Description: This self-directed course focuses on introducing new students to the supports, services, and opportunities available at Conestoga College. By the end of this course, students will understand the academic expectations of the Conestoga learning environment, as well as the supports available to ensure their academic success. Students will also be able to identify on-campus services that support their health and wellness, and explore ways to get actively involved in the Conestoga community through co-curricular learning opportunities.
Hours: 1
Credits:
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: Human growth and development will be examined through the lens of current research, and the major theories that influence it. Development will be discussed and reviewed from various perspectives, and students will be introduced to the controversies associated with these perspectives. Observation will be highlighted as a vehicle for recording behaviours and development, and developmental health will be discussed in relation to strong, healthy communities.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will introduce students to the principles of learning centered curriculum approaches. With a view to designing engaging and responsive learning opportunities, students will explore the various definitions of curriculum, the role of play, environment design, and the role of the educator. Observation will be intentionally connected to designing and implementing responsive learning opportunities.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: With a focus to situating students in professional settings, this course will introduce students to various practice options in the community. Students will document the philosophical frameworks that shape programs and the practices that support them. Through reflective classroom opportunities, they will discuss, review and connect these frameworks with course material. In addition, students will begin the creation of a learning portfolio that will chronicle their learning process in the program and facilitate their reflections of learning about the field.
Hours: 133
Credits: 5
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course focuses on developing awareness and skills for the student to safely manage and conduct him or herself within a variety of employment settings. Through the units of the course, participants will have the opportunity to enhance their understanding and knowledge of general Health and Safety guidelines, including WHMIS, Fire Safety and Workplace Violence. The unit on Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act will instruct the student on the requirements for Accessible Customer Service and Integrated Accessibility Standard Regulations. General information on Safe Driving, Privacy of Information and Hand Washing will be addressed as well. The course also provides participants with critical information regarding their insurance coverage (WSIB or other) while employed. As well as guidelines to follow in the event of an injury. Participants will receive a printable Record of Completion upon successful conclusion of this course, in order to demonstrate awareness of safe working practices to their employers.
Hours: 14
Credits: 1
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will focus on comprehensive theoretical understanding of group process, personal skill development and application through intensive team work. These skills are of critical importance in both professional and social settings. Through guided exploration and application of theoretical paradigms and practical strategies, students will achieve the necessary skills to succeed in and lead effective teams. The course consists in an intensive experiential approach – learning by doing – enabling participants to become effective, practiced team members with experience applying skills necessary for leadership, analysis and evaluation, problem solving, and conflict management. Individual and team activities enhance participants' skills to work with a variety of personalities in diverse situations, and to effectively assume various professional roles within a team.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: Expanding on content covered in Human Growth and Development: The Early Years, students will be challenged to examine how major theories and current research influence development over the later part of the lifespan. Development will be discussed and reviewed from various perspectives, and students will explore how the controversies associated with these perspectives shift or change across the lifespan. Enhanced observation and professional documentation skills will be used as a vehicle for recording behaviours and making supported inferences about population and individual development. Developmental health will be introduced in relation to strong, healthy communities.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: ECE71000
CoRequisites:

Description: This professional engagement experience will provide students with an opportunity to relate theory and practice to develop their capabilities by working with children and families in community based early learning and care settings. Reflective classroom opportunities will emphasize exploring the nature of evidence that supports promising practices in settings which promote respect for diversity, equity and inclusion. Emphasis will be placed on documenting and recording observable child development and practices using a variety of techniques and methodologies. Students will continue to chronicle their learning through the professional portfolio.
Hours: 165
Credits: 6
Pre-Requisites: ECE71010, ECE71025 or FPLT71025
CoRequisites:

Description: Family, school, and community environments are among the many factors that shape individual's lives and are influenced by wider social, economic, and political factors. Through analysis of the diversity among children and families, students will discuss and review how these contexts shape, enhance, and/or limit opportunities for healthy development across the lifespan.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will explore the concepts of diversity and social inclusion within a broad social context and connect those concepts with early learning and care programs. Through analysis of diversity and self-reflection, students will examine the definitions of diversity and the enablers and barriers to social inclusion. Building on the principles of responsive curriculum design, students will create strategies that support diversity and social inclusion in early learning classrooms, and program policies.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: ECE71010
CoRequisites:

Description: This course introduces students to the value of health and wellness of children, families and of the professionals who work with them. Students will analyze the interrelationships of health, safety and nutrition in the overall wellness of children, families, and the professionals who work with them. With a focus on prevention and recognition of illness and injury in group care, wellness practices appropriate for children will be addressed. In addition, indicators of abuse will be examined and the reporting role of professionals will be defined.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: Building on the historical and philosophical influences in education, students will explore curriculum approaches in the field of early education and discuss the social values and research evidence that shapes them. Students will compare and contrast the philosophical and practical elements of the approaches and debate their values and limitations. Finally, students will illustrate the application of these curriculum approaches to program design.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: ECE71010
CoRequisites: ECE72065, FPLT72065

Description: This course introduces students to the historical and philosophical influences of early childhood education. Students will become acquainted with the history of childhood and the key philosophers and theorists that have influenced early learning and education. Through examinations of views of children through the centuries, students will review and discuss values and practices related to the education of children from ancient times to the present.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course focuses on inquiry based understanding of observable practices, observable child development, and program and curriculum design. Situated in early learning living lab settings, students will continue to chronicle their learning and engagement through the professional learning portfolio. Particular emphasis will be placed on identifying and analyzing how philosophical principles contribute to curriculum practices and inform program design.
Hours: 178
Credits: 6
Pre-Requisites: ECE71045 or FPLT71045
CoRequisites: EDUC72000

Description: This course will challenge students to consider the integrated nature of learning and relate that to curriculum design. Students will assess the benefits and limitations of teaching singular concepts and subjects with the benefits and limitations of supporting integrative concept development through learning centres, play experiences, and projects that reflect current interests of children. Through observation of children's interests and suggestions, students will develop strategies that guide children's involvement through integrative learning, and illustrate authentic approaches to describe and evaluate that learning.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: ECE71010, EDUC72000
CoRequisites: ECE72085, FPLT72085

Description: Students will explore contemporary perspectives of early learning and community practice within an interprofessional framework. Students will analyze current social, political, and economic trends and issues through national and international perspectives. Emphasis will be placed on chronicling how the language that frames our field has changed over time and the social influences that have contributed to these changes.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This professional engagement experience will provide students with a continued opportunity to relate integrative learning with curriculum design by working with children and families in community based settings. Through reflective classroom opportunities, students will identify and discuss the benefits and limitations of these approaches. Students will continue to document their learning and engagement through the professional learning portfolio.
Hours: 148
Credits: 5
Pre-Requisites: ECE72065 or FPLT72065
CoRequisites: ECE72070

Description: This course is intended to acquaint students with the intellectual tradition of moral philosophy and help them develop practical analytic and critical skills through reading, writing, and discussion. This course focuses on ethical issues faced by individuals in Canadian society. It helps students to clarify their values and establish a framework for ethical decision making. Students will explore a variety of moral issues such as euthanasia, abortion, minority rights, racism, bio-medical technology, capital punishment, pornography, discrimination, poverty, environment and war. These questions do not admit of easy answers, because there are often plausible-sounding moral reasons to be given on each side of the matter. In part because of this, there is a tendency to want to set them aside as unanswerable, as just a matter of opinion. Yet they cannot be ignored. Rather, these questions require that we think hard about them and address them carefully, and that we explore various underlying presuppositions that we often accept uncritically. As a result, this is a course in which we will focus on and practice the skill of critical thinking, and learn to express carefully, verbally and in writing, our reasoning for a given position.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This series of modules prepares degree level students for job searching for their co-op work terms and for their future careers. Students will examine the co-operative education policies and procedures and will learn the expectations, rules, and regulations that apply in the workplace concerning social, organizational, ethical, and safety issues while deepening their awareness of self-reflective practices. Students will critically reflect on their skills, attitudes, and expectations and evaluate available opportunities in the workplace. Successful completion of these modules is a requirement for co-op eligibility.
Hours: 14
Credits: 1
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: The emphasis on this professional engagement course is on an inquiry based understanding of child, family and community literacy. Situated in professional community based settings, students will explore literacy as a focus of social equity. Students will design and implement equitable experiences focused on increasing awareness of multimodal literacies and their influence on teaching, learning, and community capacity building.
Hours: 163
Credits: 6
Pre-Requisites: ECE72085 or FPLT72085
CoRequisites: SOCS71020

Description: This advanced level breadth course is a critical assessment of the post-war events and influences that shaped modern North American society. Students will analyze how and why counter-culture challenges were incorporated into main stream society and the current backlash to that. The course will examine several social movements and schools of thought as they developed and impacted our society.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will present an overview of social scientific methods. The course will address the major components of the research process, including development of theoretically informed hypotheses, implementation of theoretical concepts, development of data collection instruments, testing of hypotheses through data analysis, and the presentation of research results. The student will develop the skills necessary to read and critically analyze social science research and discuss the ethics of social research.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This seminar style course is designed to facilitate critical discussion of the social construction, causes, and consequences of a range of social problems in Canadian society, and evaluate the policy responses, or lack thereof. The course includes the application and integration of sociological theories. Students will learn to use the sociological imagination, how to analyse social problems systematically, and will explore whether individual or societal solutions are needed. The topics will provide opportunities to challenge hidden assumptions, and includes focus on the significance of: age, class, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Problems will include: alcohol and drug abuse, family problems, poverty, education, health and illness, work, and the urban environment.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will investigate the interdependent relationship between literacy and complex social variables. Students will identify and analyze the principles that support and hinder the development of literacy from both socio-political and program levels. Strategies and components of community based literacy programs will be compared and evaluated for effectiveness. Students will have opportunity to design and implement community based literacy experiences.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: SOCS71000
CoRequisites: ECE73005, FPLT73005

Description: As an extension to the concepts discussed in Social Action and Program Leadership, this course will focus on designing and evaluating responsive programs that support individual and community capacity building. Students will explore models of program design and examine various elements that have an effect on designing responsive programs including social values, social policy, provincial and national directions, economic climate, and research evidence. In response to unique community needs, students will construct program designs and policies that promote diversity, equity and social inclusion.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: EDUC72000, ECE72070
CoRequisites: ECE73025, FPLT73025

Description: With a focus to expanding their practice settings of interest, students will strengthen their practice knowledge and capabilities by specializing in community based practice. As an extension to designing and evaluating responsive programs, students will work collaboratively with populations to enhance existing programs. Emphasis will be placed on engaging the populations with whom they are working as result of collaborative problem-solving, effective communication, program assessment and evaluation. Students will continue to chronicle their learning and engagement through the professional learning portfolio.
Hours: 133
Credits: 5
Pre-Requisites: ECE73005 or FPLT73005
CoRequisites: ECE73010

Description: As the future leaders of community programs, students in this course will be challenged to evaluate how economic and social conditions change over time. With emphasis on collaboration with populations, students will identify and critique a variety of actions for relevance in meeting community needs. Students will deepen their understanding of the marginalization and inequities experienced by specific populations. With a focus on enhanced community development students will engage in collaborative interdisciplinary professional practice to support individual and community capacity building.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites:
CoRequisites:

Description: This course introduces students to the basic concepts, logic, and issues involved in statistical reasoning. Major topics include descriptive statistics, probability, statistical inference, regression and correlation. The objectives of this course are to give students confidence in manipulating and drawing conclusions from data and provide them with a critical framework for evaluating study designs and results.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: RSCH73000
CoRequisites:

Description: The co-op work term will provide students with college-approved work experience within an early learning program development environment. Students will be provided an opportunity to: build skills (physical and procedural skills including accuracy, precision, and efficiency); assist in the acquisition of knowledge in and application of knowledge gained in the academic setting (concepts and terminology in a discipline or field of study); develop critical, creative, and dialogical thinking (improved thinking and reasoning processes); cultivate problem solving and decision-making abilities (mental strategies for finding solutions and making choices); explore attitudes, feelings, and perspectives (awareness of attitudes, biases, and other perspectives, ability to collaborate); practice professional judgment (sound judgment and appropriate professional action in complex, context-dependent situations); and reflect on experience (self-discovery and personal growth from real-world experience).
Hours: 420
Credits: 14
Pre-Requisites: CDEV71050 or CEPR71050
CoRequisites:

Description: This course is a critical examination of educational theory, research, policy, and practice that challenges universal experiences and the singularity of one perspective. Through multiple readings, students will be challenged to consider previously held theories and experiences, and critique them for discourses of power and privilege, universal prescriptions and binary oppositions. Students will debate and articulate educational practices from multiple perspectives to co-construct meaning of the plurality of lived human experience.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: SOCS71000, EDUC72010, EDUC72020
CoRequisites:

Description: The focus of this course is on leadership within professional communities of practice. With an opportunity to specialize, students will further their capabilities as future leaders in interprofessional community practice. Through reflective classroom experiences students will critically evaluate the contribution of community based research in supporting the development of healthy, engaged citizens. Students will be challenged to become engaged citizens, support engagement in their communities and advocate for changes to social policy. Student learning will continue to be chronicled through the professional portfolio.
Hours: 163
Credits: 6
Pre-Requisites: SOCS73000, ECE73025 or FPLT73025
CoRequisites: SOCS74010

Description: Building upon concepts introduced in Human Growth and Development and carried out throughout the program, students will integrate their knowledge of development, social factors, and developmental health. Within a multiple perspective framework, students will identify, analyze, and critique how early experiences, and community programs contribute to individual and community developmental health.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: ECE71000, ECE71030
CoRequisites:

Description: This course will focus on deepening an understanding of citizenship and citizenship participation within Canadian and global contexts. Students will examine and analyze dynamic social and political conditions which influence the development of policies relevant to child education and community programs. Students will identify, analyze, and critique policy and the policy development process for mitigating factors that affect the developmental health of individuals and communities. Emphasis will be placed on democratic citizenship, human rights, children's rights, voice and active participation as engaged citizens in contemporary society.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: SOCS71010, ECE73010, SOCS73000
CoRequisites: ECE74005, FPLT74005

Description: The focus of this course is to highlight the connection between research and practice, Building on an increased awareness of relevant interests and contributions of research to child education and community practice, students will participate in social research. The professional portfolio will be enhanced as the center piece of a culminating presentation reflecting each student's professional learning and engagement in the program.
Hours: 163
Credits: 6
Pre-Requisites: RSCH73000, STAT73100
CoRequisites: RSCH73010, RSCH74000

Description: Through a synthesis of knowledge, understanding, and experiences gathered throughout the program, students will conduct a culminating research project. Over the course of the semester, students will sharpen their interest of study, identify the appropriate research design, and carry out their project. Upon completion of the project, students will communicate their findings with the college and relevant community of practices.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: RSCH73000, STAT73100
CoRequisites:

Description: In considering the complexities involved in community practice, students will assess individual, social, economic, and political influences that contribute to the ongoing development of professional identity. Students will reflect on their Professional Engagement experiences to critically analyze their own socio- political context, and how this connects to their emerging professional identity.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: EDUC72020, EDUC74030
CoRequisites:

Description: Personal and professional development is correlated with leadership and supportive mentoring relationships. Building on their knowledge of adult learning principles, students will define and critique the various leadership models and mentoring approaches that enhance community programs. In addition, students will deepen their professional capacity as leaders and mentors in community programs.
Hours: 42
Credits: 3
Pre-Requisites: SOCS74010
CoRequisites: