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Profile of an ECCE Centre

• Adequate trained staff should be appointed

• There should be provision of adequate developmentally appropriate toys
and learning materials Notes
• Space should be allocated for cooking meals and nap time for children.

• The adult-child ratio should be 1:20 for three to six year old children and
1:10 for children under three years.
Source: Quality Standards for ECCE 2012, Ministry of Women and Child
Development, Government of India.

15.4 RECRUITMENT OF ECCE PERSONNEL

Well-trained and qualified ECCE personnel are essential for facilitating and
providing optimal learning opportunities to children. Selecting and recruiting
well qualified and skilled ECCE personnel is an important aspect for quality
early childhood education.

In this section, you will learn about different types of ECCE personnel and their
recruitment process.

15.4.1 Types of ECCE Personnel
Usually an ECCE centre is headed by a centre head with teachers and helpers
sharing the responsibility. Let us study about them in brief.

ECCE Teacher: The ECCE teacher is the key person who is responsible for
conducting activities and programmes in a classroom setting. A skilled and
passionate teacher plays an important role in the lives of young children. The
teacher needs to have sound theoretical knowledge and be able to apply this in
practical ways when interacting with young children. A teacher should have the
ability to embrace many roles depending on the needs and demand of children
like communicator, facilitator, model, storyteller etc. She/he should be
spontaneous with and sensitive to children’s needs.
ECCE Helper: ECCE helper provides care and supervision to children under the
guidance of the teacher. The helper helps and supports the teacher in conducting
different activities as planned. The helpers are invaluable in a centre setting and
invaluable to the ECCE teacher they work with.
Few supporting staff such as a sweeper, maid and peon are also required to keep
the centre premises neat, clean and organised.

15.4.2 Adequacy of Staff
Dealing with young children requires immense energy and dedication. So, before
starting an ECCE centre the number of staff required to maintain a desirable
child-teacher ratio must be decided. A small classroom of 10 to 15 children may
have one teacher and one helper.
EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND EDUCATION 107