Gyeonggi-do to Strengthen Capabilities of 14,000 Childcare Staff

Gyeonggi Province will conduct training for 14,000 childcare staff members at daycare centers within the province.

Gyeonggi Province is promoting four educational projects to enhance the professionalism of childcare staff at daycare centers. The target audience for the training is approximately 14,000 people.

On the 20th, the province announced that this year it will conduct ▲capacity building for new directors of national and public daycare centers ▲capacity building for childcare staff at daycare centers exclusively for infants aged 0 ▲professionalism enhancement for teachers caring for young children with disabilities, among other initiatives.

The capacity building training for new directors of national and public daycare centers, which started in 2019 as the first of its kind nationwide, was designed to strengthen the job competencies of new directors and foster awareness of public responsibility. This year, it will be held three times between June and August for about 130 participants.

The capacity building training for childcare staff at daycare centers exclusively for infants aged 0 was introduced for the first time this year. It was planned to ensure the stable operation of play-centered curricula. About 70 childcare staff will participate in two sessions held between August and September.

Previously, the province developed related educational materials last year and distributed them to daycare centers exclusively for infants aged 0.

The professionalism enhancement training for teachers caring for young children with disabilities has been conducted since 2020 to improve the practical skills of these teachers. The training is provided at 16 child care support centers in cities and counties including Suwon, targeting 278 childcare teachers working at specialized and integrated daycare centers for children with disabilities.

Notably, starting this year, the training target has been expanded beyond teachers exclusively caring for young children with disabilities to include general teachers and non-homeroom teachers in integrated classes.

The curriculum reflects survey results from specialized and integrated daycare centers for children with disabilities in the province and includes various methods such as play learning support tailored to different types of disabilities, consulting to support behavioral issues occurring in actual field settings, and personalized tutoring through visiting childcare experts. For training applications, inquiries can be made to the relevant city or county offices.

Yoon Young-mi, head of the Childcare Policy Division of the province, emphasized, "Through diverse and practical training this year, we will strengthen the professionalism of childcare staff, enabling young children living in daycare centers to receive even better childcare services."