A new research conducted by the Victoria University in Australia showed that allowing the child to receive two years of quality pre-school education will give them a much better start. That means starting kids to go to school as early as three years old will give students more equal footing later in life.
Dr. Stacey Fox from the Mitchell Institute of Victoria University said that they have studied international research literature as well as interviewed child education experts and pre-school teachers and the conclusion is giving the child an early start will make them easier to face the challenges when they transition to school. She cited that a lot of children have started school at a disadvantage and have difficulty catching up. She also emphasized that most of these children were not able to catch up at all.
She added that extending pre-school means extra cost and she has no idea how much it will cost. However, she added that instead of looking at the cost, concerned authorities and individuals should look at the long-term effect of the plan.
Education officials expressed their opinion on the matter and said that they are open to discussing the issue of extending pre-school. Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham has been a supporter of the idea but he said that it is quite a complicated issue in terms of the settings it should be delivered in, how many hours it should take, and where the funding should come from.
On the other hand, Dr Fox suggested that extending pre-school is achievable by using a model investment. She said that what's needed is to examine what's already available in the current system and evaluate what other kinds of resources are necessary in terms of manpower and capital investment. Minister Birmingham agreed saying that they will engage state leaders who have the main responsibility in making this a reality.
