Postgraduate Diploma in Education (ECE) creates new career path
Like many others, Krissie Emaden used the Covid-19 pandemic as a chance to re-evaluate and find a new calling.
Moving from a long career as a flight attendant into early childhood education was an easy choice for the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (ECE) graduate, who saw the impact that teachers had on families during such a difficult time.
“I loved my time in aviation, but it started to feel more like a routine and the excitement began to fade.
“I realised that teachers made the world a better place during the pandemic, encouraging our children to continue to learn and grow despite what else was happening around the world.”
In search of a program that would help enhance her knowledge and the skills she needed to pursue a career in the early childhood education sector, Emaden appreciated NZTC’s reputation for cultivating teachers with outstanding teaching abilities.
She found that each course in the Postgraduate Diploma was designed to provide her with a strong foundation in early childhood education, building on the soft skills she had already gained.
“My ability to remain patient and composed, traits that were developed and nurtured through my aviation career, were already essential to childcare, and each course served its own purpose for developing these skills and my understanding of ECE further.
“503 – ‘Children and Families in Early Childhood Education’ was an excellent introductory course for people changing careers like myself, while 504 – ‘The Authentic Leader’ and 513 – ‘The Effective Early Childhood Manager’ were instrumental in preparing me with a strong foundation to lead in an ECE context.”
Emaden enjoyed the variety of perspectives and philosophies that were shared throughout her program, with different student backgrounds making the weekly discussions more interesting and encouraging her to contemplate insights that she hadn’t previously considered.
“For example, I learnt through my studies that children possess their own agency and autonomy and that our role as teachers is to support them from behind, only stepping in when they seek assistance.”
Now teaching in an early childhood centre, Emaden loves every day of her new and fulfilling career guiding the next generation.
“Early childhood education is a profession deeply rooted in compassion and the desire to impart knowledge, love and kindness to children, as they absorb and learn from the attitudes and behaviours demonstrated to them.”
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