Why it’s vital to invest in your child’s early education

Investing in your child's early development will ensure they reach their full potential as they continue with their school career.

Parents will sacrifice a lot to ensure that their children get the best education possible. They often only start thinking about this when ‘big school’ looms and forget about the early developmental stage which happens before and in preschool.

However, there is evidence to suggest that investing in your child’s education prior to Grade 1 will do a lot for them in the long-term because this is a period in which important growth and development takes place.

Professor Eric Atmore of the Department of Social Development at the University of Cape Town and the Director of the Centre for Early Childhood Development in Cape Town says early childhood development is the processes by which young children grow and develop physically, emotionally, socially and cognitively.

MIDDLE CLASS: Maki Mngadi (36), a budding entrepreneur, shares her Northcliff, Johannesburg home with husband Simphiwe (44), an Information Security Architect at telkom and their children Nokukhanya (21), Buhle (11), nine-year-old tumi and two-year-old Njabulo.

“It is important because international research tells us that children who have quality early childhood learning opportunities do better at school, are less likely to need costly remedial education, are less likely to do crime and substance abuse, are more likely to get a job – and for young girls – are less likely to become pregnant whilst a teenager. These are all huge social, educational and economic benefits for society,” he explains.

A recent report released by Stellenbosch University’s Department of Economics hows that currently about 60% of South African children cannot read at a basic level at the end of Grade 4. This is due to a number of factors which include socio-economic issues like overcrowded classrooms weak teacher content knowledge, and poor early child-development eduction.

While it may be tempting to skimp on the cost of day-care for your children, there is real danger that they might be missing out on vital education for their early development.

“Young children start learning from the very beginning. This is not formal learning but is informal and incremental. Young babies can be read to, sung to and can do a range of physical activities all of which contribute to their early learning and development,” Prof Atmore says.

Parents need to ensure that the early childhood development (ECD) centre they take their children to is registered with the provincial Department of Social Development. This will ensure that their children are educated well in preparation for school.

Parents can also do a lot at home with their children to ensure they get the foundation they need.

Prof Atmore says the home is the first learning environment for children, and parents are the ones who start educating them. Simple things like reading to children, singing with them and telling stories can help with their development. Parents can also talk to their children about how things work and use house hold items for fun and stimulating games that are also educational.

“A used plastic milk bottle is a wonderful toy – it can be a car or a boat or anything at the same time. Stones can be used to develop early numeracy. Stories can broaden the child’s imagination. The home is full of wonderful, no-cost education equipment and opportunities for young children,” he says.