How to Manage Early Childhood Education
Administering Early Childhood Education
in response to the needs of our time administration has become a specialized area as we realize that trained skill in implementing policy holds the key to the success of an organization.
So it is with children's programs which in the view of this writer serve two purposes, namely: to enrich the lives of children as children and to equip them for further and future living.
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The administration of any program for children should bear these two purposes in mind and constantly evaluate actions against the yardstick of servicing these purposes.
What are Children's Programmes?
Broadly, children's programs include all the activities, knowledge, and skills that are arranged for the benefit of children, usually in a group setting.
Generally, such programs are educative in one way or another even if the aim is not directly educational. Activities could be geared to recreation, custodial care, socialization, skills mastery, or any other focus.
Thus, among the organizations and institutions for children requiring skilled administrators are:
- Nursery schools
- Day-care centers
- Junior schools
- Playgrounds
- kindergartens
- Entertainment programs for sick and handicapped children
- Children's theatre
- Children's choir
- Children's Sunday school
- Children's clubs
- Boys/girls' brigade
- Boy scouts
- Girl's guides E.T.C
The position of this writer is that the administration of children's programs should be allowed and encouraged to become a specialized area in the same way as hospital administration has become. The unique and delicate condition of children justifies this position.
Who Should Administer Children's Programmes?
In Nigeria, issues concerning children have not received nearly as much attention or generated as much enthusiasm as they deserve despite the platitudes about the future belonging to children, and they are being the future leaders. There is nothing much to administer in the public realm.
However, it should be noted that those who administer children's programs should be psychologically and professionally equipped
Some experienced men and women have a deep and humane interest, devotion, and commitment to children's welfare and their proper upbringing.
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Such persons, when they have had experience working with children in one capacity or another, and have matured socially and experientially would require some professional work in human and child development as well as in administrative theory.
This could be through workshops, seminars, or outright diploma or degree work in administrative processes in general or was available in administration of children's programs in particular or failing that in educational administration.
Even in industrialized countries like the USA, degree programs in the administration of children's programs are probably of recent origin and not exactly common.
Conceptualization of Administrative Theory
According to Stevens (1975), Getzels, Lipham, and Campbell (1968), Getzel outlined three conceptualizations of administrative theory as follows:
- A management orientation
- A human relations orientation
- A social science orientation.
- The management-oriented administrator tends to focus on the task or product of the organization and devise the most efficient method of accomplishing that task. He is generally highly directive and authoritative, decision-making is at the top, and workers are assigned tasks that could be rewarded for the quality or quantity of output. There is a high rate of centralization as the manager has the responsibility to oversee and evaluate the performance of workers.
- The administrator with the human relations orientation tries to coordinate things and activities so that mutually arrived at the organization's objectives are achieved. Workers are heavily involved in policymaking, policy implementation, and monitoring their activities. This process deepens worker's commitment and results in a feeling of belonging. It is unlikely that organizations run this way would have alienated and depersonalized workers because of the personal leadership followership style.
- The third type, the social science orientation, is a cross between the managerial and the human relations style. Here, the challenge is to identify the tasks which the organization wishes accomplished and then to manage human behavior efficiently enough to accomplish the tasks. Getzels, Lipham, and Campbell (1968) observed that the transactional style of leadership is commonly adopted by those who have the social science orientation and that as circumstances present, they utilize the directive or co-ordinating approach.
Critique of Conceptualization of Administrative Theory in the Light of Administrative Reality
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Since flexibility is a constant watchword of those who are charged with the care of children, a system that enables workers to exercise initiative and to identify closely with the fortunes of the organization seems ideal.
The Administrator's Scope and Functions
Providing Children's Needs
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ordinator, supporting service staff are desirable Meetings help the administrator to see these lieutenants at close quarters understand the way they think or perceive their work listen to their problems all of which assist the administrator to pick up administrative skills and supervisory confidence.
List of organizations structure
- Board of Governors
- Supervisor (Probably the Proprietor)
- Parent-Teacher Association
- Administrative Head
- Parent Advisory Committee(Probably the Headmistress)
- Co-ordinator Supporting Services
- Sectional Coordinator or Ass.
- Head Sectional Coordinator or Asst. Head
- Sectional Co-ordinator or Asst. Head
- Classroom teachers
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