how useful are they to managers? Jackie Musgrave and Nicola Stobbs,
authors of a book looking at early years placements, explain.
Work placements have always, informally, been seen as a crucial part of becoming an early years practitioner. And given that students can spend 800 hours on a placement, this is rightly so. Cathy Nutbrown called them 'an essential part of training'.
Her Foundations for Quality report also recommended that students should 'be experiencing practice in a variety of settings ... so that they can see different ways of working and learn from a variety of expert practitioners'.
This report was significant for those who design courses for early years qualifications: it set down in writing, for the first time, placements' essential role. It appeared that a space had been created for the concept of the student as a developing early years practitioner.
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