© Tuane Fernandes
10 November 2022
Last update:20 April 2023
The right to education begins at birth.
But new UNESCO data shows that 1 out of 4 children aged 5 have never had any form of pre-primary education. This represents 35 million out of 137 million 5-year-old children worldwide. Despite research that proves the benefits of early childhood care and education (ECCE), only half of all countries guarantee free pre-primary education around the world.
UNESCO’s World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education taking place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 14-16 November 2022 will reaffirm every young child’s right to quality care and education, and call for increased investment in children during the period from birth to eight years.
Here’s what you need to know what early childhood care and education.
Why is early childhood care and education important?
The period from birth to eight years old is one of remarkable brain development for children and represents a crucial window of opportunity for education. When children are healthy, safe and learning well in their early years, they are better able to reach their full developmental potential as adults and participate effectively in economic, social, and civic life. Providing ECCE is regarded as a means of promoting equity and social justice, inclusive economic growth and advancing sustainable development.
A range of research and evidence has converged to support this claim. First, neuroscience has shown that the environment affects the nature of brain architecture – the child’s early experiences can provide either a strong or a fragile foundation for later learning, development and behaviours. Second, the larger economic returns on investment in prior-to-school programmes than in programmes for adolescents and adults has been demonstrated. Third, educational sciences have revealed that participation in early childhood care and education programmes boosts children’s school readiness and reduces the gap between socially advantaged and disadvantaged children at the starting gate of school.
From a human rights perspective, expanding quality early learning is an important means for realizing the right to education within a lifelong learning perspective. ECCE provides a significant preparation to basic education and a lifelong learning journey. In 2021, only 22% of United Nations Member States have made pre-primary education compulsory, and only 45% provide at least one year of free pre-primary education. Only 46 countries have adopted free and compulsory pre-primary education in their laws.
How has access to ECCE evolved?
Overall, there has been significant global progress in achieving inclusive and high-quality ECCE. Globally, the ratio for pre-primary education has increased from 46% in 2010 to 61% in 2020. The global ratio for participation in organized learning one year before the official primary school entry age also increased to reach 75% in 2020. However, in low- and lower-middle-income countries, fewer than two in three children attend organized learning one year before the official primary entry age. Furthermore, the proportion of children receiving a positive and stimulating home environment remains significantly low with only 64% of children having positive and nurturing home environments. Great regional disparities remain the biggest challenges. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 40% of children have experienced a positive and stimulating home learning environment compared to 90% of children in Europe and Northern America.
How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted ECCE?
The COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effect on ECCE and amplified its crisis. Young children have been deemed the greatest victims of the pandemic, experiencing the impact of on their immediate families, and because of stay-at-home orders of lockdowns, having been deprived of essential services to promote their health, learning and psychosocial well-being. Some children will start basic education without organized learning experiences to the detriment of their readiness for school. It was estimated that the closure of ECCE services has resulted in 19 billion person-days of ECCE instruction lost with 10.75 million children not being able to reach their developmental potential in the first 11 months of the pandemic.
What are the consequences on foundational learning?
ECCE is a pre-requisite for meeting the right to learn and to develop. In particular, access to pre-primary education is a basis for acquiring foundational learning including literacy, numeracy and socio-emotional learning. Yet, according to the recent estimate, about 64% of children in low- and middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple story at age 10. The roots of this learning poverty start in ECCE and its lack of capacity to make children ready for school.
What is the situation regarding ECCE teachers and care staff?
As the calls grow for higher quality ECCE provision, teacher shortages and quality has received increasing attention. The number of teachers who received at least the minimum pedagogical teacher training, both pre-service and in-service, increased from 68% to 80% between 2010 and 2020. It is estimated that ECCE services need another 9.3 million full-time teachers to achieve the SDG target. Most Member States have established qualification requirements for ECCE teachers, while far less attention has been focused on ECCE teachers’ working conditions and career progression. The low social status, poor salaries and job insecurity of ECCE teachers and care staff tend to have an adverse impact on attracting and retaining suitably qualified early childhood educators.
What are the policies, governance and financing implications?
It is time for societies and governments to implement relevant policies to recover and transform their ECCE systems. ECCE is seen by many countries as a key part of the solution to a myriad of challenges including social inclusion and cohesion, economic growth and to tackle other sustainable development challenges. According to the 2022 Global Education Monitoring Report, 150 out of 209 countries have set targets for pre-primary education participation by 2025 or 2030. The proportion of countries that monitor participation rates in pre-primary education is expected to increase from 75% in 2015 to 92% in 2025 and 95% in 2030. It is expected that the pre-primary participation rate for all regions will exceed 90% by 2030. In Central and South Asia, East and South-East Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, participation rates are expected to be nearly 100%. At the same time, it is projected that participation rates in Northern Africa and Western Asia will be about 77% by 2030.
What are the obstacles to ensuring access to quality ECCE?
- Policy fragmentation: In many countries, ECCE policies and services are fragmented and do not leverage whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches to addressing the holistic needs and rights of families and their young children. This is particularly challenging for national governments with limited resources, low institutional capacities and weak governance.
- Lack of public provision: Non-state provision of ECCE continues to grow in many contexts, and the role of non-state actors in influencing policy development and implementation is evident. Non-state actors provide a large proportion of places in pre-primary education. In 2000, 28.5% of pre-primary aged children were enrolled in private institutions, and this rose to 37% in 2019, a figure higher than for primary (19%) or secondary (27%) education.
- Insufficient regulation of the sector: Specific regulations and standards for ECCE are not in place in most countries. Regulations usually do not establish quality assurance mechanisms and those that do, tend not to focus on outcomes.
- Chronic underfunding: An average of 6.6% of education budgets at national and subnational levels were allocated to pre-primary education. Low-income countries, on average, invest 2% of education budgets in pre-primary education, which is far below the target of 10% by 2030 suggested by UNICEF. In terms of international aid, pre-primary education remains the least funded sector.
What are the solutions?
Political will and ownership are key to transforming ECCE. UNESCO’s review highlights progress in some countries, giving an indication of what is required to successfully strengthen the capacity of ECCE systems:
- Expanding and diversifying access: Increasing investment and establishing a legal framework to expand ECCE services are essential steps. Innovative ECCE delivery mechanisms such as mobile kindergartens with teachers, equipment for learning and play, have been deployed in some countries to reach remote areas and provide children with pre-primary education.
- Enhancing quality and relevance: ECCE curriculum frameworks should cover different aspects of early learning and prepare children with essential knowledge, skills, and dispositions to transit smoothly to formal education.
- Making ECCE educators and caregivers a transforming force: For the transformation of ECCE to take place, ECCE educators need to be adequately supported and empowered to play their part.
- Improving governance and stakeholder participation: Countries have adopted different modes of governance. There are generally two systems that are followed, an integrated system and a split system.
- Using funding to steer ECCE development: Strengthening domestic public financing is important for providing affordable ECCE. Since ECCE services are offered by different ministries, there must be a clear demarcation of funding and financing rules for different sectors and different ministries. Innovative financing may include earmarking resources from economic activities and other sources.
- Establishing systems for monitoring and assessing whole-of-child development. System-level action in strengthening the availability and reliability of data obtained from assessments enables efficient and timely monitoring of programmes and child developmental milestones.
- Galvanize international cooperation and solidarity. The World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education is an opportunity to mobilize existing global, regional, and national networks to increase focus on identifying and sharing innovations, policies and practices.
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As an expert and enthusiast, I have access to a wide range of information and can provide insights on various topics. While I don't have personal experiences or opinions, I can provide factual information and cite relevant sources to support my responses.
In the article you provided, titled "The right to education begins at birth," the author discusses the importance of early childhood care and education (ECCE) and the challenges associated with ensuring access to quality ECCE. The article also highlights the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ECCE and suggests potential solutions to improve ECCE systems.
Let's explore the concepts mentioned in the article and provide information on each:
Importance of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE)
The period from birth to eight years old is crucial for a child's brain development and provides a window of opportunity for education. Research has shown that when children have access to quality ECCE, they are better able to reach their full developmental potential as adults and participate effectively in economic, social, and civic life. ECCE is considered a means of promoting equity, social justice, inclusive economic growth, and sustainable development .
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on ECCE
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on ECCE. Young children have been greatly affected, as they have been deprived of essential services that promote their health, learning, and psychosocial well-being due to stay-at-home orders and lockdowns. The closure of ECCE services has resulted in a significant loss of instructional time, hindering children's readiness for school and their overall developmental potential. It is estimated that 10.75 million children were unable to reach their developmental potential in the first 11 months of the pandemic due to the closure of ECCE services.
Access to ECCE
While there has been significant global progress in achieving inclusive and high-quality ECCE, there are still challenges in ensuring access for all children. Globally, the ratio for pre-primary education has increased from 46% in 2010 to 61% in 2020. However, in low- and lower-middle-income countries, fewer than two in three children attend organized learning one year before the official primary entry age. Additionally, regional disparities exist, with sub-Saharan Africa having lower rates of positive and stimulating home learning environments compared to Europe and Northern America.
ECCE Teachers and Care Staff
As the demand for higher quality ECCE provision grows, there is increasing attention on teacher shortages and quality. While the number of teachers who have received pedagogical training has increased, there is still a need for an additional 9.3 million full-time teachers to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target. Attention should also be given to improving the working conditions and career progression of ECCE teachers and care staff, as low social status, poor salaries, and job insecurity can impact the attraction and retention of qualified educators .
Policies, Governance, and Financing Implications
To strengthen ECCE systems, it is important for societies and governments to implement relevant policies and allocate sufficient resources. Expanding and diversifying access, enhancing quality and relevance, supporting ECCE educators, improving governance and stakeholder participation, using funding effectively, and establishing systems for monitoring and assessing child development are some of the key implications for policies, governance, and financing in ECCE.
Obstacles to Ensuring Access to Quality ECCE
There are several obstacles to ensuring access to quality ECCE. These include policy fragmentation, lack of public provision, insufficient regulation of the sector, and chronic underfunding. Many countries have fragmented ECCE policies and services, which can hinder addressing the holistic needs and rights of families and young children. Non-state provision of ECCE has also increased, and regulations and quality assurance mechanisms are often lacking. Additionally, chronic underfunding, both at the national and international levels, poses a challenge to providing affordable and high-quality ECCE.
Solutions for Strengthening ECCE
To transform ECCE, political will and ownership are crucial. Some solutions include expanding and diversifying access, enhancing quality and relevance through comprehensive curriculum frameworks, supporting and empowering ECCE educators and caregivers, improving governance and stakeholder participation, using funding effectively, and establishing systems for monitoring and assessing child development. International cooperation and solidarity can also play a significant role in strengthening ECCE systems.
These are the key concepts discussed in the article. If you have any specific questions or would like more information on a particular aspect, feel free to ask!
