Why I Chose ECE

Mikaela Campbell

McKay Student Ambassador

Early Childhood Education

---

What is your why? Everyone's journey is different, but they each make an impact. A lot of time in teaching we talk about our students having unique experiences and backgrounds, and the same applies to us too. We all have a story and special experiences that make our teaching habits specialized. I'm always eager to share what led me to choose Early Childhood Education. Here is my journey starting in high school that led me to where I am today.

I have always loved kids, but being a teacher wasn't something that I really ever saw myself doing until high school. In my freshman year of high school, I decided to take a child development class. I didn't know it then, but this class was the first link that got me hooked. I was fully engaged in a way I hadn't been in other classes. The class filled a void that I didn't even know I and it made me eager to explore more. My high school offered a preschool class so I decided to try it out the next year and by the end of the year my interest became more meaningful. I found joy in the content I was learning, I was having meaningful experiences with the kids, and my passion to advocate for and teach children expanded. I hadn't yet decided to be a teacher at this point, but I was looking into more fields like child psychologist, child development, elementary education, social worker, and anything else that related to working with children in some form.

My last two years of high school helped me narrow down more, which made me realize that working with young children was my calling. I worked at a daycare during this time. Through that, I was able to gain confidence in myself, recognize my creative skills, love the kids, and realize that being a teacher could be a good option for me. During this time, I was leaning more towards being an elementary school teacher, but it was hard to decide because I was also really interested in child development. That's when I experienced an "aha" moment in coming upon Early Childhood Education. This major combines both my interests of exploring the development of children and also becoming a teacher which spoke volumes to me. I was able to put all the pieces together to do exactly what I love!

I decided to experiment with the major my Freshman year of college. For one of my classes, I had in person experience every week through volunteering. I was so lucky BYU provided this important opportunity. The next year, I took a year and a half off to go serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Lubbock, Texas Mission. I Even though I couldn't interact with kids in the same way as a missionary, I still gained valuable insite of how to interact with families of different beliefs. Viewing everyone as a child of God increased my love for my career in Early Childhood Education.

Although jumping into school from missionary life was a bit rocky, I had developed qualities like patience and confidence to continue to pursue my dream. Making an impact in a child's life was my goal. I was going to do everything I could to do that to the best of my abilities. Everyone has a unique story; let yours be the difference in a child's life!

---

HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT EDUCATION MAJORS?

Come meet with us! Schedule an appointment here. We would love to meet with you!