 What is Early Childhood Education?

Early childhood education often focuses on children learning through play.

According to UNESCO ECCE (Early Childhood Care and Education), Early
childhood is defined as the period from birth to 8 years old. A time of
remarkable brain development, these years lay the foundation for
subsequent learning.
The terms preschool education and kindergarten emphasize education
around the ages of 3–6 years. The terms "early childhood learning," "early
care," and "early education" are comparable with early childhood education.
The terms Day care and Childcare do not embrace the educational aspects.
Many childcare centers are now using more educational approaches. They
are creating curricula and incorporating it into their daily routines to foster
greater educational learning.
Researchers in the field and early childhood educators both view the parents
as an integral part of the early childhood education process. Early childhood
education takes many forms depending on the beliefs of the educator or
parent.
The early childhood education is much different than the
traditional model. This education Instead of information passing
from the teacher to the student, the teacher is skilled in putting
the child in touch with the environment, and helping him learn to
make intelligent choices and to carry out research in a prepared
environment. The teacher then protects the student's
concentration from interruption. This fosters a love of lifetime
learning in the student.

Keep in mind a triangle: the student, the parent or teacher, and

the environment. It is the role of the adult to prepare, and
continue to prepare, the environment, to link the child to it
through well-thought-out introductions to books and materials,
projects, and lessons, which nurture the child's exploration and
creativity. Children thus taught often surpass both the level of
education of their peers, and the knowledge of the adult in all
areas -- then they learn to find answers for themselves.

The Early Childhood Education (ECE) material stimulates the

children in independent learning by providing an impulse for
spontaneous activities which are in harmony with their physical,
mental and social phase of development.
 Children are not small-size adults. Therefore, they have to be treated in
accordance with their stages of development. Many examples showed how
the parents and community in general not treat the children according to
their stage development levels. Parents often pressure their will to the
children and sometime school teachers put pressures that don’t match with
the children stages of development.
It appears that there are two things to note on early childhood education:
 Educational Materials
 The Educational Methods Used
Both of them should consider their development level. Taking into account
the level of development also means considering their development tasks,
because each period of development is also a specific development task.
“The early childhood education is a development effort aimed at children
from their birth until the age of six years that go through provision of
educational stimulation to assist the growth and physical and spiritual
development in the intention to make the children be more ready to have
their further education.”
There is a need for an educational program designed in accordance with
their level of development. So, we need to make or return the classroom to
the playground, where they may singing, moving freely and make the
classroom as a creative forum to the children. Make the classroom feel like
home and psychologically comfortable.
 1st Stage
Early childhood, zero to six years, it is the period of
transformation further divided into two stages:-
 Zero to three years unconscious absorbent mind.
 Three to six years conscious absorbent mind.
 2nd Stage
Later childhood, six to twelve years. It is a period of
uniform growth.
 3rd Stage
Twelve to eighteen years. It is again a period of
transformation further divided into:-
 Puberty, twelve to fifteen years
 Adolescence, fifteen to eighteen years.
After this stage there is no more transformation. The
individual simply grows older. Let us go into the details
of these periods separately.
This early childhood period taken as a whole, makes a complete life
in itself. We see definite changes during this period, characterized
by the absorbent mind. It is a form of mind which is quite different
from that of an adult. It cannot be approached by the adults. The
working and nature of absorbent mind is full of mystery. This period
of transformation is further divided into two phases:-

1) Unconscious Absorbent Mind (0-3 YEARS)

In this stage the child is completely dictated by the absorbent mind.
Neither the adult can approach this mind nor can they exert and
direct influence on the child. This is the reason why there are no
schools for zero to three years age group. The child constantly
absorbs the impressions from the environment without even being
aware of it. He does it rapidly and unconsciously without any fatigue
and tiredness. He takes in the whole of the environment not with this
mind but with his life. These impressions remain stored in his mind. It is
during this period that his intelligence along with other psychic
faculties is constructed. It is a period of auto education and the
child is fully dependent on adults. Physically his head is not
proportionate to his body, it rather give a bigger appearance. The
child is mostly plumpish and chubby and the first set of milk teeth
makes their appearance.
2)Conscious Absorbent Mind (3-6 years)

Thought in this stage the mental types are type is still the same
yet the child becomes susceptible to adults’ influence. The
absorbent mind is still working without fatigue and effort but at a
slower pace. Now the child absorbs things with a conscious will.
He is mostly guided by his ego. In this period he builds his
personality upon the impressions stored in his mind during 0-3
years. What is unfinished in 0-3 years is now completed corrected
and perfected. The journey from unconscious to conscious
absorbent min takes places through his movements, especially
through hands which now become the tool of intelligence.
Physically he is till chubby and plumpish. He becomes quite
independent and can leave his mother for short time. He is now
ready for new experience. It is period for social development
due to which he wants to have company of other4 children. It is
a period of motor sensorial age.
 The phrase ‘Sensitive Period in development’ was first used by a
famous Dutch Biologist Hugo De Varies connection with the
development of certain animals. Later it was applied by Dr.
Montessori’s’ system, both in theory and practice has a
biological foundation. Working on these lines she discovered
that child has a great capacity to develop himself.

“During the development if certain organism there comes a

period of special sensibility. They are related to certain elements
in the environment toward which the organisms directed with an
irresistible impulse and a well defined activity.”
It means that during these periods the child is attracted to
certain things in the environment. His whole attentions focused
towards these, because of an urge within him. The things
referred to in the environment are:
 LANGUAGES
 CULTURE
 ORDER
 GRACE AND COURTESY
 REFINEMENT OF SENSES
 TINY OBJECTS
 MOVEMENT

All organisms are nourished by their respective environment. In fact

everything and ever being grow at the expense of the environment.
During the peak of any sensitive period the organism is directed by
an urge for a short time only. Therefore a directress should have a
through knowledge of sensitive period along with their time table.
The sensitive period are transitory, therefore they disappear after the
organism acquires certain functions.
 Adults play an important role in the psychic development of the
child. The child not only needs a prepared environment but he also
needs love and care. Love is something which is irreplaceable.
There must be loving but sensible adults in the environment who
should not neglect the child and on the other hand they should not
interfere too much in his constructive activities in the sensitive
periods. In the sensitive period of ‘order’, order should be
maintained. There should be fixed. Setting and place for everything
in the environment. As time goes enough freedom for the child
should be provide. When the child is two and a half years old, he is
ready for a School. It is the duty of the teacher to maintain order in
the environment.
Order prevents waste of energy. A well prepared environment acts
like a magic for the normalization of the child.
 1-SELF PREPARATION
 * Period of self-analysis
 * Acquire moral alertness
 * Tranquil and calm patience
 * Develop humanity and charity
 2-PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION
 * Training and observation
 * Knowledge of child development
 * She /he should continue to learn and keep up-to-date
 3- His/ Her QUALITIES
 * Scientific –she/he observes records
 * She/he serves -by the preparation of and being the
 Keeper of the environment
 *Her /His relationship with the child- Informal, warm, intense
 * Faith-she/he should believe in the child
 * Active to passive


 4-THE ENVIRONMENT

 * Freedom -for active participation
 * Structure and order
 * Reality and nature
 * Beauty
 * Social community -atmosphere
 *Intellectual environment –five areas of the curriculum

 5- THE TEACHER
 1- Preparation Self and professional
 2- Scientific Keeps records of contrive and social development
 Try to Experiment and develop activities to children interests and
 needs
3- Serves Child-Prepares environment-Guides and interprets
rather than instructs.
 4- Relationship-Observes dignity of child-informal, warm and
 huge.
 5- Faith -Helps Child realize full potential.
 In March 2002, the Federal MoE, Curriculum Wing, published the
National ECE Curriculum to meet the challenge of an providing an
appropriate learning environment for young learners. The main
objectives of this curriculum are:

Key Learning Areas:

1. PERSONAL and SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
2. LANGUAGE and LITERACY
3. BASIC MATHEMATICAL CONCEPTS
4. THE WORLD AROUND US
5. HEALTH HYGIENE and SAFETY
6. CREATIVE ARTs
ACTIVITY 1
 Make six activities according to your
recourses to improve each
competency?
 The child is an active learner:
 Spontaneous activity: the child chooses an activity - the
equipment supports concrete learning
 The links in knowledge are built up step by step, i.e. education of
senses to abstract thought
 Individual activity is encouraged as every child learns at a
different rate
 The importance of the connection between the hand and the
brain is emphasized.

Intrinsic motivation:
 Children want to learn; they do not have to be motivated by
external forces. Punishments and rewards are not used.
 Through the prepared environment the child is free to select
his/her chosen activity; therefore he learns what he/she wants to
learn, at his/her own pace. This spontaneous activity
encourages self-direction and self-reliance.
 Concentration develops if a child is self-motivated.
 Self-discipline is encouraged:
 Self-discipline comes from allowing intrinsic motivation.
 The child is protected from adult and other children's intervention.
 The apparatus also encourages self-discipline - by completing an
activity satisfactorily, the child feels rewarded and is encouraged to
take on longer and more complex tasks, thus disciplining him/herself.

The environment affects the child's development:

 The quality of the child's interaction with the environment affects
development
 The child learns from the environment
 Adults and other children are part of the environment

A child-centered approach starting from what the child can do:

 Through the prepared environment, the child builds on what he
can do, gradually absorbing and accomplishing more and more
skills and knowledge.
 The inner life of the child is respected :
 The child's dignity is respected
 Tranquility and peacefulness are encouraged.
 The classroom is often silent - silence is not imposed.
 Harmony, both externally and internally, are aimed at.
 The child's unique personality is allowed to develop naturally.

Social Interaction:
 The adults and the children with whom the child interacts are
seen as crucial to the child's whole development.
 Children respect one another's efforts and help only when it is
necessary, they are free from envy and anything well done in
the class arouses their enthusiastic praise.
 Children are vertically grouped and as they are of different
ages they help one another; the younger ones see what the
older ones are doing and ask for help. The result is harmony
and communication between the ages.
 FOLLOW UP ACTIVITY
 FOLLOW UP QUESTIONAIRE

PARTICIPANT NAME: ___________________ SESSION NAME: ___________

DATE: ___________________
1. Do you think such trainings are valuable for working at the schools?
 Yes
 No
 Not Sure/Don't Know

2. What do you learn from today session?

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3. What do think about ECE? Describe ECE in four lines?
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4. What role you will play to improve ECE?

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