Special Report: Early Learning and School Readiness
Derren Hayes
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
High-quality early education has the potential to improve children's development, giving them the essential social, emotional and academic tools they need to successfully transition to school
Successive governments over the past 20 years have sought to narrow the attainment gap for disadvantaged children by enhancing the quality and quantity of early education.
A 2004 report by the Social Exclusion Unit, Breaking the Cycle, highlights how high-quality early years provision has been shown to improve children's development, particularly among poorer groups. This was a driver for the creation of Sure Start centres in the late 1990s, and a reason why the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition introduced in September 2010 an entitlement for 15 hours a week of free early education for all three- and four-year-olds. The entitlement has since been extended to the poorest 40 per cent of two-year-olds, and under measures introduced by the Conservatives, 30 hours a week of free childcare will be available for all three- and four-year-olds from September.
Politicians and policymakers see early education as being vital for building the social, emotional and academic skills that pre-school children need to go on to succeed in school.
CYP Now's special report on early learning and school readiness summarises the key policies shaping services, assesses latest evidence on the effectiveness of different approaches to early education, and highlights four examples of innovative practice in helping children transition from childcare to school.
Click on these article links for more:
Early learning and school readiness: Policy Context
Early learning and school readiness: Research Evidence
Early Childhood Research Review 2003-2017
Starting Strong V - Transitions for Early Childhood Education and Care to Primary Education
School Readiness and Self-Regulation: A Developmental Psychobiological Approach
Study of Early Education and Development: Good Practice in Early Education
Early learning and school readiness: Practice examples: