This is not to say that the existing programs should be discarded because no immediate positive results can be seen. There are always two stages when attacking current social problems: (a) address the immediate presenting problem and try to change behaviour so that the individual can lead a more productive and positive lifestyle, and (b) determine the root systemic causes of the problem and devise programs that will prevent the problem from occurring in the first place.
Determining the root causes and devising preventive programs is a far more cost effective way to address social problems in the long term. This is the approach made recently by the study, Early Years Study 3: Making Decisions, Taking Action[1] (2011) which was presented to a large audience at the Westin Nova Scotian on February 9th. Two of the authors of the study were present during the presentation: Hon. Margaret Norrie McCain, founder and chairperson of the Margaret and Wallace McCain Family Foundation, which published the study, and former Lt. Governor of New Brunswick, and Kerry McCuaig a researcher in the area of early childhood policy at the University of Toronto. She was also involved with the “Early Years Study 2: Putting Science into Action (2007)”.
Early Years Study 3 transfers the results of scientific enquiry into the realm of innovative social policy and offers suggestions for immediate and concrete action. The key suggestion in the study is the creation of a solid platform for addressing services for the development of early childhood education which should be the provincial education system. The idea is that our schools are the best place to offer programs for 2 – 5 years olds. “Good quality early childhood education supports children’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive growth, providing a smart start for school life. If organized to allow parents to work or upgrade their skills, it has been shown to reduce family poverty and contribute to healthier communities”.
The provincial education system provides the best platform from which to promote and build early childhood education programs. A comprehensive early childhood education program for 2-5 year olds can be launched from our publically funded schools. The infrastructure is already there so there is no need to start from scratch to build a new program. “By broadening education’s mandate to include younger children, we can bridge the gap between parental leave and formal schooling. Schools can become community centres for families, with supports and programs from pregnancy onward”.
Communities that have integrated programs for preschoolers focussing on education, social development, positive social behaviour, greater independence and self-regulation, show more positive results than communities with non-integrated programs. Another advantage in the “all-in-one”concept is the effect it has on parents. “Researchers have also found that parents whose children attend programs that are integrated into their school are much less anxious than their neighbours whose children are in the regular jumbled system”. Parental stress is a major cause preventing parents from responding appropriately to their children and “…researchers have connected chronic parent stress to the poor academic record of their children”.
Major changes are needed not tinkering around the edges with the existing system. We must be ready to ensure that all children have the opportunities to enter the school system ready to learn and to mature as responsible and successful adults. Let’s advocate for the changes that will ensure that our children truly come first.
[1] McCain, M.N., Mustard, J.F., & McQuaig, K. (2011). Early Years 3: Making Decisions, Taking Action. Toronto: Margaret and Wallace McCain Family Foundation.
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