ELCC 1210 Student

ELCC Certificate practicum (ELCC 1210 and ELCC 1220) happen on Tuesday and Thursday and require you to be in program on these days for full days.  Practicum runs for the entire term. ELCC 1210 was previously known as ELCC 210 and ELCC 1220 was previously known as ELCC 220.

ELCC 1210 is a field placement course designed to increase the student's awareness of their professional practice. It is through thoughtful and purposeful consideration of practice that it can be improved. This course emphasizes programming for and responding to children based on observations of children’s needs and interests. The practicum component of the Early Learning and Child Care Program provides opportunities for students to maximize their course learning through written reflection, professional dialogue, and practical application. In the first year certificate practicum, students are expected to gain skills in child care practices, focusing on improving their responsiveness to children. 

As cited in AECEA's (2020) Getting It Right position paper, Nutbrown (2015) says "Early childhood educators are the most valuable asset in any early years setting. They are the single biggest contributor to the quality of provision, and they can be the driving force towards improvement. They are also often what parents and caregivers value most when choosing early education and child care. It is absolutely essential that we have...[well-educated] practitioners working with babies and young children. To do that, we need to ensure we recruit the best people and give them a high standard of training and support” (p. 28-29)

After the following deadlines have passed, students cannot register in a practicum course, regardless of the seats that may be available. Our registration deadlines exists months before the start of term in order to allow our Ed Practicum Office (CEED Centre) time to properly arrange placements for all of our students. Our practicum placement personnel work diligently to ensure that students have completed all the prerequisites, submitted the required documentation, and are placed in a suitable practicum location. We also work with a large number of practicum partners who require advance notice to be able to locate suitable practicum mentors, verify site eligibility, and provide legal documentation required for placement.

Fall Term: July 1

Winter Term: November 1

Spring Term: March 1

If you feel that you have extenuating circumstances, please contact edpracticum@rdpolytech.ca to discuss.

1. Confirm the course requirements for your practicum. If you are unsure if you meet the course requirements, see your Academic Planning Guide for your program. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are eligible for your practicum course. Students who are not eligible will be dropped during a routine prerequisite check. If you have not met the prerequisites for your practicum course, you will not have the necessary background to successfully complete your practicum. You will need to defer your practicum to another term. Please reach out to an Academic Advisor in our Student Connect Centre at www.rdpolytech.ca/advising to discuss. If you make any changes to your registration that may affect prerequisites, you must inform the Ed Practicum Office (CEED Centre) at edpracticum@rdpolytech.ca.

2. Review the Guidelines for ELCC Practicums.  This document provides an overview of the different placement types (working, non-working distance, and non-working Red Deer area) and placement criteria for those who are completing a working or non-working distance placement.  

3. Submit the Practicum Request Form. After the registration deadline has passed for the term, students who are registered or waitlisted in a practicum course will be emailed (via RDP email) a Practicum Checklist, which will include the Practicum Request Form. This form is used to initiate the placement request process for your practicum. 

** If the information that you provide in your Practicum Request Form changes between the submission deadline and the start of practicum, this may require that you postpone practicum to a later term. Changes may include (but are not limited to) a loss/change of employment, a reduction in hours, moving to a different community, or closure of the program you have requested.    

4. Review the ELCC Required Documents  webpage for information about the different documents required for practicum and how to submit these documents to our office.

5. Review the ELCC Student FAQ.  

6. Check your RDP email (@rdpolytech.ca) on a frequent basis! Your RDP email (available through the Loop) is activated within 24 hours of registration in classes. If you do not have access to your RDP email, contact RDP IT Services immediately. You will receive a communication from the CEED Centre (edpracticum@rdpolytech.ca) with information regarding your placement within the first few weeks of the term. At the beginning of term, students will complete practicum orientation seminars as part of their practicum experience. Flexibility with confirmation is required as the CEED Centre  works with a large number of division partners to determine successful placements.  

7. Carefully review the information that has been provided in the sections below in further preparation for your practicum placement

Students are expected to behave in a professional manner at all times, including arriving on-time, dressing appropriately and communicating effectively. Since each practicum placement has unique characteristics, the specific expectations and responsibilities may vary somewhat but should include:

• Interaction with children

• Observation of individual children and groups of children

• Daily planning and preparation of activities based on observations (mostly in ELCC 1220)

• Collecting resource ideas and materials

• Conversing with parents, peers and other professionals

•  Completing DAILY child documentation (occurs daily using correct format)

  • 1210 is observations

  • 1220 is observations and activity planning

• Attending staff meetings and professional development, if invited 

• Review the specific practicum level expectations within your Blackboard course site, on the specific course outlines, and on the evaluation forms

In addition, each student will have different needs and interests within each practicum situation, and the specific practicum goals and objectives may be achieved in different ways.  The Practicum Facilitator will assist to determine the makeup of each student’s practicum experience. 

To prepare for an observation visit from the Professional Practice Advisor (PPA), the student is expected to facilitate this visit between the Advisor and the practicum placement.  In collaboration with the PPA, the Mentor and the placement, students are expected to schedule the visit day and time and to arrange time to meet individually with the PPA following each visit (for at least a half hour).  This could be scheduled during breaks, during the noon hour, or after hours.  If a student is IN RATIO, he/she may need to arrange for time after the visit to complete the follow-up meeting.

Besides fulfilling the practicum hours, students must participate in/complete:

1. Orientation Workshops at the start of the practicum

2. Weekly Seminar activities and discussions(either in face-to face ‘A’ classes or through online ‘Z’ activities) to help bridge ELCC theory and practice.

3. Engage in ongoing 3-way Professional Dialogue among the student, the PPA and RDC Seminar Instructor to reflect on experiences and further professional growth. 

4. Practicum Assignments submitted to the Seminar Instructor.

Critical factors in the student's development as a professional are:

• Commitment to the children

• Team skills with other caregivers

• Active involvement in providing quality care and programming for young children and their families.

Absences

1. Any absence must be made up.

2. If other educators within the program are attending PD days, Collaborative days etc., student educators could as well. An exception would be if the educator or administration specifically says otherwise.

3. If you are ill, contact both your Practicum Mentor and your PPA directly.

Snow Days, Bus & Program Cancellations

If the buses are not running but schools/programs are open this often means that educators' who can get to the school/program safely will and those who cannot get to the school/program safely will not. Professional and personal judgement comes into play here for you. Although each school/program expectations may vary, often there is an expectation that educators make a reasonable effort to attend work.  Confirm with your Practicum Mentor what the expectation for the school/program that you are in. 

Whatever the choice is, communication is KEY.  ELCC practicum students must communicate with the cooperating educator and PPA and make the best decision for their safety.  

• Your practicum textbooks are listed within your course outline, which can be accessed on the practicum page for your level.  However, it is beneficial to be familiar with the Alberta Flight curriculum at  https://flightframework.ca/. 

• The Association of Early Childhood Educators of Alberta (AECEA) is a non-profit, member-based society comprising early childhood educators, out of school care staff, child care staff/contractors, post-secondary ELCC students and faculty members, and other groups and individuals who support the goals of the AECEA. Born out of the Alberta Child Care Network Association and the Early Childhood Professional Association of Alberta (obtained from AECEA's website).  For more information about AECEA you can visit their site at https://aecea.ca/about-us.