What is the issue?
The National Education Policy, 2020 has highlighted the importance of early childhood care and education (ECCE) but the NFHS-5 finds only 13.6% of children enrolled in pre-primary schools.
What is the significance of early childhood care and education?
According to UNESCO, early childhood is defined as the period from birth to 8 years old, a time of remarkable growth with brain development at its peak.
- During early childhood, children are highly influenced by the environment and the people that surround them.
- Early childhood care and education (ECCE) is more than preparation for primary school.
- It aims at the holistic development of a child’s social, emotional, cognitive and physical needs in order to build a solid and broad foundation for lifelong learning and wellbeing.
- ECCE has the possibility to nurture caring, capable and responsible future citizens.
- For disadvantaged children, ECCE plays an important role in compensating for the disadvantages in the family and combating educational inequalities.
- The Sustainable Development Goal 4 aims to ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education by 2030.
Does every child have the access to ECCE?
- The existing system of Anganwadis at best serves the age group of 3-6 years, ignoring infants and toddlers.
- Due to lack of parental awareness compounded by the daily stresses of poverty, disadvantaged households are unable to provide an early learning environment.
- Many low-income families have begun to send their children to low-cost pre-schools which have a developmentally inappropriate teaching approach.
- Due to the high workload of anganwadi workers, ECCE in anganwadis remain a non-starter.
How to promote a meaningful ECCE programme in Anganwadis?
- Activity-based framework- A meaningful activity-based ECCE framework has to be designed that recognises the ground realities with autonomy to reflect the local context and setting.
- ICDS must supply age-appropriate activity-based play material in adequate quantities regularly.
- Work allocation- Routine tasks of anganwadi workers can be reduced and non-ICDS work, such as surveys can be removed altogether.
- Capacity building- With adequate training and additional incentives, helpers can be redesignated as childcare workers and handle routine work.
- Working hours- Anganwadi hours can be extended by at least three hours by providing staff with an increase in their present remuneration, with the additional time devoted for ECCE.
- This will have the added benefit of serving as partial daycare, enabling poor mothers to earn a livelihood.
- Karnataka has already taken the lead by working from 9.30 am to 4 pm.
- Policy- ICDS needs a change in policy mindset, both at central and state levels, by prioritising and monitoring ECCE.
- This will additionally require all ICDS functionaries to be fully trained in ECCE, including assessment through group activities and child observation.
- Engagement of parents- Anganwadi workers must be re-oriented to closely engage with parents, as they play a crucial role in the cognitive development of young children.
- Appropriate messaging and low-cost affordable teaching materials can be designed and made accessible to parents.
- State investment- States should invest in research and training to support early childhood education, and ensure that the ECCE programme is not a downward extension of school education.
