Table 1 Rationales for ECEC provision
Rationale | Research Perspective | Policy Focus | Countries/International organizations using rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
Early interventions are a good investment in that they mitigates the expense of remedial action in primary and secondary schooling and results in subsequent adult productivity, and in the relative absence of antisocial behaviour. | Economics, human capital theory, long-term societal benefits: Draws on large-scale longitudinal aggregated data sets and cost-benefit studies of early childhood interventions. | Provide targeted services for the most vulnerable children, for whom investment offers biggest returns. | Neo-liberal English speaking countries, USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Hong-Kong World Bank and other financial institutions and think tanks |
Early education (and care) is only a good investment if it is of high quality. Poor care may do more harm than good for the most vulnerable children. | Child development research that suggests good child-staff ratios, staff training and good programmes are essential aspects of quality | Provide targeted early education services with emphasis on defining and monitoring quality | Neo-liberal English speaking countries concerned about extensive private sector provision and how to control it |
Early education benefits all young children, enhances dispositions for learning and socializes them for starting school, especially children from poor or migrant families | Child development research about children’s leaning processes and teachers pedagogic practices | Provide universal early education as part of an education system ensure access/support for the most vulnerable. | Social Welfare countries, countries with universal provision eg France, Nordic countries EU, OECD |
Quality includes sensitivity to special educational needs and subsequent school outcomes | |||
Education and lifelong learning essential to competitive knowledge economy. Education promotes social mobility | Education research and comparative education data from OECD and other trans-national sources | Provide free universal early education as part of education system Quality includes subsequent school outcomes | EU, OECD |
Women are essential contributors to a dynamic economy. | Economics, cost benefit studies of labour market participation, gender studies | Remove disincentives to women’s participation by the provision of full-time affordable childcare (Barcelona targets) Quality includes levels of provision and women’s workforce participation | Nordic countries, transitional countries pre-1990 EU, OECD |
Working mothers contribute to tax revenues and lessen the need for social security payments; they make an important contribution to family income | Welfare economics, emphasis on workplace participation of single parents and other parents who would otherwise bed dependent on state benefits | Maternity, paternity and parental leave and provision of full-time childcare, work support schemes Quality measured by mother’s (and fathers) well-being and levels of provision | Neo-liberal English speaking countries |
Low birth rates below level of replacement a societal problem | Demography, social welfare studies of population growth | Pro-natalist policies, child benefit, maternity and paternity leave, childcare. Quality measured by mother’s well-being and rise in birth rate | Some EU and post transitional countries, Taiwan, and other countries with low birth rates |
Mothers need to be involved with their children; parents are a child’s first educators. | Child development research which stresses critical early period and importance of family environment and mother-child attachments. | Home visiting schemes, parenting classes, mothers as volunteers | Neo-liberal countries with strong maternalist/paternalist traditions |
Quality measured by improved nature of mother-child interactions | World Bank/Unicef/WHO concerned with child survival | ||
Child poverty impacts severely on children’s educational performance, their sense of self-worth and their subsequent societal contributions. | Social welfare research on the impact of poverty on families | Redistribution of taxes and benefits and other social policies to mitigate child poverty; labour market legislation such as minimum wage | Social Welfare countries, mainly Nordic countries UNICEF |
Quality measured by reduction in child poverty | |||
Children, including young children, are rights bearers and all children have a right to protection, provision and participation | Legal requirements of Human Rights/Child Rights legislation | Broad approach, including reduction of child poverty, health and welfare support; defining provision from children’s perspective. | Nordic countries UNICEF |
Legal/sociological studies investigating children’s experiences and well-being in the here and now, and children’s agency | Quality measured by children’s reported well-being |