The first day of any new adventure is usually fraught with a few nerves and uncertainty about what to expect.
For our Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care students, their first morning on Wednesday delivered more than they had planned.
Arriving at the new Early Childhood Education (ECE) facilities at Chisholm’s Frankston campus, they changed into their uniforms to join a meet and greet and a discussion with the Parliamentary Secretary for Early Childhood Education, Sonya Kilkenny. Ms Kilkenny was joined by local Member for Frankston, Paul Edbrooke.
The discussion opened with a welcome and congratulations on their decision to study, and their chosen careers. It was an opportunity for students to speak directly with the Secretary and to share their decision-making process and journeys towards TAFE.
For many, it was a calling, and they had long wanted to work with children. For other students, it was their family and friends who had identified their passion for education.
The Victorian State Government is investing almost $5 billion over the next decade to provide access to a full 15 hours per week of subsidised three-year-old kindergarten by 2029, to be progressively rolled out from this year.
Ms Kilkenny said the program will be gradually introduced into kindergartens and day-care centres across the state over the next decade.
“By investing in this workforce, and by investing in our children today, we are building a better future for the whole community,” Ms Kilkenny said.
This year, the State Government ushered in the start of two new Free TAFE courses in ECE - Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care (CHC30113), and the Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care (CHC50113). The courses, added to the Free TAFE list from 2020, is one way the state government is hoping to fill thousands of jobs that will become available over the next five years as the kinder program is extended by an additional year, to include three-year-olds.
Chisholm CEO, Stephen Varty, said the visit by the Parliamentary Secretary, and Member for Frankston was a fantastic opportunity to showcase the new ECE facilities at Frankston campus.
“We have the latest in teaching facilities and environments that reflect industry best practice.
For Early Childhood Education, we have playrooms and technologies to support our teachers to deliver the best in education, and that provide the best learning experiences for our students. We work with industry to start placement from Term 2, and this prepares our students to be work-ready and connected with their professional peers, even before they graduate,” Mr Varty said.
The Frankston campus Early Childhood Education facilities are part of the $85 million Stage 1 redevelopment of the campus, which was completed and launched in 2019. The Learning and Innovation Precinct has a focus on connecting learning with industry, so that students can begin their careers having had experience in a real-world work environment.
