Educator Apprentice, Intermediate Educator, OR Educator - Early Learning Center - UTK

The primary purpose of this position is to facilitate the mission of the Early Learning (ELC) - to foster scientific understanding of young children’s development. The ELC accomplishes this mission through (a) interdisciplinary research, (b) academic programs for undergraduate and graduate students, (c) early education programs for young children, and (d) outreach, advocacy, and public policy. All three levels of the Educator position - Educator Apprentice, Intermediate Educator, and Educator - are an integral part of the teaching and research mission of the ELC, providing direct training, mentoring, and supervision to undergraduate and graduate students in the program, as well as day-to-day supervision of and education programming for children in the laboratory school setting. More information about the ELC is available at elc.utk.edu. 

Educator Apprentice

Early Childhood Education Classroom Support

• Works with other classroom teachers to provide high quality early care and supervision of children 

• Designs and provides responsive structures, interaction, and communication to meet children’s developmentally and culturally situated needs for routine care and both physical and emotional health and safety

• Upholds child-care licensing regulations; constructs and maintains classroom systems for compliance with multiple sets/sources of health and safety regulations

• Designs and implements responsive and developmentally appropriate embedded instructional support for children’s skill development across domains and learning contexts

• Documents children’s health and safety including injuries, illness, symptoms, and routines

• Communicates with families about children’s daily needs and care updates, and significant incidents

   

Child Curriculum and Assessment

• Foundations-level curriculum planning focusing on skills-based curriculum and developmental norms

• Applies knowledge base in human development and learning theory to curriculum decisions which support children’s development and learning in all developmental domains and content areas

• Plans and implements developmentally appropriate learning environments

• Designs and implements social-emotional curriculum, strategies, and interventions in multiple contexts

• Administers screening tools for assessment of children’s development and learning

• Contributes to child assessment processes by collecting assigned observations

Laboratory Classroom Operations / Academic Programs Support 

• Models high quality care and supervision of children for undergraduate practicum students, graduate students, pre-service teachers, and paid student workers engaged in the classroom

• Models recommended anti-bias education practices

• Responsible for communicating, instructing, and advising students and part-time/substitute teachers to prioritize quality control and maintenance of both regulations and approaches

• Leads team of students and teachers in the classroom in the absence* of the Demonstration Educator

• Manages the team of students and teachers along with comprehensive management of the routines and needs of the children in the absence* of the Demonstration Educator

*consistently 10-20 hours weekly, per classroom schedule, in addition to any hours/days the Demonstration Educator takes leave, participates in conference or other dissemination activity, and/or is unexpectedly absent

In addition to duties in Educator Apprentice position, Intermediate Educator dutie