International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VIII, Issue IV, April 2021 | ISSN 2321–2705

Early Childhood Education and Social Economic Status

Patience Gontor
Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Humanities, Rivers State University, Nigeria

Abstract—This study examines the early childhood education and social economic status of children between 2 – 5 years of agein Emuoha Local Government Area of Rivers State, Nigeria. The results provide evidence of a significant linear relationship between family income and early childhood education. However, there is no evidence of a significant relationship between mothers’ employment status and early childhood education. The study recommends that government educational policies should focus on children at the grass root level and provide unlimited access to quality education regardless of their family socio-economic conditions.

Keywords—Early childhood, Education, Income, Socio-economic Status, Family Income

I INTRODUCTION

The first goal in the Education for All (EFA) adopted by the World Education Forum at Dakar Framework for Action, is expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children (Barry, Brun, & Baeyens, 2000; UNICEF, 2013). This suggests that all children born must enjoy healthy, safe and caring learning environment, notwithstanding the background of the child. It primarily behooves the government to mobilize all the necessary resources to ensure that there are quality and adequate basic and early childhood care and education for all, including socio-economically disadvantaged children.

As real and concerted efforts are being made by most governments across the world to achieve this goal of the World Education Forum; more needs to be done, as the challenges of poverty and under nutrition remain apparent, especially in the less developed and developing countries including Nigeria.
From the Global study, in 2010, 171 million children under the age of 5 were affected by moderate or severe stunting (de Onis, & Blossner, Borghi, 2011; Prendergast & Humphrey, 2014). It also predicts that one out of four children under the same age of 5 will suffer stunting by 2015. Stunting presupposes a health condition where a child or a person is distorted in growth and size, as a result of chronic under nutrition during the early childhood; it is associated with suboptimal brain damage which has a long and significant negative impact on the cognitive ability of the child. “57% of children in developing countries, including 83% of Sun-Saharan Africa and 78% of the Arab region, are unable to have access to preschool” (Kristjansson et al., 2012, P. 1; UNICEF, 2013, P. 1).