ESTABLISHING
PROFESSIONAL CONTACTS
The first person I
contacted is Mrs Bimbo Are, the owner of Ajoke International School, Ibadan,
Nigeria. During our discussion, I asked her question on issues that are
affecting Early Childhood (EC) field. Her response is that government of
Nigeria has accepted EC as the foundational education but could not demonstrate
the political will to embrace the program wholly. Currently it is in the hands
of private practitioners. Individuals run Centres and schools based on what
they believe are right for the children. Quality control system is weak for
now. Government have managed to allocate 5% budget to education and what gets
to EC is not defined. Implementing the agreed standard is not currently
practicable. The second person is Jane lee; she is a member of association for
Early Child Hood Education Singapore. In Singapore, the reverse is the case because
the government is actively supporting EC and higher institutions are being
equipped to train caregivers and teachers. She believes that it is only when
teachers and caregivers have relevant knowledge about children development that
they can function as scaffolding for children.
EXPANDING RESOURCES
NEWS LETTER
One newsletter I
cherish very well is from zero to three. The newsletter is free for
subscription and it is called “baby to big kids”. It provides information about
how children grow and develop. It contains research studies covering
developments in areas of language, brain, body, cognitive and psychosocial.
This can help parents and EC professionals to dictate developmental delays for
early intervention. Zero to three is a nongovernment organisation that trains
and supports parents and stakeholders in their efforts to improve the lives of
infants and toddlers. In their word “early experience matter”(zero to three).
Reference
Thank you for sharing your resources.I am glad you were able to establish the professional contact internationally because I was not succesful at completing that task.The website and newsletter you chose both sound very interesting and educational, I will be sure to check them out!
ReplyDelete-Dina
Hello Vivian,
ReplyDeleteI am intrigued you established the contact with Bimbo Are. I only did her a mail yesterday and I am hoping for a response. I am surer now that I will have a response from her too.
Meanwhile, I appreciate your line of thought in the post. It is true that early childhood has been accepted as the foundational stage of Education and that the Government is yet to empower the segment of education. Early Childhood in Nigeria is yet shouldered and driven by the private sector and though they are doing a great job, the part of Government investment is missed and craved for.
The Governor of Rivers State is however taking an initiative through the platform of the office of his wife and slowly but gradually, the field of early childhood Education in this locality will take shape and form.
Last month, a second annual conference held in the city to promote commitment to the field of early childhood Education for all.
We must really think alike! I also did Early Childhood Australia and have been a subscriber to the Zero to Three news letter for several years now. I have received and shared a great deal of their articles they sent out.
ReplyDeleteIt really is a shame, but not surprising that many places around the world are still so far behind on seeing the importance of ECE. It is also mind boggling that a country can only support education by a 5% allocation of its budget. Then there are countries that see how important it is and place a great deal of emphasis on it. Hopefully some day in the {near} future we will be able to have universal standards for early education and everyone will see how important it is.
Hello Vivian,
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you were successful in your attempt to make contact and, have already begun to gather information about the state of early childhood in their respective country. I expereinced a great deal of difficulty in making my contacts but, I am excited to watch the podcasts on the World Forum website of professionals around the world. I will be checking in to your blog often to see what knowledge you gain from your contacts.
Melissa