Press Release
May 21, 2009

ANGARA ACTS TO INSTITUTIONALIZE PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION
Seeks higher pay for Day Care Workers

Senator Edgardo J. Angara today cites the need for the institutionalization of pre-school education to promote effective social, intellectual and skills stimulation, and value formation for children from ages 3-5 years old in preparation for their formal primary education.

"We believe that a major contributing factor to our poor quality of education is the lack of preparation for our schooling. The gradual acceptance of pre-school in the country today underscores the importance of pre-school education," said Angara who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance.

He added, "Child educators agree that starting educators at pre-school age has substantial benefits to the learner and to the society. By contributing to better academic performance, pre-schooling helps reduce the number of repeaters; hence we cut back on educational expenditure."

Angara lamented poor education statistics in the country, studies show that only 65 out of 100 Grade 1 entrants finish Grade 6 and 60% of the school dropouts in the elementary level occur in Grades 1 & 2. He also shared that for every 100 first year high school students, only 68 are able to graduate. Worse, for every 100 students who enter college, only 48 are able to earn a degree.

Meanwhile, different studies point out benefits from early childhood education. One study concluded that children who undergo pre-school are less aggressive, less prone to violence. For example, the Syracuse Family Development Research Program provided family development support for children from prenatal care through age five. Ten years later, these kids reported 70% reductions in problems with probation and criminal offenses from the average.

It has also been shown that children who attended pre-school score 27% higher on a standard math test compared to students that didn't attend pre-school. Preschool boosts a child's cognitive and language and social development.

An evaluation of the Infant Health Development Program (IHDP), which provided pre-primary education and healthcare support to poor, malnourished toddlers showed that children exposed to the program longer had higher IQ than those who had shorter exposure to IHDP.

Angara said that this is an investment that we must make, in consonance with international opinions on the benefits of early childhood education.

Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, wife of Malaysia's prime minister remarked that early childhood development has the highest returns in economic development.

According to Nobel Laureate James Heckman, for the same level of investment at each age, the return is higher in human capital when a dollar is spent on the young than when it is spent on the old. The explanation is remarkably simple - learning begets learning and skills acquired early on make later learning easier.

In Canada, every dollar spent on pre-school has saved government $7 in special programs and services by the time the child is a young adult and $13 benefit by the he is a mature adult. All in all, a high-quality, public child-care system for 2 to 5 year-olds proved to be worth more than four billion dollars a year to Canada. While in the US, a 2007 study showed that providing voluntary, high-quality, publicly funded pre-kindergarten education for the poorest twenty-five percent of three- and four-year-old children impacts everything from the annual budget to crime prevention. By 2050, the overall benefits are expected to total $315 billion.

Angara, former Congressional Commission on Education chair, said that through better early education teachers in other levels will be compelled to continuously undergo training to respond to the needs of better-prepared and more socially and mentally-equipped students entering elementary. With improved teacher performances, better quality of education can be provided for the students.

SB 3235, which the senator recently filed, directs the establishment of a day care center in every barangay with appropriate support from DSWD.

The bill, once approved, will set the minimum qualifications for the appointment of Barangay Day Care Workers. It will also set the salary of Day Care Workers.

"This (improve early childhood education), together with improved technical /vocational education, will allow us to generate a more educated labor force that will gear us to be more globally competitive," added Angara

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