Careers

Careers in Early Childhood Education and Care

There are many different ways for men to enter the early childhood educationand care profession, whether through an internship, by studying social education at an applied sciences university or by obtaining a university degree in education and there are a variety of career options in the field.

In Germany, the most common way into the field is vocational training on tertiary school level. Qualified pedagogical personnel in Early Childhood and Care (ECEC) facilities have the professional title “Erzieher”, which means “educator”; the term “teacher” is not used in connection with pre-school children. Educators often work in ECEC facilities, but may also be employed in other areas of child and youth welfare work. The training lasts four or five years altogether and includes preparatory on-the-job training as well as several years of vocational school. Over the past years, an increasing number of universities and colleges have introduced Bachelor degree programs in ECE as well.

The Coordination Centre for Men in Early Childhood Education and Care provides information on career paths and recent developments, proposes new vocational training paths and facilitates gender-sensitive learning and teaching concepts, not only to increase the percentage of men working in ECEC, but also to promote successful working relationships between male and female professionals in the field.

If you are interested in receiving further information on the work of Coordination Centre for Men in ECEC, please contact:

Jens Krabel. 

krabel(at)koordination-maennerinkitas.de