T-level - Foundation Year - Education and Childcare (Early Years Educator)

Course Details

Take the next step towards a career in early years education, with this Foundation Year at Hugh Baird College. Bridging the gap between Level 2 and Level 3, this course combines classroom learning with placements and opportunities to experience life beyond College.

What will you learn?

The T-level Education and Childcare Course follows the same 14 units as our Level 2 course, including care routines, positive behaviours and healthy lifestyles. This Foundation Year course expands to exam preparation and enrichment activities to help students figure out which path is for them. Students also do a unit on pediatric first aid, gaining a certified qualification that’s valid for three years.

Explore new ways to learn

You’ll get plenty of opportunities to get out of the classroom and explore novel ways to learn. Students visit the monkey enclosure at Chester Zoo to observe primates, in support of their learnings on attachment theory.

You’ll also experience outdoor learning at a forest school, and see how children can develop using the materials they find in nature. Transition students get to take part in a natural habitat workshop at Ainsdale Beach, where you’ll study different habitats of wild animals on the beach and in the woods.

Get a taste of life after college

As you move closer to employment, we’ll support you as you choose where to go next. From trips to universities where you’ll attend lectures and explore the campus, to talks from nursery managers who’ll share valuable insights about how to be employable, you’ll see the full picture of life after college.

Students also visit Atherton House and Streatham House, two nurseries that, although owned by the same people, are completely different. This is your opportunity to begin to shape a vision for your own future.

Is this course right for you?

This Early Years Educator T-level Transition Year mostly attracts students aged 16-19. It’s a great option for those who just missed out on the GCSEs needed for Level 3 T-level Education and Childcare.

If you have a mixture of GCSEs at grades 3 and 4, and already have a Level 2 Early Years Practitioner Diploma, we encourage you to sign up for this course. Once completed, you can progress onto Level 3.

How will you be assessed?

This is a coursework-based qualification and most of your assessments are observations. You’ll lead activities with children in a nursery and then reflect on your performance. You’ll also build a portfolio for each unit, full of photos documenting the practical activities you complete.