OUTCOmE TwO: ACHIEVINg – FULL pOTENTIAL IN LEARNINg

The aims of this outcome are that all children and young people: – are learning and developing from birth

– have social and emotional wellbeing – are engaged in learning

– are achieving in education

The First 5 early years strategy also places an emphasis on children’s cognitive development, with a special emphasis on early learning in the home as well as in educational settings (Government of Ireland, 2018, Goal C).

131 high uptake of the Free Pre-School Year, with nearly all children availing of the scheme. Although large

proportions of families whose five-year-old availed of the scheme indicated that they would have been able to send their child to preschool anyway, substantial minorities of more disadvantaged families (39% of those in the lowest income quintile) indicated that their five-year-old would not have been able to attend preschool in the absence of the scheme. More advantaged parents were more likely to pay for a top-up to the free hours, partly because higher incomes are associated with mothers working and working mothers needed more childcare than is provided under the free scheme. Parental reports on the centres the children attended for the Free Pre-School Year tended to be very positive.

The study findings also highlight the importance of the home learning environment. Two-thirds of five- year-olds are read to every day, though this figure is lower for children living in families with lower levels of education. Parent-child reading patterns appear to be established early, with a strong relationship between reading frequency at three and five years of age. These findings point to the importance of encouraging parent-child reading from an early age through library-based and other local initiatives.

About two-thirds of the children (mostly born in the first-half of 2008) had started school in September 2012, with children born later in the year more likely to wait until September 2013. Of particular note were the larger proportions of children from more advantaged families and also boys who were more likely to defer school start until 2013. Controlling for age, children from disadvantaged families were more likely to send their five-year-old to school earlier than their more advantaged counterparts. Given that later school start is associated with some developmental benefits for children in the Growing Up in Ireland sample (see Smyth, 2018), these trends raise questions as to whether some children could be disadvantaged by being pressured to start school earlier than may be optimal for them as individuals. However, since the time of data collection the Government has extended the scheme to allow for a possible second year at preschool, which may result in a levelling-off in age of entry.

The child’s dispositions and skills are important in facilitating the first transition out of the immediate home environment to the much broader surrounds of the school, where they will begin to navigate a range of new relationships and interactions beyond the family. The report found that most children scored well on measures of school-readiness, as recorded by both parents and teachers. Virtually all Primary Caregivers reported that their five-year old could mix with other children and take care of their own hygiene. Teachers reported that over 70% of the children already in school had achieved the basic milestones in dispositional development (such as showing an interest in classroom activities) and language development (such as initiating communication with others), which are a prerequisite to broader cognitive development. However, many systematic differences were apparent in the levels of skills and competencies among the children. Boys, children from lower-income families and children whose parents had lower levels of education were more likely to have lower vocabulary test scores, more negative dispositions towards school and poorer language skills. Low-birthweight children were also more likely to have significantly lower school-readiness scores, illustrating the persistence of the disadvantages associated with low birthweight (controlling for other background characteristics) at least to five years later. Teacher ratings of children’s performance in relation to different areas of the primary school curriculum showed a similar social gradient, with children from families with lower levels of education and income more likely to be rated as below average. A strong relationship was found between earlier developmental indicators measured at three years, and more modestly, at nine months of age (the Ages and Stages Questionnaire) and the five-year-old’s skills and competencies. Taken together, these findings suggest that, as has been found in other countries, children do not enter formal schooling on a level playing-field. For some developmental outcomes, one policy response might be better support for children in the preschool period – and the Government has in recent years moved to address inequalities in access to formal preschool education through the previously mentioned universal scheme. Currently the kinds of learning opportunities offered to children in the early years of primary education vary by the type of school and classroom they attend (Smyth, 2018). There is

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therefore considerable potential to ensure that all children have access to the kinds of play-based learning and hands-on activities that will foster their engagement in school, and are exposed to the kind of high- quality experiences of reading and numbers that will enhance their skill development. Previous research using Growing Up in Ireland data (Smyth, 2018) also highlights the importance of positive relationships with teachers in facilitating the transition to primary education and engagement within it.