Administrative Rules of Montana
Department 10 - EDUCATION
Chapter 10.58 - PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAM STANDARDS
Subchapter 10.58.5 - Teaching Areas: Specific Standards
Rule 10.58.531 - EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
Universal Citation: MT Admin Rules 10.58.531
Current through Register Vol. 18, September 20, 2024
(1) The program requires that successful candidates:
(a)
identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of child development by:
(i) demonstrating an understanding of early
childhood (birth-age 8) characteristics and needs across multiple, interrelated
areas of children's development and learning including physical, cognitive,
social, emotional, language, and aesthetic domains as well as learning
processes, bilingual/multilingual development, and motivation to learn;
and
(ii) understanding and valuing
developmental variations, experiences, strengths, interests, abilities,
challenges, and approaches to learning for all children;
(b) base their practice on coherent early
childhood theoretical perspectives, current understanding of the influence of
theory and research about brain growth and development, executive function,
motivation, the importance of play, and dispositions toward learning on
development;
(c) apply their
understanding of the multiple influences on the contexts of young children's
development and learning including family, community, cultural, and linguistic
contexts, temperament, approaches, and dispositions to learning (including
initiative, self-direction, persistence, and attentiveness), motivation,
attachment, economic conditions, health status, opportunities for play and
learning, technology and media, and developmental variations;
(d) understand the potential influence of
early childhood programs, including early intervention, on short- and long-term
outcomes for children; and
(e)
demonstrate the ability to use developmental knowledge including strengths of
families and children to create physically and psychologically safe learning
environments that are healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging for
children, with full family engagement in establishing the most effective
environment for their child.
(2) The program ensures that successful candidates identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of family and community partnerships by:
(a) knowing about,
understanding, and valuing the complex characteristics and importance of
children's families and communities including home language, cultural values,
ethnicity, socioeconomic conditions, family structures, relationships,
stresses, childhood trauma and adverse childhood experiences, supports, and
community resources;
(i) understanding the
effects of childhood trauma on social, emotional, physical, and behavioral
development and be able to demonstrate trauma-informed classroom management
strategies; and
(ii) demonstrating
a knowledge of the implications of secondary trauma on whole-child
well-being;
(b)
collaborating with families as equal partners in creating respectful,
reciprocal relationships;
(c)
promoting and encouraging family engagement in all aspects of children's
development and learning including assisting families to find curriculum and
refer resources concerning parenting, mental health, health care, and financial
assistance; and
(d) demonstrating
essential knowledge and core skills in team building and in communicating with
families and colleagues from other disciplines to encourage and value families'
participation in curriculum and program development as well as assessment of
children's learning.
(3) The program ensures that successful candidates identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of observation, documentation, and assessment by:
(a) understanding the importance of different
types of developmentally appropriate assessments, including, but not limited
to, observation, portfolio assessment, and work samples, as well as the
importance of providing play-based experiences for children to demonstrate
their skills and abilities;
(b)
understanding the goals of assessment to summarize, analyze, and use assessment
information gathered to:
(i) learn about
children's characteristics, including the unique qualities of American
Indians;
(ii) document all
children's growth in all developmental domains and promote positive outcomes
for each child;
(iii) make
data-driven decisions to guide curriculum planning and instruction;
and
(iv) evaluate effective
curriculum to maximize children's development and learning;
(c) understanding assessments that
have established reliability and validity that consider children's development,
ability, culture, and language.
(4) The program ensures that successful candidates identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of teaching and engagement by:
(a) utilizing the environment,
schedule, and routine as learning opportunities, including:
(i) designing learning centers and interest
areas for indoor and outdoor spaces;
(ii) scheduling extended time for play;
and
(iii) teaching through
individual and small group contexts that personalize the learning for the
child;
(b) creating a
caring community of learners that:
(i)
supports positive relationships among educators, families, and
children;
(ii) promotes the
development of children's social, emotional, and friendship skills;
and
(iii) assists children in the
development of security, self-regulation responsibility, and problem
solving;
(c) utilizing a
broad repertoire of developmentally appropriate teaching skills and strategies
supportive of young learners, such as:
(i)
incorporating play, project based and experiential learning as core teaching
practices;
(ii) integrating
curricular areas;
(iii) scaffolding
learning;
(iv) personalization of
learning
(v) teaching through
social interactions;
(vi) providing
meaningful child choice;
(vii)
implementing positive guidance strategies; and
(viii) making appropriate use of
technology;
(d)
providing curriculum and learning experiences that reflect the principles of
universal design for learning, the languages, cultures, traditions, and
individual needs of diverse families and children, with particular attention to
the cultures of the children and families in the classroom and to American
Indians and tribes in Montana.
(5) The program ensures that successful candidates identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of curriculum by:
(a) designing, implementing, and evaluating
developmentally meaningful, integrated, and challenging curriculum for each
child using professional knowledge, Montana's Early Learning Standards, Montana
Content Standards (K-5), and Indian Education for All; and
(b) integrating and supporting in-depth
learning using both spontaneous and planned curricula and teaching practices in
each of the academic discipline content areas including language and literacy;
science; mathematics; social studies; the performing and visual arts; health
and well-being; and physical development, skills, and fitness by:
(i) demonstrating knowledge and understanding
of theory and research and applying knowledge in the areas of language,
speaking and listening, reading and writing processes, literature, print and
non-print texts, which are inclusive of texts from and about American Indians
and tribes in Montana, and technology; and planning, implementing, assessing,
and reflecting on English/language arts and literacy instruction that promotes
critical thinking and creative engagement;
(ii) demonstrating knowledge, understanding,
and use of the fundamental concepts of physical, life, earth, and space
sciences to design and implement age-appropriate inquiry lessons to teach
science, to build student understanding for personal and social applications,
to convey the nature of science, the concepts in science and technology, the
history and nature of science, including scientific contributions of American
Indians and tribes in Montana;
(iii) demonstrating knowledge, understanding,
and use of the major concepts, and procedures, and reasoning processes of
mathematics that define number systems and number sense, operations, algebra,
geometry, measurement, data analysis statistics and probability in order to
foster student understanding and use of patterns, quantities, and spatial
relationships that can represent phenomena, solve problems, and deal with data
to engage students in problem solving, reasoning and proof, communication,
connections, and representation, including culturally inclusive lessons and
examples relating to American Indians and tribes in Montana;
(iv) demonstrating knowledge, understanding,
and use of the major concepts and modes of inquiry from the social studies, the
integrated study of history, government, geography, economics including
personal financial literacy, and an understanding of the social sciences and
other related areas to promote students' abilities to make informed decisions
as citizens of a culturally diverse democratic society, including the cultural
diversity of American Indians and tribes in Montana, and interdependent
world;
(v) demonstrating knowledge,
understanding, and use of the content, functions, and achievements of the
performing arts (dance, music, drama) and the visual arts as primary media for
communication, inquiry, perspective, and engagement among students, and
culturally diverse performing and visuals arts inclusive of the works of
American Indian artists and art in Montana;
(vi) demonstrating knowledge, understanding,
and use of the major concepts in the subject matter of health education to
create opportunities for student development and practice of skills that
contribute to good health for all young children; and
(vii) demonstrating knowledge, understanding,
and use of human movement and physical activity as central elements to foster
active, healthy life styles, including health nutrition, and enhanced quality
of life for all students;
(c) basing curriculum planning on the
understanding of the particular significance of social, emotional, and
behavioral development as the foundation for young children's school readiness
and future achievements.
(6) The program ensures that successful candidates identify, apply, and reflect on their knowledge of professionalism by:
(a) identifying and involving oneself
with the distinctive history, values, knowledge base, and mission of the early
childhood field to become an informed advocate for all young children and their
families.
(b) upholding and using
state and national codes of ethical conduct for the education of young children
and other applicable regulations and guidelines;
(c) collaborating with multiple stakeholders,
including:
(i) teachers in preceding and
subsequent grade levels to increase continuity and coherence across
ages/grades;
(ii) families and
interdisciplinary professionals to meet the developmental needs of each child;
and
(iii) relevant community and
state resources to build professional early learning networks that support high
quality early learning experiences for young children and their
families;
(d) using
formal and informal assessments, early learning professional knowledge,
reflection, collaborative relationships, and critical thinking to analyze and
continuously improve professional practices with young children and their
families;
(e) engaging in
continuous, collaborative learning to inform practice; and
(f) developing and sustaining the habit of
reflective and intentional practice in their daily work with young
children.
(7) The program ensures successful completion of clinical and student teaching experiences that:
(a) are well-planned and
sequenced in a variety of settings (i.e., state-licensed child care, Head
Start, or community programs);
(b)
provide the opportunity to connect early childhood classroom experiences to
home and community settings;
(c)
include experience in two different age groups (grades 3-6 and grades 5-8);
and
(d) include a K-3 student
teaching experience in a P-12 school setting.
AUTH: 20-2-114, MCA; IMP: 20-2-121, MCA
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