Early Childhood Development

Essay by spongebobnj January 2008

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Results and Discussion

Since women have entered the workforce, most families don't have the privilege of a stay at home parent in today's society so it means that more children have to go into early education and pre-school. Some municipalities have recognized the need for an early education opportunity for children in their districts so they have started to accommodate the needs of families. Not all municipalities are able to provide free services for the early child, so the federal government has developed some programs to provide affordable programs such as Head Start. Some of these programs will even include prenatal care or post-delivery visits.

If education is ignored until the kindergarten age is reached, children often struggle in their early development of academic skills. The daily experiences that a child has affected the development of the child both intellectually and personally. Not surprisingly, a direct correlation of long-term consequences between a higher quality early education and lower juvenile crime and teen pregnancy rates have been established in studies conducted by the government (Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, 2005).

They have also found that with inferior early childcare, that there are long-lasting effects on language, social skills and school performance.

The broad aim for early childhood education is to prepare children for a successful experience when they enter the traditional school atmosphere in kindergarten. This is difficult to do however because of the inconsistency that occurs between programs, the high turnover rate of instructional staff/employees and the fact that children often move to new programs each year. Children are expected to gain the ability to have focused attention, learn self-regulation and develop a deliberate memory and these skills will shape their future learning skills. The early childhood learner is expected to change from a reactive thinker to...