Early Childhood Development

1. Early Childhood Development Presentation to the Portfolio Committee 07 May 2002 Marie-Louise Samuels

2. Overview • What is ECD? • What did we inherit? • What was Government’s response • Why policy? • Outline of the policy • Implementation plans • Responses to date • Challenges • Conclusion

3. What is ECD • Provision of physical, emotional, social, spiritual and moral development for children aged birth to nine years. • Birth - 6 years: • homes, centres • 6 years: • homes, centres, schools • 7-9: • Grade 1 - 3 in schools

4. What did we inherit? • Incomplete, fragmented legislative and policy framework for ECD • uncoordinated, piece meal service delivery • limited access to ECD services • inequities in existing ECD provisioning • variable quality of ECD services

5. What was Government’s response • Government policies and programmes • Over 30 policies, programmes, legislation • National ECD pilot project • Tested models • Provided recommendations “Make reception year core business”

6. Policy Development Moments • Pre-1994 documentation. • Education White Paper 1, 1995. • South African Schools Act, 1996. • Interim ECD policy, 1996. • National ECD Pilot Project 1997-2000. • Final research report 2001. • Audit of ECD sites, 2000 (report 2001). • White Paper 5 on ECD, 2001.

7. Why Invest Now? • Opportunity for all children to grow up in dignity and equality. • Need to protect the rights of the child. • Optimal brain development. • Demonstrated model - Health nutrition, a safe environment and psychosocial and cognitive stimulation. • Education experiences in preschool years has a positive impact on school learning. • Economic argument.

8. Outline of Policy Proposals in White Paper • National, comprehensive, accredited pre-school reception year programme (grade R) for 5/6 year olds. • Provision for birth-5 year olds within NPA. • Curriculum, • Practitioner development and career pathing, • Norms and standards for all providers. • Special programmes for young learners. • HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases. • Poor. • Rural. • Special educational needs.

9. Three Models for Reception Year • Reception year as part of public provision within the public school system – • 80% of provision - 800,000 places • subsidised • Reception year as part of public provision within selected community based centres • 13% of provision - 135,000 places • subsidised • Reception year as part of independent provision • 7% of provision - 65,000 places • Not subsidised

10. Broad Implementation Plan for Reception Year • Complete development of policies and norms. • Revise resourcing strategy within public school system; Currently 200,000 funded places; (2001-2003). • Phase in subsidised provision through selected community based centres, increasing by 135,000 funded places by (2004). • Expand subsidised provision within public school system on a poverty targeted basis to 800,000 (2004-2010).

11. Responses • Positive • Programmes for young children • Negative • No job security • Lack of consultation • Too little funding • Schools are “taking” all the children

12. Challenges • Government to fulfill its mandate • Establishment of service delivery partnerships with business, NGO’s • Interdepartmental service delivery • Strengthening of organisations, structures at national and provincial level • Use access to public servants

13. Conclusion “Today millions of children lead safer, healthier and fuller lives than they did a decade ago – before the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989 and the World Summit for Children in 1990. The same can be said of the progress of millions of women since the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of discrimination against women in 1979.

14. Conclusion And yet too many children and women still live outside the protection of society. Too many still see their rights abused or threatened.” Kofi A. Annan: Secretary-General of the United Nations.

15. THANK YOU