Education Access to quality early learning has a dramatic impact on children’s long-term success – including their grades in school, likelihood of gaining a college degree and even future salary.46 As a result, gaps in access and unequal provision of education during early childhood often contribute to an achievement gap between rich and poor children throughout their lives.
Policies to boost early childhood education and care (ECEC) not only improve outcomes across the board, but have the potential to close the achievement gap.47 High-quality birth-to-5 programs for disadvantaged children also have a great return on investment in a child’s lifecycle: estimated to be more than 13% per year.48
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Photo: Courtesy of Thibaut Monnier
Early learning does not just mean formal preschool education. Caregivers, in particular, are their children’s first teacher, and during a child’s crucial early years of life, the health and childcare sectors play a vital role.
