Erzieherakademie Heilbronn - ‘Good education starts early on’
‘Our aim is to train good educators who are ready to start working right after they complete their training,’ says Isabel Engelhaus, head of school at the newly established Educators’ Academy in Heilbronn (EAH for short). The school was created in cooperation with the Dieter Schwarz Foundation, the aim Academy and Phorms Education. Students at EAH will train to be state-approved educators in a course based on the practice-integrated (PiA) training model. Depending on their level of school-leaving qualification, trainees can enrol in either the three- or four-year course. Alongside their specialist theory modules, trainees will also gain practical experience working at a public or private nursery, or at one of our on-site nurseries, on one fixed day per week for two four-week periods. Trainees therefore won’t need to complete a probation year. They will also receive a trainee’s salary from when they start, which increases as they progress through the course. The practical work experience enables each trainee to familiarise themselves with the local characteristics of their assigned nursery, where they can start working as a fully fledged member of staff once their training is complete. With support from the Dieter Schwarz Foundation and the aim Academy, trainees can also earn additional qualifications (for example, ‘Europa’ educator, ‘MINT’ educator or language educator) and enjoy small classes in modern, well-equipped classrooms at the Bildungscampus in the centre of Heilbronn. The bilingual environment of Phorms comes in useful here, particularly for the additional ‘Europa’ educator qualification. In addition, some specific lessons like P.E. are taught in English by a native speaker.
