Dear Dr Morauta

Re: Council of Australian Governments: Human Capital Reform Working Group deliberations

Early Childhood Australia (ECA) wishes to acknowledge the decision by the Council of Australian Governments to place early childhood high on their agenda. ECA also congratulates those governments that have matched their understanding of the importance of early childhood experiences by increased investment in early childhood programs.

Having considered the communiqués from the COAG meetings of 10 February and 14 June 2006, ECA wishes to provide proposals for areas of State, Territory and Commonwealth government investment that will have the greatest positive impact for young children.

Early Childhood Australia is a national, non-profit, advocacy for organisation for young children. ECA has been speaking for young children for nearly 70 years. Early Childhood Australia is also the national umbrella organisation for children's services. Because ECA's focus is young children we are concerned with the quality of their childhood experiences wherever these take place - in families, children's services, the early years of school and the community more generally.

ECA understands the long term importance of early experiences for the future success and life choices of young children. The research that underpins this position is summarised in a recent impressive article by Ellen Galinsky The Economic Benefits of High-Quality Early Childhood Programs: What Makes the Difference?

Prepared by the Families and Work Institute for the Committee for Economic Development (CED)* the article examines the research on the three programs (The Perry Preschool/Highscope project, The Abecedarian project and the Chicago Child – Parent Centres) which provide strong evidence of the economic benefits of early childhood education as an economic investment with a view to answering the question "What can and should early childhood programs do to make a lasting difference in the lives of children, families and society and how can standards in early childhood education reflect these findings?" The drivers for this approach were a concern to counter the belief that any early childhood program regardless of its quality would make a difference and to more precisely examine the meaning of high quality in early childhood programs.

Early Childhood Australia strongly supports this analytic approach which draws together the full body of evidence and uses that evidence to identify what was it about those programs that made the difference.

What is evident in the Galinsky analysis is that there are some essential basics in programs that achieve lasting results for children: These were that the programs began early in life; had well educated, well trained and well compensated teachers – with resulting low staff turnover; small class sizes and high teacher:child ratios; provided intensive contact across more than one year with supported transition to school and parent support; and crucially they focussed on children's learning not just their achievements.

Equally the analysis found that the basics were not enough on their own. The things that matter if programs with the basics in place are to achieve their potential for children include:

• clarity of focus and intention about what the program was trying to do
• programs were lead by highly trained experts in early childhood education who generated strong support for the program among participants and the community
• the interventions focused on the whole child i.e. the child's intellectual, social, emotional and physical growth and well being
• the central place to the child's learning of relationships between the teacher and the child
• a view of children as active and experiential learners; a mixture of responsive and directed teaching
• a curriculum that set a framework for learning, and
• a focus on ongoing learning and professional development of the teachers involved in the program.

Having considered this research, Early Childhood Australia urges the Council of Australian Governments to consider improving the quality of early childhood experiences by investing in the quality of the programs for children using children's services.

The following priority areas for investment in children's services are drivers for ensuring quality outcomes for all young children as they are the best predictors of programs which have the features identified in the Galinsky paper.

1. Ensuring that children of all ages have the benefit of early childhood trained teachers in whatever early childhood service they are attending. Providing children with well educated and trained staff, whose levels of compensation and working conditions result in low staff turn-over

   High quality programs targeting young children and their parents during these years have been proven to have a life long impact on a child's educational and life outcomes. The quality of these programs, and the outcomes for children, is dependent on the knowledge and skills staff have received in their training. Programs led by teachers with an early childhood university degree will provide children with programs that are more socially and cognitively rewarding.

   While research has demonstrated the link between training and quality and outcomes for children, currently the qualification and training requirements for those working in children's services often leaves children with poorly trained, poorly remunerated carers. In the critical first three years, there are currently insufficient requirements for staff in children's services to have the necessary training in early childhood learning and development to provide children with the security, stimulation and challenges to support a child's learning.

   Furthermore the salary and working conditions result in high staff turnover and critical shortages of trained staff, impacting detrimentally on the development of secure attachment so necessary for healthy neurological development.

2. Providing adequate levels of staff to reduce group sizes and improve the staff: child: ratios

   As the Galinsky paper highlighted, research has demonstrated positive child carer relationships as being the most important predictor of a child's early development. To ensure a healthy start to life, infants and young children need to form strong attachments to adults who can provide them with the required stability and stimulation. The current levels of staff:child ratios and group size are inadequate to ensure that children are receiving the best start in children's services.

   Early Childhood Australia is aware that there has been discussion about a program which will give all children access to 20 hours of preschool. Whilst this proposal has merit it is important to note that the achievement of preschool outcomes is not limited to sessional programs provided in free standing preschool services. The key factor in the delivery of preschool outcomes whether in a sessional preschool or across the long day in a long day care centre is that the program is delivered by a teacher with a four year early childhood teaching degree. The pattern of attendance in long day care services means the notion of a twenty hour entitlement would need to be flexible in its implementation if were to apply to all 3-5 year olds in child care.

Early Childhood Australia recognises that all children deserve high quality experiences that require high levels of investment, with higher investments for some children, and believes that these measures would have the greatest impact on outcomes for children. We urge you and the Council of Australian Government to consider the research evidence and provide adequate and ongoing levels of investment in the areas that will have the greatest impact on children in the here and now and throughout their lives.

Yours sincerely

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