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CareforKids.com.au October 1, 2013
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New education and care qualifications
qualificationsIn July this year the Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council released a revised training package for the early childhood sector.

This revised package includes six new education and care qualifications at the certificate III, certificate IV and diploma level including:
  • Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care (CHC30113)
  • Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care (CH50113)
According to ACECQA the new Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care replaces the existing Certificate III in Children's Services and aligns more closely with the NQF.

The new Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care replaces the existing Diploma of Children's Services.

Both of the qualifications require work placements and contain revised units of work. For more information on the new qualifications and a list of registered training organisations delivering them visit www.training.gov.au.

It's important to note that the former Certificate III in Children's Services (CHC30712) and Diploma in Children's Services (CHC50908) will remain on ACECQA's approved lists.

Early Childhood Teacher (ECT) Qualifications
To help providers meet ECT requirements in time for next year's deadline ACECQA has determined that a person who holds the following will be recognised as equivalent to an ECT.
  • A primary teaching qualification (qualifications for middle and secondary school are not acceptable) that includes at least a focus on children aged five-eight years old.
  • Teacher registration in Australia (or accreditation in NSW) and
  • An approved education and care diploma or higher qualification published on ACECQA's qualification lists.
Details of this updated approved ECT qualification can be found on the ACECQA website.

Please note this is a transitional arrangement which will be reviewed in 2016.

Early childhood education and care providers who are working towards an ECT qualification can be counted as a certificate III or diploma holder for ratio purposes, or recognised as an ECT under the following conditions:

To be counted as a certificate III-level educator they must meet the following four requirements:
  1. be enrolled in an approved ECT qualification; and
  2. have commenced the course; and
  3. be making satisfactory progress towards completion; and
  4. meet the requirements to maintain enrolment.
To be counted as a diploma-level educator for ratio purposes they need to meet a fifth requirement:
  1. hold an approved certificate III qualification or have completed prescribed certificate III units or completed 30 per cent of the units in your ECT qualification.
The '30% of the units of an approved ECT qualification' represents a new approval by ACECQA to assist ECT students to be counted towards diploma level ratio requirements without having to undertake separate study of an approved certificate III qualification.

Once you have completed 50 per cent of the ECT qualification (or if you already hold an approved diploma-level qualification), you can be counted as an early childhood teacher (from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2015 only).*

For loads more information be sure to read ACECQA's latest newsletter.
* This does not apply if you are working in centre-based services in NSW, which are educating and caring for 30 or more children preschool age or under. Relates to persons who are, or who are taken to be, early childhood teachers under the National Regulations.
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