Preschool Administration
It is an honor and privilege to be invited to speak before an esteemed group of teachers this morning. The work that you do, teaching young children — especially those who cannot afford regular private preschool education, is one profession that should be given due recognition. During these critical times when we see around us a breakdown of morai values, especially among the young, such as child prostitution, children on the streets, a rise in drug abuse and alaimiiig rates of school dropouts — teachers in early education are the most needed today. I-low, you might ask, can you lessen such social ills? Should this not be left to the economic planners, to the Ministry of Social Services? You teachers, save lives. You give the child the first impressions of learning — knowing the joys of going to school.
The importance of early childhood education was emphasized in a 1968 final report of the international symposium held at UNESCO on Brain Research and Human Behavior. This was attended by 78 researchers from 22 countries, 6 of whom were Nobel Prize-winners. They made the following point which emphasizes the importance of good stimulation at an early age. To quote, ‘At 6 years of age, the human brain attains 90% of its weight in the adult, the remaining 10% being gained during the next 10 years of life’. This means that the neurological circuits if not brought into use in time may never be able to function at full capacity after 6 years old.
Many of the children we see in the streets, day or night, may have never experienced good early stimulation programs, as you are now giving the children in some parts of City and . And because of this, plus other factors such as poverty, and poor family relationships, these children will have no interest or little at all to want to go to school — to want to learn about the world and how they can live a better life. Think a moment about that. Are we developing a nation of non learners?