1.1 Reimagining Education in the 21st Century and the Early Childhood and Foundation stage:
The National Education Policy (NEP, 2020) observes that children, in large numbers, are going through our schooling system today without being able to even learn the basic skills of literacy and numeracy! The challenge before us presently is ‘Can we invert this pyramid”? Can we ensure that every child born in India is able to get opportunities to engage with learning that is meaningful, contextually relevant and enabling to help her/him realize her full potential?
As children currently in primary school move into adulthood, they will face a world that is rapidly changing, where technology is rapidly taking over many jobs otherwise done by humans. The World Bank has discussed the role of technological advances, and its implications for jobs in the future. In their 2019 report “The Changing Nature of Work,” the report cautions that as adults, today’s school children will work on jobs not yet invented! As innovations drive the need for specific skills, future generations (unlike their grandparents and even parents) will change jobs frequently and learn new skills. What children need to prepare for the future, are a set of skills that will prepare them to be lifelong learners -ready to learn, unlearn and relearn existing knowledge, with skills and attitudes to respond to the emerging opportunities. Educationists today emphasize what are essentially soft skills, also referred to as 21st century skills or the 5 C’s i.e., critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, communication, and compassion – skills that are best introduced in the early years to be reinforced and built upon in succeeding years.
1.2 Scientific Evidence to Support the Significance of ECCE
In recent decades, particularly since the late nineties, there has been an emergence of very significant and credible research from multidisciplinary sources which has confirmed the importance and need for an emphatic focus on early childhood, to ensure a sound foundation for not only learning but also health, wellbeing, and psychosocial adjustment of individuals all through life. Some highlights of these learnings from different disciplines which have clear implications for the curriculum are described below.
Neuroscience research has shown that the brain synapses that connect the neurons or information
processing cells of the brain grow most rapidly during the early childhood years. Two essential
principles of brain development are (a) that more complex brain structures build on the base of simpler ones, and that (b) development occurs on the principle of use it or lose it. Brain cells, if not stimulated and supported to grow during the early years, when the development is most rapid, cause the synapses to wither, creating a weak foundation, affecting the development of more complex structures.
All circuits of the brain do not develop at the same time. For example circuits for basic senses like vision and hearing are formed before those for language or higher- level cognitive functioning like problem solving, working memory and impulse control. The periods when circuits are being made, are called sensitive or critical periods in development. During the early years, the child’s brain growth is very responsive to the environment and in particular to the experiences the child is exposed to for development of specific competencies such as sensory development, language skills, social skills, physical motor development and formation of basic cognitive concepts- which are all foundational for higher order thinking in later years. It is for this reason that it is important that children have the right conditions for growth and development in the early years. Ensuring good health and nutrition, opportunities for early stimulation and learning and responsive care within a safe and secure environment are essential for a child’s development.
Evidence from Economics: The findings from neuroscience are reinforced by evidence from Economics. Research by James Heckman, the Nobel Prize winning economist, suggests that investment in young children yields maximum dividends, as compared to investment in later school years and adulthood. Heckman asserts that economic benefits to countries and societies are highest when spent on young children and therefore investments in education should target early childhood education programs where the focus should be on developing cognitive and character skills such as attentiveness, motivation, impulse control, persistence, and teamwork.
Research from Child Development and Education: Research in the field of child development from both India and internationally has consistently reinforced the importance of ECCE for-learning achievement in later life. The most recent study to reiterate these findings is the India Early Childhood Education Impact Study (IECEI) which is longitudinal research, carried out on 14000 four-year- olds in three Indian states who were tracked annually for five years from 2011 to 2016 and their educational experiences and outcomes studied. This study which contributed to the NEP (2020) recommendations, confirmed that participation in preschool education does make a difference to a child’s school readiness levels at age 5 + years. The impact is however more significant if the curriculum is play based and developmentally appropriate for children compared to formal, didactic teaching. It further found that the positive impact of good quality preschool education on school readiness is best sustained over time if there is an upward and seamless continuity of play-based and developmentally appropriate curriculum and pedagogy from preschool into the early primary years. This leads to a significant and sustained impact on children’s learning levels in school, particularly in mathematics and language domains.
Download full documentation – Karnataka Curricular Framework for Foundational Stage