BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies

Our course will give you a fascinating insight into the way children experience their childhoods and how that experience influences them as they develop. You’ll look at childhood from a range of different critical perspectives and explore the factors that influence the childhood experience. You’ll examine issues such as health, early-years legislation, and global inequalities in childhood. You’ll have the opportunity to work on projects in the local community, applying your developing knowledge by devising practical solutions to real-life problems. Early childhood is a well-established and popular area of study at UEL. Our academic team comes from a broad range of professional backgrounds and cultures and, together, they have more than 100 years of experience in the field. Early Childhood Studies is available online.

Foundation Year(If Required)

• Mental Wealth: Introduction to academic and professional identity/practice
• Introduction to Early Childhood, Special Needs and Education
• Social, Emotional, and Mental Health
• Placements in Context – Play and learning
• Skills for Academic and Professional Writing
• Research in Practice: Live Project

Year 1

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 1
• Exploring Social Worlds
• Key Principles for Inclusion
• Emerging Research Communities
• Practice module Part 1
• Practice module Part 2

Year 2

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 2
• Identity and Social Justice
• Building Research Communities
• Contemporary issues in Education
• Practice module
• Practice module

Online Modules

• Issues and Controversies in Early Childhood Development (core)
• Observing, Documenting, and Researching with Children, Families, and Practitioners (core)
• Social Policy for Children and Families (core)
• Advocating for Children: National and International Contexts (core)

This course offers the opportunity of year-long placement between years two and three. If you choose to take this option, you’ll spend your third year on a placement with a relevant company or organization, adding valuable practical experience to your growing academic knowledge. The extra placement year means it will take four years to complete your studies, instead of three.

Year 3

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 3
• Critical and global perspectives on education
• Practice module
• Practice module
• Active Research Communities

Online Modules

• Early Childhood Research Dissertation (core)
• Leading and Managing Partnerships in the Early Years (core)
• Inclusion and Diversity in the Early Years (core)
• Multimodal Learning in Early Childhood (core)

Employability

Early Childhood Studies gives you the skills and knowledge to work in a wide range of jobs with children and for children and their families. Graduates have taken jobs in local government, the NHS, charities, housing associations, and day nurseries. Their roles have included childcare project managers, family support workers, play co-ordinators, out-of-school project managers, and classroom/education assistants. The University of East London has strong and trusted relationships with local schools, childcare organizations, and loyal alumni. This means you’ll have plenty of contact with potential employers through work placements, mentoring, and guest lecturers.