Abstract
The University of the South Pacific (USP) is the premier provider for teacher education in early childhood education and care (ECEC) for 15 campuses in the Pacific, including Fiji. This chapter focusses on the status of ECEC teacher education programmes which are offered at the USP. In addition, discussions on current policies surrounding ECEC teacher education and information on the age focus are included. Furthermore, the inclusion of the various registering bodies with which the ECEC teacher education programmes are accredited to, for example, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Western Senior College and University Commission (WSCUCS), the Australian Children Education, Care and Quality Authority (ACECQA), and the Fiji Higher Education Commission (FHEC) are provided to substantiate that high quality teacher education programmes offered at the USP-School of Education. Moreover, the chapter brings to the fore, common problems for example, the current situation associated with staffing including shortages and over supply of trained early childhood teachers in the region including other challenging issues that confront teachers and teacher educators.
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Tiko, L. (2021). Early Childhood Teacher Education in Contemporary Times. In: Boyd, W., Garvis, S. (eds) International Perspectives on Early Childhood Teacher Education in the 21st Century. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5739-9_4
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