Investing in Early Child Development:

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Investing in Early Child Development Getting
Comfortable with the Uncomfortable!
British Columbia School Superintendents
Association Spring Forum 2009 Charles S.
Coffey, O.C. Friday, April 17, 2009
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Early Child Development

Investments in early child education fuel
economic and social development. Many ask
Can we afford the investment? The better
question, according to Canadian economists Gordon
Cleveland and Michael Krashinsky, is can we
afford not?
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Dr. Fraser Mustard

If you want an idea of what your economy
will look like in say 15 or 20 yearsif you want
an economy that's vibrant, citizens who are
productive and a workplace that's innovative -
think about the investment you're making in very
young people today.
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Early Child Development

Early learning is smart economic
development.
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Foundation for Lifelong Learning

Early child development (ECD) is the first
and most critical phase of education and human
growth.
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Investing in Children Message Revolves Around


Employees and stakeholders Healthier
workplace (work/life initiatives) Increased
productivity More attractive bottom line
Corporate responsibility
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Research Findings

• A 17 return for every dollar invested in
  high-quality early learning

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Research Findings

• A 17 return for every dollar invested in high-
• quality early learning
• A child's brain development in the first six
  years of life sets the foundation for lifelong
  learning, behaviour and
  health

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Research Findings

• A 17 return for every dollar invested in high-
• quality early learning
• A child's brain development in the first six
• years of life sets the foundation for
  lifelong
• learning, behaviour and health
• If the first few years of life include support
• for growth in cognition, language, motor
• skills, adaptive skills and
  social-emotional
• functioning, the child is more likely to
• succeed in school and later contribute to
• society

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Research Findings

• ¼ of Canadas children between birth to age 6 are
  experiencing some learning or behavioural
  difficulty.

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Research Findings

• ¼ of Canadas children between birth to age 6 are
  experiencing some learning or behavioural
  difficulty
• long-term positive outcomes and cost-savings
  that include improved school performance, reduced
  special education placement, lower school dropout
  rates, and increased lifelong earning potential

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Research Findings

• ¼ of Canadas children between birth to age 6 are
  experiencing some learning or behavioural
  difficulty
• ..long-term positive outcomes and cost-savings
  include improved school performance, reduced
  special education placement, lower school dropout
  rates, and increased lifelong earning potential
• Employees with access to family-supportive
  programs and policies are more likely to be
  satisfied with their jobs, to be loyal, to go the
  extra mile to help their companies succeed, and
  to stay at their jobs

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Research Findings

• Its estimated that work-life conflicts cost
  Canadian organizations roughly 2.7 billion in
  lost time due to work absences

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Research Findings

• Its estimated that work-life conflicts cost
  Canadian organizations roughly 2.7 billion in
  lost time due to work absences
• Numerous studies reveal theres a cost to
  business in not responding to employees need for
  reliable and good-quality early childhood
  programs

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ECD Economic Issue

Early child development is not just an
education or social issue. It is an important
economic issue because early child development
enables parents to work, learn and train while
helping to prepare children for a brighter
future.
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Good Business Ideas that Support ECD

• Workplaces that employ on-
• site/near-site early child
• development centres
• Subsidies to support the
• development of ECD centres
• within schools
• Parental networks, information
• and referral services
• Sponsorship of targeted childrens
• initiatives

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Good Business Ideas that Support ECD

• After-school programs
• Workplaces that broaden their
• scope re job sharing, flexible
• hours, extended maternity leave,
• and family care leaves
• Workplaces that encourage
• representation on childrens
• advocacy boards
• Business, government and
• community partnerships

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Council for Early Child Development

The quality and capacity of our future
population depends on what we do now to support
early child development. Dr. Fraser Mustard
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From Public Spending

While interest in early child development has
produced more public spending on programs,
there is little accountability for the funding
little progress has been made in pulling the
service strands together into a coherent system.
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to CHAOS

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Policy Challenges No Excuse for Inaction

Canada has fallen behind other Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
countries that are taking steps to support early
child development.
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Public Expenditures - Early Childhood Programs
Selected OECD Countries (), 2004


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Evidence is Compelling

Well-funded, integrated child development and
parenting programs improve the cognitive and
social functioning of all children.
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Early Child Development

• a far cry from being
• embedded in our mindsets

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Early Child Development

• Even though brain development research tells us
  that the most powerful opportunities for lifelong
  impact occur in the first six years of a child's
  life, decisions about public and private
  investment in education do not consistently
  reflect this
• scientific finding.

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Early Child Development

• When corporate Canada divides its philanthropy
  pie for education, why cant a larger piece be
  devoted to ECD?
• Its time to invest in young children
• it is good business.

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Leadership in Action Next Steps

• Success stories The Early Development Instrument
  (EDI) in British Columbia Documenting Impact and
  Action in Schools, Communities and Early Child
  Development
• Council for Early Child Development - Community
  Fellows
• Resources and practices
• Opportunities for information exchange and
  collaborative work

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ECD Interdependence and Collaboration

In todays world, where education and skill
levels determine future earnings, the economic
and social costs to individuals, communities, and
the nation of not taking action on early
childhood education are far too great to ignore,
especially when the benefits far outweigh the
costs.
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Leadership in Action

• Champions and Change Agents
• for
• Children and Communities

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Leadership in Action

Did you know that President Barack Obama
has been a champion of early childhood education
since his years in the Illinois legislature,
where he led the effort to create the Illinois
Early Learning Council? He introduced a
comprehensive Zero to Five plan to provide
critical support to young children and their
parents by investing 10 billion per year to
create Early Learning Challenge Grants? The
President is creating a Presidential Early
Learning Council to increase collaboration and
program coordination across federal, state and
local levels?
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'What I Want for You and Every Child in America'
What I Want for You and Every Child in
America

Dear Malia and Sasha, I ran for
President because of what I want for you and for
every child in this nation. I want all our
children to go to schools worthy of their
potential - schools that challenge them, inspire
them and instill in them a sense of wonder about
the world around them. I want them to have the
chance to go to college - even if their parents
aren't rich. And I want them to get good jobs -
jobs that pay well and give them benefits like
health care jobs that let them spend time with
their own kids and retire with dignity. And I
want every child to have the same chances to
learn and dream and grow and thrive that you
girls have... Love, Dad Excerpt of a letter
from President Barack Obama to his two children
January 2009
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Early Child Development Investing in Children
Talk Action 0 Its Time to get
Comfortable with the Uncomfortable!