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ECEs as Leaders
“Who me, a leader?”
ECE Leaders in Atlantic Canada have many names: Directors, Operators, Administrators, Home Childcare Providers, Pedagogical Leads – to name just a few. Some own their centres and employ many ECEs, others serve as Executive Directors of non-profit early learning and care organizations, and others operate out of their homes as solopreneurs. ECEs also serve as informal leaders through mentoring peers and students, and by participating in the collaborative leadership of their centre.
Regardless of the title, ECE leaders are knowledgeable and dedicated professionals who focus on serving their communities through providing reliable, high-quality early learning and care for children.
In 2022, as part of the second round of the ECE Lab, the lab team conducted interviews with 18 early learning centre operators, directors and administrators. The perpsectives offered by these leaders were combined with learning harvested from the interviews and prototypes conducted in the first round of the lab. Together, the data painted a detailed portrait of ECE leaders: what motivates them, the paths they take to leadership, and how they practice leadership in their roles — as managers, owners, pedagogical leads, peer leaders, and/or mentors.
Leaders share what motivates them
Atlantic Canada ECEs share what being a leader means in the early learning and childcare context.
We asked ECE leaders why they joined the field. They told us that:
They wanted to fill their own childcare needs by opening an ELCC.
They love working and playing with children.
They have a passion for childhood development and learning.
They were supported by mentors who opened doors to their personal growth in the field.
They had family members who were in the field.
The type of work suited their personalities.
They just fell into it.
Leadership in ECE is practiced in many ways, but research from around the world shows that good leadership is a key determinant of successful workforce recruitment and retention efforts. Yet ECE leaders often report “falling into” leadership through the course of serving their community’s early learning and care needs, and struggle to balance administrative burdens with pedagogical responsibilities. During the lab, many leaders expressed that they would benefit from formal learning and peer support to develop their leadership and management skills.
