THE MINISTER FOR YOUTH AND SPORTS
HONOURABLE LAISENIA TUITUBOU
Address at National Early Childhood Education Week Launching at Rishikul Primary School Grounds, Nasinu on Saturday 30th July at 9.30am.
- Educational leaders;
- Early childhood educators;
- Teachers
- Invited Guests
- Ladies and Gentlemen
Good morning, Ni sa bula vinaka and Namaste.
First allow me to thank the organisers of the Early Childhood Education Week for the invitation to officiate as Chief Guest at today’s launch.
The week being launched this morning sets out to reaffirm the important role that early childhood education plays in our children’s development.
According to the Ministry of Education policy for early childhood education, development and education experiences aim to promote the total learning and development of the child. Such a holistic approach will ensure the child’s optimum learning development. At the same time, early childhood experiences equip young children with the necessary knowledge and skills for later schooling and lifelong learning.
There is no better time to begin moulding our children in the first years of their lives. This is when fundamental organization and functional capabilities of the brain are established as young children interact with and make sense of their world. Early childhood education therefore plays an integral role with respect to how well our children can progress in the education system. Research indicates that, of all educational investments, early childhood education achieves the highest rate of social return both in developing and industrialized countries. Early childhood education offers children a “head start” in their primary schooling and positively influences their later performance in school, tertiary education and ultimately in life.
Studies have shown the benefits of early childhood education. One in particular is the Abecedarian Project where researchers monitored the progress of students that were part of early childhood education programs over time as they gradually moved through normal educational formative years. The findings demonstrated that important, long-lasting benefits were associated with high quality early childhood education programs.
I too believe that young children learn best when they're not pushed too hard. They have an opportunity to interact with their friends, their parents and teachers who treat them kindly and this should be the basis of any and all early childhood education programs. Likewise, children learn best when instruction and educational activities are only a small portion of their days.
Let us also not forget the very important role that physical activity plays in our children’s early development. Providing the impetus for their growth as active students in their formative years, we must also incorporate the practice of physical activity to encourage and foster healthier lifestyles from an early age. Physical activity helps to build muscle tone, bones, hand-eye coordination, balance and, perhaps most importantly, to have fun. It helps improve academic results. It will undoubtedly also help our young ones to learn and also enjoy this phase in their life as the old adage goes, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” – this can also apply to Mere being a dull girl! This has also been included as a fundamental aspect in the Convention on the Rights of a Child. Article 31 states that “Parties recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts.”
Children enjoying early childhood education usually benefit through improved social skills, less or no need for special education instruction during subsequent school years, better grades, and enhanced attention spans. These benefits have been proven both locally and internationally. Likewise, some researchers have concluded that young children enrolled in pre-school programs are more likely to graduate from high school, attend college, have fewer behavioural problems and not become involved with crime in their adolescent and young adult years.
In addition to children experiencing normal development, it has also been shown that children with learning or other physical disabilities benefit immensely from early childhood education. This Government is clear and focused in our belief that an early start to education is important. We need to give our children the best start to life possible and that we are doing through education and, in this instance, early childhood education.
It therefore gives me enormous pleasure to launch the National Early Childhood Education Week. May you all enjoy this upcoming week in celebration of this most fundamental aspect of education.
Thank you, vinaka vakalevu and dhanyevaad.