act and make accurate and informed decisions.
LICENSE:
Appointee will be required to possess a driver's license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform the essential duties of the position.
KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES:
Knowledge of theories and methods of learning and teaching techniques for preschool and elementary students.
Knowledge of educational problems encountered by preschool children.
Knowledge of problems day care center teachers have in communicating to preschool children.
Ability to analyze, comprehend, and interpret problems pertinent to the work involved.
Ability to organize assigned work and develop effective work methods.
Ability to establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with staff and day care center teachers.
Ability to evaluate teaching techniques and procedures.
Ability to exercise independent judgment in evaluating situations and for making determinations.
Ability to plan and arrange workshops.
Ability to prepare informative articles and news releases for the public.
Ability to prepare clear, concise, accurate, and informative reports.
Ability to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in English sufficiently to perform duties of this position. American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable forms of communication.
Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as long as they can perform essential functions of the job after reasonable accommodation is made to their known limitations. If the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.
