Early Childhood Education:
Early childhood education generally means education before the start of formal schooling or before the age at which children are generally required to attend school. It covers the period from birth to 6 years. Legislation on school attendance requires children to be at school (or receiving an education) from the age of 6. In practice, almost all 5-year-olds and about half of 4-year-olds actually attend primary schools.
Early childhood education services include infant classes in primary schools and a range of childcare and preschool services. Pre-school childcare services are regulated by Child and Family Agency.
Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Scheme
The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Scheme provides early care and education for children of pre-school age. In general, the provision amounts to 3 hours per day, 5 days a week over certain number of weeks for children enrolled in participating playschools.
The ECCE scheme is administered by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.
Role of the Department of Education and Skills in early education
The involvement of the Department of Education and Skills in early childhood education focuses mainly on interventions for children who are disadvantaged or have special needs. The Early Years Education Policy Unit of the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs work on policy issues affecting early childhood care and education.
Infant classes in primary school
There is a special grant allocation to national schools to help buy equipment and materials for infant classes in primary schools.
Early Start
The Early Start Programme aims to tackle educational disadvantage by targeting children who are at risk of not reaching their potential within the education system. It is a one-year preventative intervention scheme offered to pre-school children (3 to 4 years old) in some schools in disadvantaged areas.
Children under 4 with special needs
Local Health Offices and/or voluntary bodies provide services for young children with severe or profound disabilities.
Pre-school children do not have a specific right to education. However, they are entitled to certain health services which are related to education. The Health Service Executive is responsible for providing psychological services and speech and language therapy services for pre-school children with disabilities who are assessed as needing these services. Assessments of children under the age of 5 are carried out under the assessment of need provisions of the Disability Act 2005.
The Visiting Teacher Service of the Department of Education and Skills provides a service to young children with visual and/or hearing impairment, from the age of 2 years.
There are a small number of special pre-school class units for children with autistic spectrum disorders. These units are attached to primary schools.
Budget 2016
It was announced in Budget 2016 that a number of supports to enable children with disabilities to fully participate in pre-school care and education will be phased in during 2016. Supports will include grants for equipment, appliances, minor alterations, access to therapeutic intervention and training for childcare staff.
Government policy on early childhood education
The White Paper on Early Childhood Education ‘Ready to Learn’ is concerned with children from birth to 6 years. It sets out the core objective of early childhood education as ‘supporting the development and educational achievement of children through high quality early education, with particular focus on the target groups of the disadvantaged and those with special needs’.
It sets out a number of guiding principles:
- Quality will underpin all aspects of early education provision.
- The State will build on existing provision and use the existing regulatory framework, where possible.
- Implementation will be undertaken on a gradual, phased basis to allow all the participants in the system to prepare adequately for the challenges that lie ahead.
- Progress will be achieved through a process of consultation, dialogue and partnership.
The White Paper proposes early support for families of children with special needs; such parents should have access to an early education expert, initially as an advisor to parents, then as a teacher.
Síolta: the National Framework for Quality in Early Childhood Education was published in 2006. The Early Years Education Policy Unit of the Department of Education and Skills manages the implementation of Síolta.
The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment has developed Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework, for children from birth to 6 years of age. This framework, published in 2009, describes the types of learning that are important for children of this age group and sets out broad learning goals for all children.
