|
Home > Early Childhood |
Early Childhood
| The value orientations of children are largely determined by the time they reach the age of formal schooling. |
|
| History The Education for All 2000 Assessment shows that of the more than 800 million children under 6 years of age in the world, fewer than a third benefit from any form of early childhood programmes. The challenge is thus enormous, made more difficult by the demographic pressures and increased urbanization, increased poverty and social exclusion, greater numbers of out-of-school children, the alarming progress of AIDS, growing violence among youth and the impact of globalization that most countries experience. Research confirms the importance of the early years to positively influence children in a long-lasting way. The value orientations of children are largely determined by the time they reach the age of formal schooling. The first steps towards a lifetime of peaceful, non-violent activities, of respect for one-self and others, and of appreciation of diversity may be taken during early childhood, as children begin to mature and put into place their cognitive and affective frameworks. During the 1999 UNESCO General Conference, several Member States representatives expressed their concern about young children who did not receive the proper quality of education, or were not exposed to any education at all, or were part of communities where crucial values were being eroded, and their desire to find ways in which those values can be strengthened. UNESCO receives more and more requests from Member States related to the issue of values education for young children (within a formal and non formal educational framework, but also street children, etc.). Building on this, UNESCO's Early Childhood and Family Education Unit launched, jointly with Living Values Education, an international initiative on "Early Childhood and Values Education" in early 2000. This started an "international" discussion (in English, French and Spanish - by email and other traditional means) on the theme of Early Childhood and Values Education involving, among other, the distribution of a questionnaire to Living Values Education Coordinators and educators, UNESCO National Commissions and field offices and other early childhood partners throughout the world, to identify experiences in this area, solicit recommendations on forms of concrete and practical results of such a discussion and consultation, and suggest ideas that could help prepare documents (+ web site) for Member States, educators, parents, etc. on this issue. |