Child Development Core

Child Development Core Certificate of Achievement The 12 unit Child Development Core Certificate is designed to meet the minimum requirements of the Department of Social Services to teach in licensed private preschools and childcare programs. This is an entry-level career choice. While students are encouraged to pursue additional units in Child Development to advance in the field, the goal is to provide students training to move directly into the workforce Completion of the Core Certificate combined with work experience allows students to be eligible for the Associate Teacher level of the Permit.

According to the college Fall 2018 major list, 911 students indicated child development as their major.  645 students indicated that they are following a plan towards an AA or AS-T degree.  The CORE Certificate courses are a requirement for the 24 unit child development certificate, AA and AS-T degree.  The department has averaged sixty-one 24 unit CD certificate completers over the past five years and estimates that this number will increase to 70. The number of CORE Certificate completers is estimated to be 100 students. The department has averaged 41 AA/AS-T degrees the past 5 years and expects this number to increase to at least 50.

 

The 12 unit Core Certificate of Achievement is comprised of the 4 foundational courses that interweave the domains of child development and are part of the California Community Colleges Curriculum Alignment Project (CAP), a program of study supporting early care and education teacher preparation. One of the requirements of being a CAP-Aligned college is that all cap-aligned courses have pre-approved student learning outcomes which are aligned with all colleges throughout California. The CORE Certificate courses represent evidence-based courses that are intended to become the foundational core for all early care and education professionals. 

The Core Certificate is the springboard for the Child Development Permit granted by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and entitles the holder to teaching state and federally funded programs. This is an expanded career choice and has levels of advancement including the AA and AS-T degree.

The Cerritos College Child Development Department is committed to empowering diverse students by developing their skills and abilities to become intentional and professional early childhood educators who thoughtfully develop an effective pedagogy of best practices. In an ever changing world, our focus is to create a community of lifelong learners and educators who respect and value the dignity, worth and uniqueness of each child's physical, cognitive and psychosocial development.

The 12 unit CORE certificate will be a stepping stone to the 24 unit certificate and AA and/or AS-T.  Embracing the departments mission statement of lifelong learning, students will been encouraged to continue on the pathway in order to maximize their career options and earnings.

Course	Title	Units	Year/Semester (Y1 or S1)
CD 110	Child Development	3.0	Y1 S1
CDEC 111	Principles and Practices in Early Childhood Education	3.0	Y1 S1
CDEC 112	Introduction to Curriculum	3.0	Y1 S2
CDEC 113	Child Family and Community	3.0	Y1 S2

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Course	Title	Units	Year/Semester (Y1 or S1)

The CORE courses are the foundation for all certificates, permits and degrees offered in the department.

The certificate interweaves the domains of child development and are part of the California Community Colleges Curriculum Alignment Project (CAP), a program of study supporting early care and education teacher preparation. The following Community Colleges in the Cerritos College Service Area are also CAP aligned – El Camino College, Long Beach City College, and Rio Hondo College. El Camino College offers an 18 unit Early Childhood Education Certificate and two specialization Certificates – a 30 unit Early Intervention Assistant Certificate and a 27 unit Special Education Assistant Certificate. Long Beach City College offers a Certificate of Accomplishment Area of Specialization Permit which includes 24 units of Child Development and a 6 unit specialization. Rio Hondo offers a 15 unit Certificate of Achievement in Preschool Teacher

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