Early childhood development
SOURCE: Human resources development review 2008: education, employment and skills in South Africa
OUTPUT TYPE: Chapter in Monograph
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2008
TITLE AUTHOR(S): L.Biersteker, A.Dawes
SOURCE EDITOR(S): A.Kraak, K.Press
KEYWORDS: CHILD DEVELOPMENT, EARLY CHILDHOOD, EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (ECD), HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Web link: http://www.hsrcpress.ac.za/product.php?productid=2218&cat=1&page=1&freedownload=1
Intranet: HSRC Library: shelf number 4995
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/5683
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/5683
OUTPUT TYPE: Chapter in Monograph
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2008
TITLE AUTHOR(S): L.Biersteker, A.Dawes
SOURCE EDITOR(S): A.Kraak, K.Press
KEYWORDS: CHILD DEVELOPMENT, EARLY CHILDHOOD, EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (ECD), HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Web link: http://www.hsrcpress.ac.za/product.php?productid=2218&cat=1&page=1&freedownload=1
Intranet: HSRC Library: shelf number 4995
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/5683
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/5683
If you would like to obtain a copy of this Research Output, please contact Hanlie Baudin at researchoutputs@hsrc.ac.za.
Abstract
It is well established that early childhood development (ECD) lays the foundation for success in the schooling system, and for human and societal development more generally. The poverty environments within which most children grow up do not provide good platforms for development, and poor schooling outcomes indicate that the deficits cannot be overcome by the schooling system. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds in particular need exposure to quality ECD services if we are to see improvements in these outcomes. This chapter draws on available data to show that improvements to access and quality are essential for all types of ECD provision, and argues that service access is presently skewed by age, geography and race and largely excludes children with disabilities. The legacy of apartheid neglect of ECD provisioning and practitioner training is that the most disadvantaged communities have access to the poorest services. Budget allocations and training supply cannot satisfy the need to expand access and improve quality. ECD has increasingly become a policy priority and delivery focus for human resource development (HRD) in South Africa, but current initiatives are hampered b lack of data and poor data quality, The chapter concludes that regularly collected and accessible data are needed on ECD coverage, access and use, benchmarked quality indicators (including practitioner qualifications, ratios and materials), financing and child outcomes, if the present inadequacies are to be addressed.-
Related Research Outputs:
- Early childhood development: a case for upscaling employment opportunities in the sector
- Scaling early childhood development (ECD) (0-4 years): the availability of government indicator systems for monitoring the national integrated plan for ECD
- Scaling early childhood development (ECD) (0-4 years): ECD in South Africa: policy, demographics, child outcomes, service provision and targeting
- Scaling early childhood development (ECD) (0-4 years): child and caregiver outcome indicators for ECD programme monitoring
- Scaling up Early Childhood Development (ECD) (0-4 years) in South Africa: a review of training qualifications, training provision and training delivery in relation to the needs of the National Integrated Plan for ECD and the ECD component of the Expanded Public Works Programme
- Child development, parasites and public policy
- Indicators for children, families and the elderly
- Early childhood and violence exposure
- Indicators for children, families and the elderly: executive summary
- Developmental potential in the first 5 years for children in developing countries
- What makes a difference to child outcomes in the period 0-4?: inputs for quality ECD interventions
- Towards a job hierarchy for early childhood development provision and supervision in South Africa, and the fit of low skill service providers
- Illustrative cases of on-the-ground delivery models for holistic ECD services - formal, community and household
- Governance and budgeting for implementation with the spotlight on the EPWP ECD initiative
- International case studies: ECD services in Brazil and the Phillippines
- Scale-up service delivery of early childhood development programmes: deliverable 4: support structures
- Scaling up ECD 0-4: an initiative to strengthen integrated ECD services and improve child outcomes in vulnerable South African communities while building local M&E capacity
- South African research on child development: a history of bias and neglect
- Human resources development and the importance of cross-sectoral state planning in post-apartheid South Africa
- Book review: Brown, Phillip, Green, Andy & Lauder, Hugh. (2001). High skills: globalisation, competitiveness and skill formation. ISBN 0199244189