Associate, Center for Early Child Development (CECD)

Associate, Center for Early Child Development (CECD)

Entity: Aga Khan University

Location: Karachi, Pakistan

Introduction:

Chartered in 1983, it is a private, autonomous, and self-governing international university with 13 teaching sites in 6 countries distributed across three continents. As an integral part of the Aga Khan Development Network, Aga Khan University (AKU) provides higher education in several disciplines, carries out research pertinent to the countries in which it exists and has campuses, programmes and/or teaching hospitals in Afghanistan, Kenya, Pakistan, Tanzania, Uganda and the UK. As an international institution, AKU operates on the core principles of quality, relevance, impact, and access; and AKU is a model of academic excellence and an agent of social change.

As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.

Responsibilities:

Responsible for looking after the physical, social, emotional and cognitive needs of assigned children, implementing the ECD programme and providing a safe and developmentally appropriate environment in accordance with institutional policies and procedures.

You will specifically be repponsible for:

• providing care for infants and toddlers, such as setting routines, implements a developmentally appropriate and educationally enriching ECD programme, feeding, changing and diapering of the children
• supporting and promoting each child’s physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and language development.
• Developing lesson plans and facilitates children during activities, storytelling, indoor and outdoor play, and singing etc.
• Preparing teaching resources and maintains inventories for material and supplies
• Maintaining accurate records on children’s development, immunization and general health, etc. and prepares periodic reports and observations
• Communicating regularly with parents, encourages and supports parent involvement in all aspects of the programme, arranges parent meetings and parent-child sessions.
• Conducting parents and staff orientations and awareness sessions
• Assisting the Centre Manager in program planning and evaluations
• Assisting with the admission process for children and updating children’s records
• Ensuring the safety, orderliness, sanitation, and cleanliness of the premises and facilities
• Helps to disseminate ECD Practices through teaching, conference presentations, parent training sessions and other methods.
• Performs any other tasks as assigned by supervisor

Requirements:

You should have/be:

• bachelor’s degree with additional qualifications in ECD, such as an Advanced Diploma/Certificate in Human Development, Montessori diploma, certificate in ECED from the AKU-Institute for Educational Development or Aga Khan Education Service or equivalent
• Three to five years of experience in a school, early childhood care centre, or a similar setting involving direct interaction with children. In addition to this, supervisory experience will be considered an added advantage.
• knowledge of current educational techniques and developmentally appropriate practices relating to early childhood development
• skill in effectively communicating in both verbal and written form with pre-school age children and their parents
• skill in resolving conflicts between pre-school age children
• ability to work effectively with individuals of diverse educational, socio-economic, and cultural backgrounds, and those with special needs
• compassionate, caring and positive attitude
• cultural awareness and sensitivity
• proficiency in MS Office.

Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.