In my opinion… Carmel Brennan
Success in life begins in early childhood. The research leaves us in no doubt. That’s why inspectors from the Department of Education (DES) are now going into pre-schools. To the surprise of many, there’s a very positive welcome for them in the sector, because early childhood people see the move as a recognition of the work they do – a recognition that what children experience in pre-school is both education and care and very important.
Success in life begins in early childhood. The research leaves us in no doubt. That’s why inspectors from the Department of Education (DES) are now going into pre-schools. To the surprise of many, there’s a very positive welcome for them in the sector, because early childhood people see the move as a recognition of the work they do – a recognition that what children experience in pre-school is both education and care and very important.
In so many ways, pre-schools have been leading the way in teaching us all about how children learn – and we have clear evidence from brain science that they’re right. The DES inspectors agree. In their inspections, they want to see children playing. They know that we can train a child to count and recognise letters or colour inside the lines but if we want children to hold on to their natural sense of curiosity, creativity and imagination we have to use a child-centred approach – and the best child-centred approach is play.
Read the full article on The Irish Independent Website
