Personal Statement: Early Childhood Education

¶ … children and I have been privileged that most of the focus of my work experience has been in this field. At present I have completed my A.A. In early childhood education and I am seeking the deeper and more in-depth understanding of the field that only a four-year undergraduate degree can provide. The Early Care and Education program of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst is ideally suited to my professional needs, orientation, and aptitudes.

The UMass program in Early Care and Education was specifically created to help childcare workers already in the field of practice obtain a degree while still working full-time. Many Head Start and other educational programs for young children now require a B.A. As part of the requirements of the job, or will do so in the future. This is understandable -- it is an acknowledgement of the knowledge needed of psychology, early development, and other aspects of a child's life to make working in early care as productive and supportive of a child's education as possible. That is why I have decided to embark upon my own educational journey and obtain my four-year degree. I wish to expand my vocational opportunities in the field and not be limited in any way.

However, I also wish and need to continue to work while completing my education. Through the UMass University Without Walls concept, I would be able to obtain my degree online, thus giving me the flexibility required to obtain an education while still working. This would be the ideal way to merge theoretical and practical experience as well, since the concepts I was learning in the online classroom would be reinforced by the hands-on experience I was gaining while I was still in the labor force. The UMass program also offers scholarship assistance and credit for work experience.

The UMass program would also allow me to customize its resources to specifically focus on my needs as an educator. Just as every child is different, so is every teacher, and every teacher has different needs. I am particularly interested in the program's emphasis on multiculturalism. I work with a very diverse range of students in terms of their ethnicities, cultures, special needs, and learning abilities. It is always a challenge in classroom management to balance all of these competing interests. Obtaining a four-year degree would better enable me to engage in effective classroom management and lesson planning. It would make me more reflexive and responsive as an educator.