Apprenticeship Community of Practice

Since Fall 2021, Bank Street has convened 41 apprenticeship program leaders from across 32 States in a Community of Practice (CoP) that seeks to uncover, amplify, and address key problems of practice in implementing early educator apprenticeships.

Apprenticeship programs offer the opportunity to earn credentials and degrees through meaningful coursework combined with robust on-the-job learning experiences. They are increasingly recognized as a promising strategy for credentialing and retaining the early childhood education (ECE) workforce. When designed well, they have the potential to be transformative by deepening educator expertise and laying the groundwork necessary for compensation parity—two key drivers for strengthening quality, addressing systemic inequities and realizing the potential of early care and education.

As states and localities increase investment in apprenticeship programs, now is the time to learn more about promising approaches to implementation through real-time problem-solving that immediately benefits apprenticeship programs. In the CoP, programs and Bank Street staff learn together about how to apply principles for adult learning and teacher preparation to ECE apprenticeship programs. Discussions are responsive to the needs and interests of programs and include opportunities for problems of practice presented by different participants, guest speakers, and a protected space for inquiry and learning.

Bank Street’s engagement with the CoP also informs the development of tools and resources to enhance the quality of apprenticeship programs, an aligned research strategy to study promising practices, and connections to policy recommendations that impact apprenticeship program quality. Through these convenings, Bank Street identified a need for more innovation to build robust models of job-embedded support that provide opportunities for reflective practice that bridges theory and practice. Please visit our Publications page to learn more about our related research and findings.

To learn more about Bank Street’s apprenticeship work or sign up for the Community of Practice, email learningstartsatbirth@bankstreet.edu.