Gordon College: College of Education, Arts and Sciences

Republic of the Philippines
City of Olongapo
GORDON COLLEGE
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, ARTS AND SCIENCES
Olongapo City Sports Complex, Donor St., East Tapinac, Olongapo City 2200
Telefax No.: (047) 602-7175 loc 322
www.gordoncollege.edu.ph
DETAILED LEARNING MODULE

Title: Professionalism
Module No. 1
I. Introduction
Working with children and youth requires a commitment to providing the very best care and
education. In your daily work, you assume significant roles that greatly affect children, youth,
and their families. Therefore, it is critical that you strive for excellence. In this lesson you will
learn about professionalism and its significance to the field of child and youth care.
II. Objectives:
 Reflect on what it means to be a professional staff member.
 Describe practices that are associated with professionalism.
 Describe the significance of professionalism when working with children and families.
III. Topics and Concepts
Know
 "Learning is like rowing upstream; not to advance is to drop back." - Chinese Proverb
Self-Reflection
Take a moment to jot down a few words or phrases that come to mind when you hear the word
"professionalism." Is it knowledge about a field or a set of skills? Is it personal characteristics,
qualities, or character traits? What do you expect from a person who is called a professional?
You may have responded with reference to some of the many roles you or others you know
assume such as demonstrating knowledge and sharing information or about interacting with
children, families, and colleagues. All of your descriptions offer a window into your sense of
professionalism.
Consider the following definitions that different dictionaries provide about professionalism: the
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary defines professionalism as "the high standard that you
expect from a person who is well trained in a particular job," and "great skill and competence."
The Merriam-Webster website defines professionalism as "the skill, good judgment, and polite
behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well" and "the conduct, aims,
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GORDON COLLEGE
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or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or a professional person." How do these

definitions compare to your own definitions of professionalism?
This course will help you better understand the concept of professionalism and how it relates to
your own competence, confidence, commitment, and awareness as a professional. This course
will also help you learn how you can develop a sense of professionalism and what that means to
you as a direct-care staff member.
What is Professionalism in Child Care and School-Age Programs?
For many years much of the general public has viewed early care and education providers
(including those providing care to school-age children) as babysitters. To counter that thinking,
the field of early care and education, through several professional organizations, has developed
professional standards that describe the competencies needed to be an early care and education
professional. These competencies include professionalism. Interacting with children, families,
and colleagues must always be done in a professional manner. Whether you are an infant and
toddler, preschool, or school-age staff member, it is critical to be knowledgeable about and
model professional behavior.
Families rely upon the program staff to be much more than "babysitters" for their children. In
your daily work, you make conscious, intentional decisions about how to interact with children,
parents, and colleagues. You may also be faced with difficult ethical situations. Following an
ethical code can help with those decisions. You should look to your Service's written code of
ethics to help you in decision-making. With the guidance of training and curriculum specialists,
program directors, and other mentors, you should strive to set and maintain positive examples of
professionalism in your daily interactions with fellow staff, children, and families.
Professional organizations that work on behalf of children, families, caregivers, teachers, and
youth-development workers have created standards and competencies to guide child and youth
professionals. Each professional organization includes standards that address professional
behaviors. Professional organizations rely on research-based principles and bring together highly
respected experts to draft and verify the standards and competencies for the field. For example,
the National Association for the Education of Young children (NAEYC), the largest professional
organization in the field of early care and education, has developed The Code of Ethical Conduct
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to guide professional behavior. NAEYC has also developed an accreditation process that
includes a self-study for programs to examine how well the program addresses the standards for
high-quality care in programs for young children. The Division of Early Childhood (DEC), a
sub-division of the Council for Exceptional Children, the largest international professional
organization dedicated to improving the success of individuals with disabilities and/or gifts and
talents, has developed Recommended Practices that guide professionals and families who work
with young children with developmental delays or disabilities. The National Afterschool
Association (NAA) and the Council on Accreditation (COA) have also developed professional
competencies for those working with children and youth.
When you review the various organizations' sets of standards and competencies you will find
many similarities when it comes to professionalism. This indicates a common understanding that
engaging in professional behavior is important for those working with young children, youth,
and families.
Examples:
For those working with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers:
One state's commitment to professionalism may be found in the Wisconsin Core Competencies
for Professionals Working with Young Children & Their Families. The Professionalism section
of this document (see p. 15) contains a number of professional competencies derived from a
review of the standards and recommended practices of several national professional
organizations. You can find these competencies in the Apply section of this lesson. For a
complete explanation of the process for choosing the competencies
see http://www.collaboratingpartners.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/CPlinkedDocs/
WI_Core_Competencies_2014_16WITHlinks.pdf
For those working with school-age children and youth:
The National Afterschool Association's commitment to professionalism can be found in the

Core Knowledge and Competencies for Afterschool and Youth Development Professionals
(Adapted from Rhode Island Competencies for Afterschool & Youth Development
Professionals, Washington State Core Competencies for Child and Youth Development
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Professionals, Ohio's Core Knowledge & Competencies for Afterschool Professionals Who
Work with Children Ages 5-12, and Starr et al., 2009). The Professional Development and
Leadership section of this document (see pp. 68-74) contains a multi-level description of
professional competencies, again derived from a review of standards and recommended practices
of several national professional organizations. You can find these competencies in the Apply
section of this lesson. For a complete explanation of the process for choosing the competencies
see http://naaweb.org/resources/core-competencies.
What does it mean to be a Professional Staff Member?
Infant, toddler, preschool, and school-age providers play powerful roles in children's lives, and
your encounters with children and their families leave lasting impressions. Children's growth
takes place over time, and each experience affects development. Who children become has
everything to do with the experiences they have early in their lives; the experiences they have
while they are in your care. Outside of their families, you might be the person they spend the
most time with during these critical years of development. Optimum development is
strengthened when children engage in meaningful interactions with adults who adhere to high-
quality professional standards.
As an individual working with children, youth, and families, you engage in numerous activities
that require you to maintain high-quality professional standards. Think about some of the
experiences you participate in your daily professional life like:
 Interacting with children and youth
 Engaging with family members
 Interacting with supervisors and managers
 Collaborating with fellow staff members
 Interacting with community partners
Establishing and maintaining high-quality professional standards are important to every task you
accomplish every day. This process continues to evolve and develop as you encounter new
situations.
The work you do with children, youth, and their families lays the foundation for healthy
development, growth, and success in school and life. Recognition of the significance of the early
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years on children's development has strengthened desire to strive for excellence when interacting
with children, youth, and families (Feeney, 2012). This course will help you understand how
your professionalism contributes to the growth and development of children and families you
serve.
As a direct-care staff member, you are likely to encounter children, families, and coworkers
from a variety of backgrounds and life experiences. It is important for you to understand the
significance of always striving for high-quality practices while acknowledging diversity and
individual differences. A colleague or family member may not share the same values with you
when it comes to topics such as sleeping, toilet training, or completing work independently. As a
direct-care staff member, you will need to be able to provide children, youth, and their families
with culturally and developmentally sensitive care and help them be successful in the classroom
now and in the years ahead.
Do
In the field of early childhood education, professionalism encompasses many specific behaviors
and skills that address how individuals present themselves to other adults. Take time to review
the following traits identified by Gigi Schweikert (2012) as they contribute to professionalism in
the field of early care and education:
 How you present yourself to others through your appearance and communication
 Knowledge of the field of early care and education
 The quality of your work
 Relationships with others
 Your work ethic
 Your determination and dedication
 Most important, your attitude
By including professional behavior as part of your evaluation, trainers and managers can
actively work with you to support your professional growth. By including a focus on
professional behaviors (appearance, communication, attitude, interpersonal relationships, etc.)
you will enhance the quality of the program for children and families.
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APPLY
In their Early Childhood Educator Competencies: A Literature Review of Current Best

Practices, and a Public Input Process on Next Steps in California, the Center for the Study of
Child Care Employment note that while no unified early childhood educator competencies have
been adopted across all states in the U.S., competencies are gaining visibility because they are
seen as tools to ensure that the early childhood education workforce is both professional and
stable. The following table replicates some of the professional competencies.
Study the table below to identify competencies you feel competent in, as well as professional
competencies that you want to further develop.
EXPLORE
Professionals working in early care and youth program settings should be held to high standards
and expectations for professional behavior in those programs should be explicit. Your service
branch may prescribe the professional dress, attitudes, and behaviors that you and your
colleagues must follow.
City of Olongapo
GORDON COLLEGE
Telefax No.: (047) 602-7175 loc 322
City of Olongapo
GORDON COLLEGE
Telefax No.: (047) 602-7175 loc 322
Adapted from: Center for the Study of Child Care Employment. (2008). UC
Berkeley. https://cscce.berkeley.edu/early-childhood-educator-competencies-a-literature-review-
of-current-best-practices-and-a-public-input-process-on-next-steps-for-california/
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Telefax No.: (047) 602-7175 loc 322
Write yourself a note about an idea you have to further develop one of your professional
competencies, and share it with a colleague, coach, or administrator.
IV. Teaching and Learning Materials and Resources
• Printed Modules
• Smartphone/tablet/laptop/desktop computer with internet access
• Learning Task Sheets
• Digital Presentation
• Supplementary Links
V. Learning Tasks
1. What is your understanding with the Chinese Proverb, "Learning is like rowing upstream;
not to advance is to drop back."
2. In the field of administration, what are the :
a. Roles of the Director
a. manager
b. organizer
c. communicator
d. evaluator
b. Characteristics of an Effective Director
c. Duties and Responsibilities of a Director
III. References
Allred, K.W., & Hancock, C.L. (2015). Reconciling Leadership and Partnership: Strategies to
empower professionals and families. Young Children, 70(2), 46-53.
Bloom, P.J., Hentschel, A., & Bella, J. (2013). Inspiring peak performance: Competence,
commitment, and collaboration. The Director's Toolbox Management Series. Lake Forest, IL:
New Horizons.
Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (2008). Early childhood educator competencies: A
literature review of current best practices, and a public input process on next steps for
City of Olongapo
GORDON COLLEGE
Telefax No.: (047) 602-7175 loc 322
California. Berkeley, CA: Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, Institute for
Research on Labor and Employment, University of California at
Berkeley. https://cscce.berkeley.edu/early-childhood-educator-competencies-a-literature-
review-of-current-best-practices-and-a-public-input-process-on-next-steps-for-california/
Division for Early Childhood. (2014). DEC recommended practices in early intervention/early
childhood special education 2014. http://www.dec-sped.org/recommendedpractices
Feeney, S. (2012). Professionalism in Early Childhood Education: Doing our best for young
children. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Kouzes, J.M., & Posner, B.Z. (2012). The Leadership Challenge: How to make extraordinary
things happen in organizations (5th ed). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
National After School Association Core Knowledge and Competencies.
(2021). http://naaweb.org/resources/core-competencies
National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2009). NAEYC Standards for Early
Childhood Professional Preparation: A position statement of the National Association for the
Education of Young Children. https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/
downloads/PDFs/resources/position-statements/2009%20Professional%20Prep
%20stdsRevised%204_12.pdf
Schweikert, G. (2012). Winning ways for early childhood professionals: Being a professional. St.
Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.
Simon, F. (2015). Look Up and Out to Lead: 20/20 vision for effective leadership. Young Children,
70(2), 18-24.
Sullivan, D.R. (2010). Learning to lead: Effective leadership skills for teachers of young children
(2nd ed.). St. Paul MN: Redleaf Press.
Wisconsin Early Childhood Collaborating Partners. (2014). Wisconsin Core Competencies For
Professionals Working with Young Children & Their
Families. http://www.collaboratingpartners.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/CPlinkedDocs/
WI_Core_Competencies_2014_16WITHlinks.pdf

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Republic of the Philippines

DETAILED LEARNING MODULE

or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or a professional person." How do these

What is Professionalism in Child Care and School-Age Programs?

For those working with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers:

For those working with school-age children and youth:

The National Afterschool Association's commitment to professionalism can be found in the

What does it mean to be a Professional Staff Member?

In their Early Childhood Educator Competencies: A Literature Review of Current Best

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