ISSA Invited to Contribute to "Early Matters: Symposium on Improving Early Childhood Education and Care," Brussels, 14 October 2008

Investing in quality Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) is crucial, as it is at this stage that the foundations are laid for subsequent learning and achievements, and also because investing in quality provision is shown to contribute substantially to breaking the cycle of disadvantage. Within the EU, different realities can be observed across Member States in terms of enrolment rates, supply, quality, resources, approach and governance.

The symposium, organized by Directorate General for Education and Culture of the European Commission, provided a basis for enhanced dialogue and European policy cooperation in this field.
It brought together European and national policy-makers, representatives of European stakeholder organizations, practitioners, civil society representatives (including ISSA), international organizations and members of the research community, including the European Expert Network on Economics of Education (EENEE) and the Network of Experts on the Social Sciences of Education and Training (NESSE). The program included presentations from researchers, policy makers, and practitioners. Aija Tuna, ISSA Program Director represented ISSA and its member NGOs in this very important event.

Odile Quintin, the European Commission's Director-General for Education and Culture, opened the symposium by pointing out the importance of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) both for equity and efficiency.
 Highlights of the presentations and discussions included the following:

• High quality ECEC has a much greater impact than simply facilitating mothers’ participation in labour markets; it is also an investment in the cognitive and emotional development of children with long-term consequences for the individual child and the whole society.
• Early education is an instrument for social cohesion. However, it becomes more and more evident that access without quality is of little merit.
• Democratization in education is not “massification.”
• Highly qualified staff and ongoing support for professional development is crucial and progressive universalism.
• Education for all, with special attention on the inclusion of vulnerable children and respect for diversity, must guide policies and practice.

ISSA helped disseminate the Conclusions  resulting from this Symposium among its network of members and partners, and plans to use this document as a tool to advocate for effective investments in quality early childhood education and care in the region. 

For a summary of presentations and discussions, please visit http://www.eenee.de/portal/page/portal/EENEEView/_generische_page_eenee?content=eenee-symposia-08-summary.htm&language=us.