scholarly journals The readiness of the South African education system for pre-grade R year

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Janeli Kotze
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
National Development ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Constrained System ◽  
New Information ◽  
Policy Lever

Investment in Early Childhood Development (ECD) has the prospect of cultivating potential within individuals and can assist in bridging the social equity gap from a very young age. Over the past decade Grade R has been the strongest policy lever used by the Department of Basic Education to improve early learning. The National Development Plan calls for universal access to two years of early childhood development prior to entering Grade 1. This paper explores the merits of this proposal, given the specific South African context. More specifically, this analysis intents to bring new information to bear on three matters. The first relates to the demand-side and aims to identify participation trends among four and five year olds. The second objective is to consider the supply-side and aims to understand the policy space in which pre-Grade R will function, the quality and quantity of infrastructure already in place, and the expertise of ECD practitioners. The final question considers the implementation of a universally accessible pre-Grade R within a constrained system and the requirements to ensure that it will have a significant impact on those children most in need. 

scholarly journals Can pre-grade R be the stepping stone to social equality in South Africa

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janeli Kotze
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
National Development ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Constrained System ◽  
New Information ◽  
African Context ◽  
Policy Lever

Investment in Early Childhood Development (ECD) has the prospect of cultivating potential within individuals and can assist in bridging the social equity gap from a very young age. Over the past decade Grade R has been the strongest policy lever used by the Department of Basic Education to improve early learning. The National Development Plan calls for universal access to two years of early childhood development prior to entering Grade 1. This paper explores the merits of this proposal, given the specific South African context. More specifically, this analysis intents to bring new information to bear on three matters. The first relates to the demand-side and aims to identify participation trends among four and five year olds. The second objective is to consider the supply-side and aims to understand the policy space in which pre-Grade R will function, the quality and quantity of infrastructure already in place, and the expertise of ECD practitioners. The final question considers the implementation of a universally accessible pre-Grade R within a constrained system and the requirements to ensure that it will have a significant impact on those children most in need.

Building Academic Foundation Through Investing in Early Childhood Education and Development in South African Informal Settlement

2020 ◽  
pp. 251-271
Author(s):  
Ndwakhulu Stephen Tshishonga
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Development Interventions ◽  
Poverty And Inequality ◽  
Education And Development ◽  
Poor Nutrition

In the developing world alone, there are over 200 million children who are in need of immediate early childhood development interventions. Most affected by poor or lack of quality ECD are the poor and those children in low income households. Early childhood development interventions protect children against the effects of poverty, poor nutrition, inadequate healthcare, and a lack of education. Globally, various ECD programme interventions in communities clearly indicate that communities and families want quality ECD programmes for their children at a cost that is affordable. In South Africa, quality early childhood development interventions could have a significant effect in reducing poverty and inequality. This chapter interrogates the challenges and benefits of extending quality ECE & D particularly to disadvantaged and materially deprived children in South African informal settlements. The chapter is based empirical research as well as secondary data in the form of books, book chapters, and accredited journals.

scholarly journals Vocabulary used by ethno-linguistically diverse South African toddlers: A parent report using the Language Development Survey

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurellia Shamaleni Gonasillan ◽  
Juan Bornman ◽  
Michal Harty
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Language Development ◽  
South African ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Linguistically Diverse ◽  
Parent Report ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Expressive Vocabulary ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
African Context

Objective: The primary aim of this study was to ascertain the relevance of the vocabulary of the Language Development Survey (LDS) for typically developing South African toddlers who attend ethno-linguistically diverse early childhood development centres.Rationale: The need for exploration of the expressive vocabulary of this population stems from the diverse linguistic contexts to which toddlers are exposed on a day-to-day basis in South Africa. Many parents prefer English as the language of learning and teaching for their child. As a result, toddlers interact with ethno-linguistically diverse peers from a young age, usually within their early childhood development centres.Method: An adapted version of the LDS was presented to 40 middle-class parents in Mpumalanga. Vocabulary commonly used by toddlers was determined and a comparison of parent responses made between the present study and the original American-based survey.Results: Results revealed that nouns were used most often by toddlers, in keeping with research on vocabulary acquisition. Significant correlations between the two groups were evident in 12 of the 14 categories. Parents reported that nouns, verbs, adjectives and words from other word classes were used similarly by toddlers, despite differences in their linguistic exposure.Conclusions: These findings suggest that the LDS is a valuable clinical screening tool for speech-language therapists who deliver services to toddlers within the South African context.

scholarly journals Measuring and forecasting progress in education: what about early childhood?

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda M. Richter ◽  
Jere R. Behrman ◽  
Pia Britto ◽  
Claudia Cappa ◽  
Caroline Cohrssen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Preschool Education ◽  
Early Learning ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Childhood Care

AbstractA recent Nature article modelled within-country inequalities in primary, secondary, and tertiary education and forecast progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets related to education (SDG 4). However, their paper entirely overlooks inequalities in achieving Target 4.2, which aims to achieve universal access to quality early childhood development, care and preschool education by 2030. This is an important omission because of the substantial brain, cognitive and socioemotional developments that occur in early life and because of increasing evidence of early-life learning’s large impacts on subsequent education and lifetime wellbeing. We provide an overview of this evidence and use new analyses to illustrate medium- and long-term implications of early learning, first by presenting associations between pre-primary programme participation and adolescent mathematics and science test scores in 73 countries and secondly, by estimating the costs of inaction (not making pre-primary programmes universal) in terms of forgone lifetime earnings in 134 countries. We find considerable losses, comparable to or greater than current governmental expenditures on all education (as percentages of GDP), particularly in low- and lower-middle-income countries. In addition to improving primary, secondary and tertiary schooling, we conclude that to attain SDG 4 and reduce inequalities in a post-COVID era, it is essential to prioritize quality early childhood care and education, including adopting policies that support families to promote early learning and their children’s education.

Investigating grade R teacher institutional identity presented in policy and expressed through narrative in a time of transition

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Roxanne Long
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
Institutional Identity ◽  
Teacher Narratives ◽  
Policy Documents

This study investigated Grade R (reception year) teacher institutional identity presented in policy and expressed through teacher narratives. The study was conducted in the context of a major national policy transition that involved the physical and contextual shift of Grade R out of the Early Childhood Development sector and into the formal schooling sector. This study highlighted the way in which this shift has resulted in mixed policy messages, which have implications for Grade R teachers’ institutional identities and learning trajectories across their landscapes of practice. The thesis begins by exploring the South African Education context in general as well as the Early Childhood Development context in particular. In order to understand the institutional identities of Grade R teachers as both storied by others (in policy) and by themselves, the study conducted a documentary analysis of policy relating to Grade R teachers and Grade R teacher narrative expressions of their identities. The methodological approach of the study involved a qualitative approach, drawing on grounded theory analytical techniques to closely examine policy documents and teacher generated data gathered through interviews and questionnaires. The study was guided by a sociocultural perspective and drew on three key sociocultural theorists whose work provided complementary perspectives on teacher identity. Sfard and Prusak’s (2005) operationalization of identity as narratives was used to define the unit of analysis for the study (i.e. identities as stories). Gee’s (2000) definition and conceptualization of institutional identity was supplemented with Wenger-Trayner, Fenton-O'Creevy, Hutchinson, Kubiak, and Wenger-Trayner’s (2015) notion of identity as journeying across landscapes of practice. This complementary framing allowed for focused and detailed analysis of policy documents and Grade R teacher identity stories. The study addresses the research gap of an under-representation of identity research in early childhood teacher education and particularly in the South African context. This study is significant as it is the first study of its kind to explore the importance of identity formation for Grade R teachers as newcomers to the formal schooling landscape. Findings from the policy analysis point to mixed messages moving across a spectrum of descriptors from the not yet qualified ‘mothers and ‘caregivers’ to qualified ‘specialised’ educators. These descriptors have implications for the differentiated roles and responsibilities (institutional identity) of Grade R teachers. The findings from teacher identity narratives highlighted tension in the navigation of the policy promoted institutional identities. Teacher narratives pointed to vastly contrasting experiences of teachers with specialised and qualified institutional teacher identities to those with not yet qualified institutional identities. For the former, there were high levels of confidence in their job security and in terms of recognition received from others. For the latter, however, there was vulnerability in terms of the stability of their jobs and remuneration as well as low levels of recognition from others. The study draws on the findings from the analysis to suggest recommendations for Grade R policy, Grade R teacher education (both inservice and pre-service); as well as Grade R professional development initiatives.

scholarly journals Challenges facing the early childhood development sector in South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Atmore
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Situation Analysis ◽  
Programme Implementation ◽  
African Government ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
Government Education

In this review article, the context of young children in South Africa in 2012 is described and the main challenges affecting children and the early childhood development sector (ECD) in South Africa are investigated. A situation analysis of ECD in South Africa was undertaken using South African government ECD policy and programme implementation reports. There has been progress since 1994, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The number of children in Grade R has trebled since 2001, government education and social development budgets have increased substantially and 58% of children at ECD centres nationally are now subsidised. More children are in provision and in better quality provision than before. However, much still remains to be done before we can say with confidence that the needs of our youngest children are being met. This study identifies infrastructure, nutrition, ECD programmes, teacher training, institutional capacity and funding as the major gaps in ECD provision.

scholarly journals Tapping into Leadership in Early Childhood Development Centers: Learning from the Lived Experiences of Principals in South African Townships

SAGE Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 215824402110613
Author(s):  
Sibonelo Blose ◽  
Evelyn Muteweri
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Community Based

Leadership is one of the critical drivers of educational institutions and has been overwhelmingly researched across countries. However, there is little with regards to early childhood development centers in the scholarship of educational leadership. South Africa has an assortment of early childhood development centers (ECD) ranging from fully registered and well-resourced centers in affluent areas to less regulated and poorly resourced community-based centers in townships, informal settlements and rural areas. In these centers, there are individuals performing a pivotal role of leading and managing the institutions. In this paper, we hone in on these individuals, specifically in a township setting, whom we refer to as ECD center principals. By means of narrative inquiry methodology, we solicited and interpreted the lived experiences of selected ECD center principals to garner an understanding of what it means to lead an ECD center in a township setting. The paper makes two broad contributions, namely, ECD center principals’ self-cognitions and their experiences of leading centers in townships.

scholarly journals The South African 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Birth to 5 Years: An Integration of Physical Activity, Sitting Behavior, Screen Time, and Sleep

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine E. Draper ◽  
Simone A. Tomaz ◽  
Linda Biersteker ◽  
Caylee J. Cook ◽  
Jacqui Couper ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
South African ◽  
Early Childhood Development ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Childhood Development ◽  
The South ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Stakeholder Consultation ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Local Literatures

Background: In December 2018, the South African 24-hour movement guidelines for birth to 5 years were released. This article describes the process used to develop these guidelines. Methods: The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation-ADOLOPMENT approach was followed, with some pragmatic adaptions, using the Australian guidelines for the early years as a starting point. A consensus panel, including stakeholders in early childhood development and academics, was formed to assist with the development process. Results: At a face-to-face meeting of the panel, global and local literatures were considered. Following this meeting, a first draft of the guidelines (including a preamble) was formulated. Further reviews of these drafts by the panel were done via e-mail, and a working draft was sent out for stakeholder consultation. The guidelines and preamble were amended based on stakeholder input, and an infographic was designed. Practical “tips” documents were also developed for caregivers of birth to 5-year-olds and early childhood development practitioners. The guidelines (and accompanying documents) were released at a launch event and disseminated through various media channels. Conclusions: These are the first movement guidelines for South African and the first such guidelines for this age group from a low- and middle-income country.

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