The module deals with the meaning scope, significance and principles of Early Childhood Care and Education. It also covers the two major philosophies of pre-school education which are the Montessori philosophy and the kindergarten method of education. The teacher trainees are also introduced to the various methods and materials of the preschool education (to make them competent to conduct their classes independently and creatively), e.g. the outdoor and indoor games, storytelling and dramatization, art and craft activities and the nurturing creativity etc.
Diploma in Nursery Teacher Education (3-8)
MNTTA Diploma in Nursery Teacher Education (DNTE) course is carefully structured and integrated with class room teaching, case discussions, hands-on industry experience with internship/observations and project work. It grooms its graduates to become capable of teaching in Nursery/Kindergarten modern schools effectively and independently.
This course is designed for students of education, curriculum and child development, as well as traditional educators, early childhood educators, parents, caregivers and school administrators.
Course Curriculum
The students have six modules encompassing all teaching fields imparting all the basic skills and knowledge desired from any school administrator in the contemporary world. These include :
1. Early Childhood care and education : An Overview
2. Curriculum Planning and Teaching Techniques
This module covers the two important aspects of teaching which are :
- The planning of curriculum.
- The techniques of teaching. The module covers essential aspects of creating a learning environment and teaching various modules like language, mathematics, environmental studies and social studies to the preschoolers in an interesting manner.
3. Child Health and Nutrition
This is an important module for the teacher trainee as it deals with the physical well being of the students whom she is going to deal with. It covers the important issues related to the well being of children like food and nutrition, health care of children, common childhood illness, their prevention and management. It gives the pre-school teachers an insight into the health and nutritional issues of students and equip her to understand them better.
4. Organization and Management of a School
It covers the general principles pertaining to the aims and objectives of a school, the role of a teacher, principal and the school discipline. Student teachers are introduced to the management of school records and registers and also the budget and financial aspects of school. The trainees are also trained to deal with parents and community effectively through this module.
5. Child Psychology and Development
The topics which this module covers mainly deals with the social, emotional and cognitive development that occurs in a pre-school child. This module guides a teacher trainee to understand the various stages of child development and how she can be an effective help in bringing out the best in children. It also covers the important topics of children with special needs and managing children with difficult behavior which helps a teacher to accept and understand diversity in her students and in turn become a successful teacher.
6. Art and Craft Activities
In order to encourage creativity in children, a teacher needs to be creative herself to inspire her students. To develop the creative learning’s of trainee teachers, various projects involving art and craft activities are done with the trainees. The art and craft activities like origami, spray painting, leaf printing, thumb and finger printing, paper & cloth collage, sequin and glass work etc. foster the creativity of the teachers making their teaching more rewarding and fun.