INTERNAIONAL ISSUES

I have had the opportunity to follow a blog and here area  few of the postings:

Early childhood education: an international development issue

by Ian Whitman
Head of the Programme for Co-operation with Non Member Economies, OECD Directorate for Education

Quality, quality, quality – that’s what matters most. This was the overwhelming cry at the international conference I  attended in Beijing this week on early childhood development, “Child Leads, Equity Counts”. Feng Xiaoxia, the Former President of the Chinese National Society of Early Childhood Education went as far as to say that without quality (in early childhood education and care), access doesn’t much matter.

Evidence bears the importance of quality out, as we find in Investing in high-quality early childhood education and care (ECEC):

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) has become a policy priority in many countries. A growing body of research recognises that ECEC brings a wide range of benefits, including social and economic benefits; better child well-being and learning outcomes; more equitable outcomes and reduction of poverty; increased intergenerational social mobility; higher female labour market participation and gender equality; increased fertility rates; and better social and economic development for society at large.
These positive benefits are directly related to the “quality” of ECEC. Steered by the OECD Network on ECEC, the project “Encouraging Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care” investigates what defines quality, which policies can promote and enhance quality, and how such policies can be effectively put in place. This project draws on the publications Starting Strong I and Starting Strong II .


OECD Network on Early Childhood Education and Care The Network upholds the mandate of the Education Policy Committee to assist countries to develop effective and efficient policies for education and learning to meet individual, social, cultural and economic objectives. The Network meets bi-annually, and the theme of each meeting is determined according to the policy priorities of Network members.
Starting Strong III: A Quality Toolbox for Early Childhood Education and Care (OECD, 2012)
This new publication focuses on quality issues: it aims to define quality and outlines five policy levers that can enhance it in ECEC. In addition, it provides busy policy makers with practical tools such as research briefs, international comparisons, country examples, self-reflection sheets, etc., in order to successfully implement these policy levers.
Starting Strong III: A Quality Toolbox for ECEC – online version
The online version of the Quality Toolbox presents the five policy levers found to enhance quality in ECEC and contains several components not found in the publication, including a web page that compiles a sample of approaches used by governments to improve ECEC within their country. Links to websites, reports, frameworks, guides, training videos, brochures, etc. have been categorised by the five levers of the toolbox.

3 Consequences in learning about international early childhood education and care:

*  I discovered that the same issues whether in service or policy are the same (above links provide examples of this)

*  I discovered that quality is the single most discussed topic in the world

*  There is a global understanding about early childhood brain development and the future of our communities and economy
(http://www.who.int/social_determinants/resources/ecd.pdf)

GOALS:

1.  To create a framework or system for early childhood programs

2.  To bring professionalism to the field and work together to create a strong voice for our field

"A surprisingly large number of countries are engaging in implementing or finalizing ‘frameworks’ for early child

development. This trend to organize early services into a coherent national policy is encouraging, (Neugebaur & Goodeve, 2009)"

Resource: 

http://www.childcareexchange.com/library/5018734.pdf


 

New Insights

Education for sustainable development – preserving linguistic and cultural diversity

Preserving language is a part of valuing culture and diversity.  "Among the 6,000 languages ​​and dialects of the world, 50 percent of them are threatened" (UNESCO, 2012).
Language is part of a culture and represents how or why we live like we do.  The loss of a language changes generations of people and can often effect the environment.

An example:

CARE is an international humanitarian organization fighting for all children everywhere to have access to quality education to gain confidence and skills they will need throughout their lives. In Peru, a large percentage of the population speaks Quechua or Aymara as their mother tongue, yet the teaching is still done in Spanish. Primary school children face difficulties to learn how to read and communicate, and those who manage to finish primary school does not generally have acquired basic Spanish skills in reading, writing texts, and mathematical reasoning.

Quality

©UNESCO/Niamh Burke

Early childhood care and education programmes should emphasise the child’s holistic development and extend beyond assisting the child’s transition to formal schooling. High quality childcare, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, promotes motivation, confidence, good cognitive and linguistic development and school readiness.

There are no universally agreed criteria for quantifying ECCE quality but useful factors to consider include pedagogy materials, personnel training, service setting and parental education and involvement. Learning materials should be quantitatively, culturally and developmentally adequate and focus on child-centred interaction. Where appropriate curricula exist, there can be problems with implementation with the emphasis remaining on early primary education and preparation for formal schooling due to pressure from parents and the fact that it is easier for teachers than child-centred learning.

SUSTAINABILITY

The question "education for what?" is increasingly coming to the forefront, focusing on the quality and relevance of education, on its content and pedagogical methods, notably in the perspective of sustainable development. The United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014) led by UNESCO aims, among others, to transform the how and why of learning by encouraging countries to reorient their education systems. A holistic understanding of sustainable development has been developed around three key areas: society, environment and economy; with culture as an underlying dimension

Learning programs and environments must better promote theunderstanding of oneself, of others, and of the world around us.

"Development and economic prosperity depend on the ability of countries to educate all members of their societies and offer them lifelong learning. An innovative society prepares its people not only to embrace and adapt to change but also to manage and influence it. Education enriches cultures, creates mutual understanding and underpins peaceful societies. UNESCO is guided by upholding education as a human right and as an essential element for the full development of human potential." UNESCO Medium Term Strategy 2008-2013 (Para. 32)

Using Pre-K to Advance Education Reform

HIGHLIGHT: Increasingly, pre-kindergarten—which provides a publicly funded, standards-based education for three and four year olds—is recognized as an entry point for public education because of its proven effectiveness in closing achievement gaps and improving school performance



Many states are only now beginning to create strong connections among pre-k, Councils, and education reform. Cultivating such connections makes sense. Within the birth-to-five continuum, pre-k—as an organized, educational program tied to explicit learning standards and teacher qualifications—has a distinct connection to schools and public education systems. Therefore, even though Councils are multi-stakeholder groups with representatives from across the early childhood spectrum, they are well positioned to influence their states’ school improvement activities by strengthening linkages between pre-k programs and education reform agendas.


This idea of pre-k as an educational entry point is proven over and over again by creating highly academic Kindergarten standards.  As kindergarten moves away from early childhood developmental approaches there becomes a new and necessary entry point.  An entry point with play at the center and discovery a necessary.

http://www.pewstates.org/uploadedFiles/PCS_Assets/2011/ECAC_brief_FINAL.pdf



Opportunities for Using Pre-K to Strengthen and Advance State Education Reform Efforts

On a broad policy level, Councils can provide a forum for informing state public education leaders about the array of early learning programs that can undergird reform efforts.

Councils should connect early learning with elementary schools, taking into account children’s learning experiences prior to pre-k, as well as in kindergarten and the primary grades
Connections between early learning and public education can vary from one community to another, and Councils can help communities find the linkages that work best for them.

POLICY REFORM IS KEY:
The ability to position pre-k as a starting point for public education depends on the maturity and effectiveness of a state’s program. States with a well established and successful pre-k should think about how changes in education policy connect to early learning, with pre-k serving not only as an important element of reform but also as a key connection point between kindergarten and programs serving younger children. States with less mature programs may want to focus on how expanding and evaluating the long-term impact of pre-k could support reform efforts.