To reflect upon your own decision to work in ECEC.
Evidence and reflection
Write for yourself a short summary about how you felt when you began to work with young children for the first time. If appropriate, also record you feelings at the point of qualifying/completing your initial training.
Extension
Read what you have written and highlight where you have made reference to specific value commitments. List these, and try to identify personal experiences that informed why they were so important. (For example: to ensure children have time to play – because I am concerned young children do not have enough free play opportunities.)
Share your thinking with a colleague or fellow student and discuss the range of motivations which inform ‘becoming an early years practitioner’.
You may find that some of the reasons are more practical than others (for example: I took the job as it allowed me to work and still collect my daughter from school). It is important that you are honest with yourself. We all make decisions based upon multiple factors. Think about how, if at all, your motives and values have changed over time.
