Lecturer in Early Childhood

Weekly Working Hours: 18.5

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About the Role

We are seeking to appoint a Lecturer in Early Childhood to contribute to the programme and modules, with a focus on babies and young children. The successful candidate will have a background in working in the field of early childhood and experience teaching within Higher Education.

Key Responsibilities

You will be part of one or more module teams responsible for the design, production, delivery and maintenance of open and distance learning materials using blended and technology-enhanced approaches. The role includes developing teaching resources, contributing to curriculum and assessment design, supporting student learning through online engagement, and collaborating with Associate Lecturers and consultant writers.

You will contribute to the presentation and ongoing maintenance of existing modules, including assessment design, monitoring teaching delivery, and participating in examination and qualification boards. The role also requires developing a personal research profile aligned with the School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport’s research themes and contributing to the School’s academic community.

The position is contractually based at the Open University’s Milton Keynes. Most meetings are held online but occasional attendance at Milton Keynes will be required for academic community and module team meetings. You may work from home, but this is not a home-based role.

About You

Essential

• Higher degree or equivalent professional knowledge in Early Childhood or related field.
• Knowledge and experience of the field of Early Childhood and understanding of other approaches to studying Early Childhood within the social sciences to contribute to the development and production of modules in Early Childhood related curriculum.
• Experience of Higher Education teaching and/or module design to contribute effectively to content creation and delivery that engages and retains students.
• Understanding of supported open and distance learning and the ability to develop and produce distance and blended learning materials, including online resources.
• Experience using information and communications technology for teaching, learning and collaboration, with awareness of emerging educational technologies.
• Excellent written and spoken English, with the ability to communicate clearly and effectively with varied audiences.
• Ability to work effectively and collaboratively within and across teams and contribute flexibly to shared goals.
• Strong organisational skills and a proven ability to plan and organise work to agreed deadlines, within resource constraints, and sometimes under pressure with competing priorities.
• Ability to contribute to research and scholarship, including publications or recognised contributions to teaching and learning through activities such as publications and/or widely recognised and disseminated contributions to learning and teaching in Early Childhood.
• Ability to carry out the role in a way that is consistent with equality legislation and University policies.
• Ability and willingness to travel for work purposes and to attend key meetings as required.

Desirable

• Evidence of research and scholarship, including publications, funded projects, or impact within Early Childhood.
• PhD/EdD completed or in progress.
• Fellowship (or higher) of the Higher Education Academy.
• Postgraduate teaching qualification or qualification for teaching in Higher Education.
• Experience contributing to external research funding or REF submissions.

Support with your application

If you have any questions, or need support or adjustments relating to your application, the recruitment process, or the role, please contact us on 01908 541111 or email careers@open.ac.uk quoting the advert reference number.

What's in it for you?

At The Open University, we offer a range of benefits to recognise and reward great work, alongside policies and flexible working that contribute towards a great work life balance. Get all the details of what benefits we offer by visiting our Staff Benefits page (clicking this link will open a new window).

Flexible working

We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a job share, part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what works best for you.

Working Location: It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where the successful candidate can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes Office, it is expected that some attendance in the office will be required when necessary and in response to business needs. We’d expect this to be quarterly, but this could be more often if business needs dictate. Full-time working based from our Milton Keynes site is also supported if this is preferred by the candidate. Expenses associated with travel to our Milton Keynes site are not reimbursable. Occasional wider UK travel may also be required - expenses for this travel will be reimbursed.

Next steps in the Recruitment process

Interview dates for this role are still to be confirmed.

Early closing date notification

We may close this job advert earlier than the published closing date where a satisfactory number of applications are received. We would therefore encourage early applications.

How to apply

To apply for this role please submit the following document(s) via the ‘Apply’ button above:

• CV
• Supporting statement of up to 1000 words. You should set out in your statement why you are interested in the role and provide examples of where your skills and experience meet the essential criteria for this role as detailed above. 

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