Milton Keynes College Nursery began offering students theoreticalsessions alongside the college's traditional programme last month. CCTVcameras have been installed in every room in the nursery so students canobserve the children and nursery staff on a giant plasma screen. There isalso a new active room for students to work with the children,established when the nursery was extended from 20 to 50 places thissummer.
Anne Train, childcare services manager at Milton Keynes College, said, 'Ithink it's about giving them the opportunity to match the theory alongwith the practice. For example, small groups of children go into our newactive classroom and the students plan activities for them. Students thencarry out the activities and evaluate them. On a placement studentswouldn't often get the chance to plan out their own activities and getthis experience.
'We're forging close links with the students. It's good for the staffhere to act as mentors.'
The childcare department has 110 students from foundation level 1 tofoundation degree, who all spend time at the nursery.
'I liaise with the tutors to see how the nursery curriculum can fittogether with what the students are studying,' said Ms Train. 'By passingon copies of the Foundation Stage to the tutors, we can run the twocurricula in parallel, so the active room becomes an extension of whatthe children are doing anyway.'