Early Childhood Education Center Ucsd

Posted: June 10, 2015

I was recently hired by the ECEC and have been astonished by the things I have seen here. With 6 years of working in an early childhood education setting under my belt I was sure 'd seen the worst of it in a family daycare. However, here I have seen some pretty atrocious practices. Children are left to do whatever they want, whenever they want, however they want, with very lazy supervision. There is absolutely NO consistency in rules or enforcement of standards and expectations. There is very little structured activity, and when there is the approach is developmentally inappropriate. Individual attention is almost nonexistent, and the teachers seem to just be frustrated with the children more than anything. The way the teachers approach and speak to the children is demeaning and their expectations of the children are almost impossible. They are promoting self-doubt and shame among children, under the guise of care. There is no scaffolding of activities or language, and NO social and emotional support and development (which are the two most important aspects of development at this age). Though I am a recent hire in a tenuous position, I am considering bringing these practices to the attention of the administration, because the children deserve much better than this.

Posted: November 6, 2013

I am not impressed by the ECEC. I went into the experience very excited for my little guy and have come out disappointed with their ability to problem solve. It seems that the minute they are confronted with a problem that would require more attention to an individual student, they throw their hands up into the air and say that it's not a good fit. As a student at UCSD, I thought the ECEC would have the ability to pull on resources from the University to help any developmental problems they faced. However, this is not what happened. Instead they did the text book steps that resulted in the termination of my child's enrollment. They shoved my son and I out of the door at a time in our lives when we needed stability in our lives. If the staff was so concerned with my son's ability to cope in a big environment of other children, then they would not have made him leave all the friends that he adores and find another learning center, where there will be more children and force him to adjust once again. My son is a loving little man who has had a rough time adjusting to certain aspects of the center but that should not mean that he is kicked out for a lack of conformity.

Posted: June 28, 2012

So far I am really unimpressed with this preschool. The teachers seem to be really uninterested in the children or to get to know the parents. Based on our experience with our 2 year old so far, they go about trying to keep their kids in line by creating drones out of them. Any individuality or creativity by a child is suppressed and the administrative staff police the classrooms for any child that is out of line, then labeling the different children as "special needs". I will be removing my child from this awful child robot factory and putting her in a montessori school which treats each child individually and to their fullest potential.

Posted: July 24, 2011

I am very very pleased with the ECEC. The staff are professionals. The kids are in classrooms. They learn things! There is a little kid craziness but no bad wildness. I am impressed with how well socialized and educated my little girls became at the ECEC. We were very lucky to have them.

Posted: September 19, 2010

Both of my children attended ECEC from under 2 years through pre-k, and I just love this school. They have a great balance between free-play and structured activities, and the kids get plenty of art, music, physical activity (even yoga!) and academics. The teachers are all great with the kids, and really get to know them and the parents. Formal and informal communication between the teachers and parents about progress, etc., is great. The school also organizes several events each year (open houses, ice cream socials, etc.) for the families, and there is a real sense of community. My experience (and the experience of other families I've spoken with) is that ECEC really prepares the kids for kindergarten - both in terms of academics, and in navigating the structure of the school setting. My daughter's transition to kindergarten was pretty seamless.

Posted: April 24, 2010

Our sons have attended ECEC from 14 months through pre-K and Kindergarten. The staff turnover rate is low, so we're still seeing many of the teachers who worked with the boys over the years. The staff have given us a lot of feedback on the kids' progress and also helpful suggestions for dealing with problems. The curriculum in the various classrooms is appropriate, organized around themes but not too structured for little kids. Every month brings visitors, either performers like dancers or musicians or educators from some of our local museums, to share their knowledge with the kids. Our kids will be 'graduating' and leaving the program this summer. We will miss ECEC and recommend it highly.