Are you thinking about kindergarten teacher training?
Text and images: Dronning Mauds Minne University College for Kindergarten Teacher Education
DMMH is located in Trondheim and Kristiansund. All our master’s and part-time courses are course-based, meaning that you can live in your home town and only come to the college during the weeks when classes are held.
1. You don’t need a degree to work in kindergarten
WRONG: Children need warm, knowledgeable, supportive adults to help them develop. Both socially, with the other children, but also to stimulate wonder and curiosity, which is an important part of children’s development and learning.
2. Salaries in kindergarten are poor
WRONG: The average salary for kindergarten teachers is approx. 500,000 per year. Educational managers with a few years’ experience will have an annual income in excess of NOK 550,000. 550,000, while a manager in a larger kindergarten with a few years’ experience could have a salary in excess of NOK 650,000 per year. 650,000 per year.
3. I must be in Norway for the entire duration of my studies
WRONG: In total, kindergarten teacher students spend 100 days in practice. In the third year, you can take part of your studies abroad. We have exchange agreements in several places in Europe and Africa.
4. Working with children is boring
WRONG: Working in kindergarten gives you the most varied working day you can have. Almost no matter what your interests are, you can work with them in kindergarten. The education is also very varied, with subjects ranging from drama to child development, social studies and physical activity. Many kindergartens have an extra focus on e.g. outdoor life, art or sports.
5. Only women work in kindergarten
WRONG: At DMMH, we have just over 20% male students. We are constantly working to increase this figure, because we know how important it is to have both male and female role models in kindergarten. The kindergarten should reflect the society we live in, and we need a diverse staff to meet all children and parents.
6. If I train as a kindergarten teacher, I can’t work with anything else
WRONG: The kindergarten teacher education is a management education. You will not only lead a group of children and the educational work in the department, you will also be responsible for working with groups of parents, colleagues and others. With a kindergarten teacher education, you are well qualified for management work in other child-related professions. You can also take a master’s degree, which will open even more doors in the world of work.
7. Kindergarten teacher is the most important job in the world
RIGHT! Where else can you find a job that has such an impact on the most important resource we have – children? As a kindergarten teacher, you get a job where every working day is different from the last. You have a job where you can both use yourself and make a difference in a child’s life.
DMMH offers:
Bachelor degrees:
- Bachelor kindergarten teacher full-time, Trondheim
- Bachelor kindergarten teacher part-time, (collection-based), Trondheim
- Bachelor Kindergarten Teacher with emphasis on multicultural understanding, Trondheim
- Bachelor kindergarten teacher with emphasis on music, drama, arts and crafts, Trondheim
- Bachelor Kindergarten Teacher with emphasis on nature and outdoor life, Trondheim
- Bachelor Kindergarten Teacher with emphasis on management, (group-based), Kristiansund
Master’s degrees:
- Master in kindergarten knowledge
- Master in kindergarten management
- Master in children’s culture and art education
- Master in special education with emphasis on the youngest children