CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW
2.3 EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT (ECCD) IN THE INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT
2.3.2 Current trends and issues of ECCD in international context
A review of international studies on ECCD systems revealed vast differences among countries due to unique cultural, social, economic and political contexts (Education International, 2010).
International studies on ECCD by Jensen (2017), OECD (2017), and UNESCO (2015) found that even though successes were recorded in some countries, access issues, high numbers of untrained caregivers and teachers, poor working conditions for personnel, poor governance structures, and a lack of quality ECCD services were the main challenges confronting the ECCD sub-sector globally. Some of these issues will be reviewed in detail in the following sections.
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This section reviews literature on ECCD policy and governance. Studies show that effective ECCD service provision requires well-coordinated structures to be led by the sector ministry to provide links amongst ECCD stakeholders providing related ECCD services in the areas of health, nutrition, and special education (OECD, 2015).
Findings from international studies by Education Studies (2010), OECD (2017), and UNESCO (2015) showed remarkable differences in ECCD policies and the governance systems among countries, which were attributed to different approaches to ECCD, such as the provision of a blend of care, education, and development as a single service versus as different or distinct services (Education International, 2010; OECD, 2015; UNESCO, 2017). For example, in Canada, a specific regulatory body coordinates ECCD policies for children under five years.
Meanwhile, services for children five years and older are coordinated by another regulatory body.
In Denmark and Norway, ECCD programmes are integrated with the social welfare system. Also, in Denmark, municipalities are responsible for ECCD provision, whereas in Norway and New Zealand, the Ministry of Education is responsible for ECCD provision, and ECCD is an integral part of national education. Thus, ECCD forms an integral part of the national education structure in these countries (Education International, 2010).
Findings from international studies also revealed that in some countries such as Ghana, Hungary, and Portugal ECCD provision for children under three years old is placed under different agency such as department of social welfare and ECCD services for children from four years old and upwards are integrated into the more developed basic education system under the control of those countries’ Ministries of Education (Marope & Kaga, 2017; Nafsika & Ulrike, 2020; UNESCO, 2018).
Education International (2010), UNESCO (2017), and Zilma and Ramos (2018) and stated that ECCD forms part of compulsory primary education in countries such as Portugal, Brazil, Venezuela and Hungary, and ECCD policies, service provision and teacher education are under the purview of municipalities. On the other hand, Gananathan (2011) and OECD (2014) reported
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that in western countries like the USA, and Mexico, various agencies are responsible for providing various components of the ECCD services.
In Ghana, ECCD services for newborn to three-year-old children are not part of the public basic education structure, whereas services for four- and five-year-olds are integrated into the basic education system. Consequently, multiple ministries are involved in ECCD governance, supervision, and monitoring (Asare-Danso, 2014; Ministry of Education, 2018).
The above findings suggest that though variations exist in ECCD policy governance in various countries, there have been gradual attempts to decentralise ECCD provision to local government authorities in the past years in some countries, including Ghana. ECCD policies and governance structures are relevant to this current study because they form part of the contextual factors influencing ECCD centre directors’ management practices.
2.3.2.2 ECCD provision and funding
Findings from international studies conducted by Education International (2010) OECD (2017), UNESCO (2015), and Zilma and Ramos (2018) reported that in most countries where ECCD services for newborns to three-year-olds are not integrated into the national compulsory education system, private individuals, local communities, faith-based organisations, and non- governmental organisations tend to be the main service providers. On the other hand, governments seem to be the main providers of ECCD services for children over three years old, particularly in the case of developing countries like Ghana, Nepal and Nigeria (OECD, 2017;
Yoshikawa & Kabay, 2015). Furthermore, UNICEF (2018) found that in some countries, local communities, NGOs, parents, and some international agencies such as UNICEF, the European Union, and UNESCO share ECCD funding responsibility because government funding for public ECCD centres is inadequate. For example, in Ghana and other developing countries, parents who opted for private ECCD provision bear the cost of ECCD services, including tuition and care (OECD, 2017).
In developed countries such as Denmark and Norway, where government agencies are largely involved in ECCD programmes, municipalities are responsible for ECCD policy implementation
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through the funding of staff development and grants per child (Nafsika & Ulrike, 2020; Wolf et al., 2018; World Bank, 2016).
In Ghana, the government, through local government authorities such as district assemblies, provides financial support through a Capitation Grant awarded using a per-child formula for basic education, where ECCD forms an integral part. The precondition for the award of the Capitation Grant is the centres’ ability to prepare performance improvement plans using specific targets the fund will support. The attempts by the Ghanaian government to fund public ECCD provision is a step in the right direction since adequate funding is a prerequisite for quality ECCD service provision. It is evident from the literature that there has been a substantial increase in government funding for ECCD over the years.
ECCD funding is pertinent to this research because quality ECCD centre management largely depends on adequate funding. However, from the review of previous literature, several questions regarding ECCD programme funding and ECCD centre directors’ management practices remain to be addressed. For example, how often do ECCD centres receive government grants? How does funding affect ECCD centre director’s management practices? How do ECCD centre directors mobilise financial resources from the ECCD community to supplement government funding?
2.3.2.3 Access to ECCD services
A study conducted by Yoshikawa and Kabay (2015) revealed limited access (around 8 per cent) to ECCD services in rural settings of most developing countries, whereas in urban settings, ECCD access is around 60 per cent. Similarly, UNESCO (2015) reported that access to ECCD services in urban areas is higher than in rural areas. UNESCO further reported that higher fees charged by private ECCD providers also accounted for limited access to ECCD services in developing countries. In addition, previous studies on ECCD access in developing countries revealed that children with disadvantaged backgrounds are mostly excluded due to parents’
inability to afford the fees (OECD, 2017a; UNESCO, 2012; Yoshikawa & Kabay, 2015).
A closer look at literature on ECCD access reveals several gaps and shortcomings. First, although previous studies illuminated issues of access to ECCD services in developing countries, no study
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has examined how ECCD centre directors’ management practices in Ghana influence ECCD access in Ghana. In addition, studies to explore specific ECCD centre management structures that support access to ECCD services for children with special needs and those from low-income families are yet to be conducted in Ghanaian ECCD settings. There is, therefore, a need to explore the link between ECCD centre management structures and access to ECCD service in the Ghanaian context.
2.3.2.4 ECCD Quality
An international study by Education International (2010) revealed variations in ECCD service provision among various countries. For example, in some countries, the national planning of ECCD programmes reflects the quality thereof. However, the study reported that in most countries, inclusivity strategies are mostly lacking in national ECCD plans (Education International, 2010). Other studies revealed that inadequate ECCD resources, unqualified personnel, and low staff compensation schemes impede quality ECCD services provision in most developing countries(World Bank, 2016).
UNICEF (2018) outlined the following indicators of ECCD quality that are lacking in most of the ECCD settings: ECCD standards to safeguard children’s rights; leave for parents with at least half salary; a national ECCD plan with the necessary attention to disadvantaged children;
subsidised ECCD services for low-income families; adequately trained ECCD staff; acceptable staff to child ratio; and universal access to health services. UNESCO (2017) stated that child- caregiver ratios are essential indicators of the quality of ECCD programmes, as the ratios indicate whether children receive adequate care and education.
In Ghana, the issue of lack of resources for ECCD services, poor infrastructure, a lack of trained ECCD personnel, and the low level of salary for staff are still in existence in both public and private ECCD centres, and these have been affecting the quality of ECCD service provision (World Bank, 2016).
The literature review shows that quality ECCD services are needed to achieve holistic child development, which is far from achieved in most developing countries. Studies on how directors’
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management practices influence the quality of ECCD outcome in the Ghanaian context is sparse.
Therefore, exploring the quality of ECCD centre management practices in Ghanaian ECCD centres is necessary.
2.3.2.5 In loco-parentis role of early childhood care and development centres
This sub-section discusses in loco-parentis role of early childhood care and development centres.
The term “in loco-parentis” (Latin for “in place of a parent”) refers to the legal authority and powers vested in ECCD centres to act as parents’ or legal guardians’ caretakers in the absence of a child’s parents or legal guardian (U.S. Department of Education, n.d).
The in loco- parentis role of ECCD centre is critical to the health, well-being, and development of the children in the ECCD facility (UNESCO, 2006). The primary duties of the in loco-parents of children are to ensure the safety and well-being of the children by providing proper supervision, implementing safety procedures, and maintaining a hygienic and child-friendly atmosphere. It also involves providing the child with essential needs by providing nutritious meals and snacks, adequate hygiene, and a place to relax and sleep. Last but not least, the centre needs to ensure the child’s physical and emotional well-being by providing them with opportunities for physical exercise, healthy eating habits, and social and emotional development through play and support (Department of Justice Canada, 2017). The centre also needs to help the child learn and develop early through the use of developmentally suitable activities and the encouragement of a love of learning (Department of Justice Canada, 2017).
Effective communication channels must be established and the centre must work with parents or legal guardian to share information about the child's development and discuss any worries or problems. Protecting children’s rights and protecting them from abuse, neglect, and harm is the centre’s primary responsibility. They must provide a safe, nurturing, and stimulating atmosphere that meets children’s needs, both physical and emotional, as well as their educational and social needs (Department of Justice Canada, 2017).
The above discussion implies that by assuming in loco-parentis responsibility, the ECCD centre assumes legal responsibilities of parents in ensuring health, safety, protection, holistic development of the children which ultimately lay the foundation for children’s future success
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and wellbeing. The following section presents a review of the literature on ECCD in the Ghanaian context.