Longitudinal research and early years policy development in the UK

Interest in early years issues such as early childhood education and care (ECEC) and early intervention has increased in recent decades internationally. Partly this reflects interest in facilitating the social and educational development of children, both for deprived children and the general population, and partly interest in increasing parental, particularly maternal, employment. Concern for such issues has led to substantial policy change in the UK in recent decades. For the general population, prior to 1998 there was no statutory obligation for the state to provide any early childhood services for children under the statutory school age of 5 years. However, there were provisions for ‘at risk’ children, as well as in some nursery education for 3- and 4-year olds, typically in more disadvantaged areas, but availability was haphazard around the country. Research evidence and social and political factors have resulted in radical change to the whole early years services system in the UK. The findings of two longitudinal research studies, the national evaluation of Sure Start and the effective provision of pre-school education projects were important factors in policy change and this paper discusses how the interplay of research and policy occurred. Initially changes were introduced by the Labour government, but more recent policy changes have been introduced by the Conservative government. The need for state involvement in early years services has become accepted by all political parties. There is substantially greater government investment in the early years, so that government-funded ECEC is now part of the infrastructure supporting family life for the whole population. This article discusses how research evidence has contributed to the substantial policy change in the last two decades

Researching Environments for Early Learning (REEL) Study

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Establishing the Effects of Quality in Early Childhood: Comparing Evidence from England

This is the final version. Available from Early Education via the URL in this record.This occasional paper examines the robustness of a paper published by Blanden, Hansen and McNally in February 2017 which sought to investigate the effects of quality within early education and care settings in England (Quality in Early Years Settings and Children's School Achievement, CEP Discussion Paper 1468, The London School of Economics). The authors question the validity of the conclusions reached by Blanden et al about the impact of quality in early childhood education in England

Young children's cognitive achievement: home learning environment, language and ethnic background

For decades, research has shown differences in cognitive assessment scores between White and minority ethnic group(s) learners as well as differences across different minority ethnic groups. More recent data have indicated that the home learning environment and languages spoken can impact cognitive assessment and other corollary outcomes. This study uses the Millennium Cohort Study to jointly assess how minority ethnic group, home learning environment and home languages predict child cognitive assessment scores. Regression analyses were conducted using two assessment measures. The following is hypothesised: (1) cognitive achievement scores vary by minority ethnic group, (2) more home learning environment in early childhood leads to higher cognitive development scores and (3) English only in the home yields the highest cognitive scores while no English in the home yields the lowest. Findings reveal that there are differences in cognitive scores along ethnic group categories although there are also some unexpected findings. Home learning environment does not play as large a role as was predicted in raising the assessment scores overall for learners while speaking English in the home does, irrespective of ethnic background

An early years toolbox for assessing early executive function, language, self-Regulation, and social development validity, reliability, and preliminary norms

Several methods of assessing executive function (EF), self-regulation, language development, and social development in young children have been developed over previous decades. Yet new technologies make available methods of assessment not previously considered. In resolving conceptual and pragmatic limitations of existing tools, the Early Years Toolbox (EYT) offers substantial advantages for early assessment of language, EF, self-regulation, and social development. In the current study, results of our large-scale administration of this toolbox to 1,764 preschool and early primary school students indicated very good reliability, convergent validity with existing measures, and developmental sensitivity. Results were also suggestive of better capture of children’s emerging abilities relative to comparison measures. Preliminary norms are presented, showing a clear developmental trajectory across half-year age groups. The accessibility of the EYT, as well as its advantages over existing measures, offers considerably enhanced opportunities for objective measurement of young children’s abilities to enable research and educational applications

Is cognitive development at three years of age associated with ECEC quality in Norway?

In countries with universal access to early childhood education and care (ECEC), child participation is high across a range of socioeconomic groups. However, ECEC quality is often varying, and many children spend much time in ECEC settings that are not necessarily high quality. In this observational study, we therefore examined the relationship between observed ECEC quality and children’s cognitive development at age three years in Norway – a country that provides universal access to ECEC from age one. The sample comprised 800 children, enrolled in 83 ECEC centers, who were assessed in verbal and non-verbal cognitive ability. ECEC quality was measured with the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS-R), and cognitive outcomes were measured with the Naming Vocabulary and Picture Similarities subtests of the British Ability Scales III (BAS III). The results showed that children’s cognitive development at age three was not associated with ECEC quality; irrespective of socioeconomic background

Financial capability and functional financial literacy in young adults with developmental language disorder

Background: Financial capability is an essential feature of the organisation of one’s personal life and engagement with society. Very little is known of how adequately individuals with developmental language disorder (DLD) handle financial matters. It is known that language difficulties place them at a disadvantage in many aspects of their development and during their transition into adulthood, leading to the possibility that financial issues may prove burdensome for them. This study examines the financial capability and functional financial literacy of young adults with DLD and compares them to those of age matched peers (AMPs). We tested the expectation that those with DLD would find financial management more challenging than would their peers, and that they would need to seek greater support from family members or other people. Methods: Participants completed a detailed individual interview, which included items drawn from the British Household Panel Survey and additional measures of financial capability, functional financial literacy and of perceived support. Nonverbal IQ, language, reading and numeracy measures were also collected. Results: Compared to typically developing AMPs, young people with DLD report less extensive engagement with financial products and lower competence in functional financial literacy. A considerably higher proportion of those with DLD (48% vs 16% of AMPs) report that they draw on support, primarily from parents, in various financial tasks, including paying bills, choosing financial products, and taking loans from family or friends. Conclusions: This is the first study to consider the financial capability skills and functional financial literacy of young adults with DLD. We provide novel evidence that some young adults with DLD lack functional financial skills and require support to successfully manage their finances. This has policy implications that relate not only to engaging affected individuals in discussions about financial management but also to wider familial support

Exploring our practitioner and parent partnerships

The study presented here is underpinned by Froebel’s pedagogy and principles; acknowledging the importance and value of the relationship between children, family members and practitioners, and the role of play as a central, integrating element in children’s development and learning (Froebel, c1826, trans 1912). For Froebel, parents and family members form the basis for a child’s understandings and interactions, which reiterates that an effective partnership essentially involves the engagement of parents and practitioners in order to support all children educationally, socially and emotionally

Families' social backgrounds matter : socio-economic factors, home learning and young children's language, literacy and social outcomes

Parental support with children's learning is considered to be one pathway through which socio-economic factors influence child competencies. Utilising a national longitudinal sample from the Millennium Cohort Study, this study examined the relationship between home learning and parents' socio-economic status and their impact on young children's language/literacy and socio-emotional competence. The findings consistently showed that, irrespective of socio-economic status, parents engaged with various learning activities (except reading) roughly equally. The socio-economic factors examined in this study, i.e., family income and maternal educational qualifications, were found to have a stronger effect on children's language/literacy than on social-emotional competence. Socio-economic disadvantage, lack of maternal educational qualifications in particular, remained powerful in influencing competencies in children aged three and at the start of primary school. For children in the first decade of this century in England, these findings have equity implications, especially as the socio-economic gap in our society widens