The History of Early Childhood Education

Small children have the ability to soak up information. This is how they learn so much so fast and makes early childhood education an essential and important experience. It can literally help to shape their lives.

The fact that it can have such an impact on knowledge, confidence, and social interactions makes it imperative that you choose Croydon early learning center, an establishment that has an enviable reputation. Their sole aim is to give your child the best possible start in life.

Of course, early childhood education is not a new thing.

The Initial Premise

Educating children was first considered as long ago as the first half of the 16th century. It was actually Martin Luther who lived from 1483-1546. He believed that education was essential to strengthen families and communities. At that stage, very few people could read or write.

John Amos Comenius continued this theme at the end of the 16th century and into the 17th. He believed that children could learn through their senses, he wrote the first picture book for children which was designed to improve literacy.

In the late 18th century Friedrich Froebel designed teacher training programs to encourage teachers to observe children and decide their current level of skill. This would enable the teachers to educate the children through play.

In fact, this idea was built on by Maria Montessori who lived from 1870-1952. She took this a step further to define the learning environment as of equal importance to the actual learning.

Learning through play is a key part of the Montessori method which is well-established and internationally recognized today.

Despite these inspirational starts, education was generally something that only the rich benefit from. It wasn’t until the mid 20th century that schooling for children became obligatory and more focus was placed onto preschool or early childhood education.

The Modern World

Today the importance of early childhood education is recognized but it remains the choice of the parent as to whether a child should attend a school before the age of 4 or 5.

hanks to the freedom of choice in the modern world, parents can choose between a variety of styles of teaching or even schools that integrate various different teaching methods.

This is important as it recognizes there is not a one-size-fits-all answer. Every child is different and their progress in early childhood education should be carefully monitored to ensure they get the most out of the experience and are in the right facility.

In short, the recognition that children are the future means there is a greater emphasis than ever before on proper qualifications for early childhood educators and carefully regulated procedures.

As a parent, you need to choose the facility that best caters to your child and their unique abilities. In contrast, a childhood educator needs to ensure that every child has access to the knowledge they need to build character and success in life.

Early childhood education may have started as a concept several hundred years ago. Today it is a recognized and essential part of the learning process. Who knows where it will be in another 100 years?