But the research shows that this is GOOD for children - doesn't it?

Yesterday I went to an early childhood education symposium. There were about 700 delegates there from many parts of the sector - Playcentre, kindy, creches, daycares, academics, Montessori, Steiner etc. So here are my impressions.

First, I was fairly amazed at the low quality of some of the research supporting early childhood policies - or possibly, to be more kind, use of the research in an inappropriate way. Sample sizes of five children? Only observing children doing structured, adult-led tasks? Failure to observe what I would have thought were some fairly basic research methodologies (use of controls, level of proof to determine causal relationships, sample size (again), non-random and/or non-representative selection of research subjects). The famous quote "the plural of anecdote is not data" came to mind. This might not be a problem if the research was carefully reported and used in appropriate contexts (for example, as interesting case studies) or even maybe as explorations of research methods. But millions and millions of taxpayer dollars are being spent right now with some of this research presented as evidence for why these policies are such great ideas. This strikes me as somewhat important....

Second, much of the stuff surrounding the use (or over-use) of non-parental ECE for under 2s pretty much reinforced my personal prejudices. (Or maybe I only took in the information that agreed with my biases!). The importance of solid attachments, relationships and stability in primary carers was emphasized often. I thought there was great evidence for one speaker's description of having under 2s in all-day care as "a public health issue" given that half of the attendees seemed to have hacking coughs and runny noses!

Finally - a little story from the day. Orla (with Brendon and Aidan) came in to see me for a breastfeeding appointment during the lunch break. Orla toddled around exuding cuteness, smiling and making eyes at people. I was suddenly struck with how funny it was that at a day devoted to early childhood, that there were not any actual children around! Then I thought that if I needed to put Orla into daycare, then I would choose the people who, out of their work setting, made eye contact with her as she walked around, mirrored her expression and greeted her with their body language, rather than the ones who ignored her and continued their conversations. Because despite the research that tells us that teacher training is important for quality in an early childhood setting, I can't help but feel that the most important things are having a strong interest in young children, an empathy for them, understanding of their family context and a warm and loving approach. This cannot be learnt in books, but can only be nourished while working alongside those children themselves.

Oh yeah, the research that tells us the importance of qualifications...actually having done some reading today, that's not on such solid ground either.....