Career Ladder

Level II

Professionals enter Level II with some experience or education beyond entry level. They may have completed the Level I: Fundamentals for Early Childhood Professionals course or its equivalent, such as at least one college-level course in early childhood education. They may be working on becoming Child Development Associates (CDA). Working early childhood professionals become Child Development Associates through self-study or by completing a defined series of coursework, depending on the region.

There are a variety of professional development offerings in early childhood education at this pre-college level that are accessible through resource development specialists at local resource and referral agencies. The Level II framework of learning opportunities is a 90-hour sequence of instruction with required assessments. Participants can locate different opportunities through the Bright Futures Information System's on-line training calendar at http:// brightfuturesinfo.org (Click on "Resources" at the top.)

After the successful completion of the Level II framework of learning opportunities or the CDA, plus a total of at least two years of work experience, professionals complete Level II. Then they are ready for Level III or IV.

For more information, see the Career Ladder