Early childhood development coming of age: science through the life course

Abstract

Early childhood development programmes vary in coordination and quality, with inadequate and inequitable access, especially for children younger than 3 years. New estimates, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty, indicate that 250 million children (43%) younger than 5 years in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential. There is therefore an urgent need to increase multisectoral coverage of quality programming that incorporates health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive caregiving, and early learning. Equitable early childhood policies and programmes are crucial for meeting Sustainable Development Goals, and for children to develop the intellectual skills, creativity, and wellbeing required to become healthy and productive adults. In this paper, the first in a three part Series on early childhood development, we examine recent scientific progress and global commitments to early childhood development. Research, programmes, and policies have advanced substantially since 2000, with new neuroscientific evidence linking early adversity and nurturing care with brain development and function throughout the life course.

Figure 1

The effects of contexts, environments, and nurturing care through the multigenerational life course

Figure 2

Policy heuristic: relations among key processes in early childhood development policies

Figure 3. Timeline of events influencing early child development policy or practice, 2000–15

EAP-ECDS=East Asia-Pacific Early Child Development Scales. ECD=Early Childhood Development. EFA=Education for All. HECDI=Holistic Early Childhood Development Index. IDELA=International Developmental Early Learning Assessment. MCN=Maternal and Child Nutrition. MELQO=Measuring Early Learning Quality and Outcomes. MICS=Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys. MoRES=Monitoring Results for Equity System. NYAS=New York Academy of Sciences. PRIDI=Regional Project on Child Development Indicators. SABER-ECD=Systems Approach for Better Education Results–Early Childhood Development. SDGs=Sustainable Development Goals. SIEF=Strategic Impact Evaluation Fund. UNICEF=United Nations Children’s Fund. WCA=Women’s, Children’s, and Adolescents’.

Figure 4

Change in number of publications related to early childhood development 2000–14

Figure 5. Proportion of children aged 3–4 years in early education, by country and wealth quintile

Data obtained from UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey.