International Comparative Childcare in Michael

International Comparative Childcare

In Michael Levine's 2005 secondary research article on promoting early childhood education (ECE) in the E-9 countries, summaries of the reasoning behind ECE and current efforts underway are followed by recommendations for the future (Levine 2005). The E-9 countries are "Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, and Pakistan," and put together, they are "home to well over 50% of the world's children" (Levine 2005). While these countries have done much work in support of primary education, health, and nutrition in recent years, they have yet to fully understand the significance of ECE (Levine 2005).

ECE is critical to an emerging nation's future for several reasons. First, children experience a critical period of rapid growth and development in linguistics, cognition, and "emotional, social, regulatory, and moral capacities" from infancy through age five, so taking advantage of this time period is essential for emerging nations to "increase their capital and thus their capacity to further their economic and social development" (Levine 2005). Second, this critical period of growth is like a trajectory, and interrupting that cognitive and emotional trajectory can result in various problems down the line (Levine 2005). Finally, emerging nations are becoming part of a high-tech global economy that will require young people who can compete in such an advanced arena (Levine 2005).

Levine then summarizes current initiatives in some of the E-9 nations. For example, Brazil, with one of the lowest rates of ECE compliance, is making great strides toward achieving its goals of extending ECE to at least one-third of all children under age three (Levine 2005). And China, which holds approximately one-fifth of all the children in the world, recently spent over $600 million on ECE programs for "over 22 million children aged 3 to 6," and expects to have 55% compliance for three-year preschools by 2015 (Levine 2005).

Finally, Levine summarizes what he thinks must occur in the coming years (post 2005) in terms of ECE advancements in the E-9 countries. The steps Levine suggests include: an International Summit on ECE, an International Fund for ECE, an International ECE Leadership Development Initiative, and U.S. agencies should consider the promotion of ECE in other countries an effective means to strengthening foreign relations (Levine 2005). Levine also suggests that successful implementation of these steps will require cooperation from not only the involved countries, but the U.N., United States, and the private sector as well (Levine 2005).

In another 2005 secondary research article on ECE around the world, Michelle Neuman discusses challenges facing emerging nations, some strategies implemented to deal with those challenges, and suggests that the United States can learn from the examples set by these countries (Neuman 2005).

Like Levine, Neuman discusses the two main reasons for the international jump in interest in ECE: research proving the critical growth and development taking place in very young children, and research proving the benefits of ECE in the long run, such as success in school and lowered delinquency rates (Levine 2005; Neuman 2005). Also like Levine, Neuman indicates that other nations have taken such great strides in advancing ECE efforts, in some cases while struggling with other serious issues facing developing countries; as a result, the United States should look to these nations for ways to improve its own educational system (Levine 2005; Neuman 2005).

Unlike Levine, Neuman draws her information from researching the "OECD of early childhood education and care in 20 advanced industrialized countries" (Neuman 2005). She also discusses three main challenges facing these nations in terms of ECE advancement that are particulary relevant to U.S. As well, and the strategies undertaken by these countries to cope with the challenges (Neuman 2005).

The first significant challenge involves coordination and governance of early child care and ECE. Countries have either adopted a divided or integrated approach to the issue, with the integrated approach seemingly better for coordination of effort, efficiency, better teachers and teacher salaries, and prevention of overlapping services (Neuman 2005). In response, some countries such as Denmark and Chile have established "coordinating bodies" to oversee the entire system and hold decision-making power (Neuman 2005). These countries have proven that such an approach can be successful if combined with other factors such as "technical capacity" and a "shared, holistic vision of early care" and ECE (Neuman 2005).

The second challenge facing nations with regard to ECE is helping younger children to be ready for the transition from ECE to primary school. In many countries, there are "structural, curricular, and pedagogical discontinuities" between the two programs that hinder adjustment and subsequent successful learning (Neuman 2005). One successful solution undertaken by many nations so far has been to coordinate all childhood services from birth up to primary school (Neuman 2005).