By political reporter Julie Doyle.
A new report from Victoria University has recommended universal preschool be extended to include three-year-old children.
Key points:
- Report recommends two years of preschool starting at 3 years old
- Experts say it would give students “more equal footing” in later study
- Education Minister says funding, study hours would need to be discussed
Under the current agreement between the Commonwealth and states, universal access to preschool is offered to four year olds.
Dr Stacey Fox from the University’s Mitchell Institute says other OECD countries had extended preschool and educational outcomes have improved.
“We’ve looked across the international research literature. We’ve spoken to preschool teachers and child development experts in Australia and there’s an overwhelming consensus that two years of preschool gives children the best start,” Dr Fox said.
“All of the evidence shows that two years of high-quality preschool is one of the best ways to amplify children’s learning and development.”
Dr Fox said she could not say how much such a move would cost, but that she believed it could be achieved with a “modest investment”.
“What we’ve suggested is that COAG commission a study into what kind of capacity exists already in our early education and care system and then look at what kinds of additional resources would be needed in terms of workforce and capital investment.
“We think it could be manageable and we think that the long-term benefits of that investment mean that the returns absolutely outweigh the costs.
“It means children are much more ready when they start school, they start school on a much more equal footing, it has flow on impacts to their NAPLAN scores, to their rates of Year 12 graduation.”