Addressing Early Childhood Education Needs in India

Greetings from Mumbai, India, where I was the keynote speaker at India’s first global conference on early childhood education, hosted by EducationWorld Magazine.

At this conference, I had the opportunity to meet and address over 300 owners, teachers, and journalists with a special interest in early childhood education, which is just starting to develop as a formal part of the education delivery system in India. The need is profound. India currently has the world’s largest child population of 450 million children, with nearly 120 million children below 6 years of age.

In contrast to the complex web of licensing and other regulatory agencies that define the parameters for providing early care and education in the United States, there is no regulation for early childhood education programs in India—literally, none.

That means no specification of teacher requirements for education and/or experience, teacher to child ratios, health and safety regulations, physical space requirements, or criminal clearance checks, much less any support for defining what quality looks like.

So it was an important opportunity to address the conference attendees about how to identify and deliver quality to young children in an early learning center, particularly since there is currently no framework for ensuring that children receive the level of care and education needed to provide them with a  was a strong start in life. And given the high rates of poverty and an ineffective public school system, early childhood education emerges as even more important as a critical infrastructure investment to help India combat its myriad economic and social challenges.

Despite the profound difference in the maturity of the delivery system for early childhood education between the US and India, there was a common bond around the recognition that the future economic success of India (or the US) depends on the strength of the educational opportunities created for its children. But it was also of great concern that absent any regulation and with few barriers to entry, India faces significant challenges in realizing that opportunity as a springboard to broader economic success and prosperity.

The conference attendees were dedicated, passionate, and demonstrated an intense desire to learn about how better to meet the needs of children from starkly contrasting economic and social backgrounds. And, for me, it was quite gratifying to have the opportunity to contribute, in even a small way, to the efforts of these educational pioneers.