Childcare boosted preschoolers’ vocabulary in pandemic, research shows

Formal childcare boosted preschoolers’ vocabulary in the first year of the pandemic, new research shows research.

Toddlers could produce an average of 29 more words for each day they spent in daycare and understand an average of 16 more words than toddlers who didn’t spend time in childcare.

Communication and problem-solving skills also improved for children from less affluent homes who attended early childhood education and care (ECEC), according to the British study.

The disruption and closure of many settings as a result of Covid-induced lockdowns has raised fears that children’s language skills will suffer during the pandemic.

However, the results suggest that formal child care had consistent benefits for children who were preschoolers, according to researchers.

“Our findings demonstrate the importance of early education for children who are born without a social advantage – helping to reduce the gap in early development and the level of socio-economic inequalities,” said Dr Kathryn Davies, professor of language development at the University of Leeds and one of the the authors of the study.

“It is important that we facilitate access to the families who will benefit most from this support at this critical stage in young people’s lives.”

High-quality early childhood care and education is known to boost children’s language skills, but the researchers wanted to know to what extent this was maintained during the pandemic.

The study followed more than 600 children aged between eight months and 36 months in England, Scotland and Wales over the three UK lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

Parents filled out questionnaires about their child’s vocabulary, as well as their thinking skills, attention, behavior and feelings about the study, which was published in the Journal of Early Childhood Research.

The findings highlight the importance of increasing access to formal childcare facilities as a way of addressing concerns that the lockdown has led to developmental delays for children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

“Supporting these opportunities and parenting through responsive support should address concerns about school readiness and help narrow the socio-economic achievement gap,” said Professor Davies, who carried out the study with colleagues from Oxford Brookes, Oxford, Leeds Beckett and Warwick universities.

The research also found that attending formal daycare had a positive impact on children’s personal and social skills.

The fact that childcare facilities continued to have a positive impact despite the disruption caused by the pandemic demonstrated their key role in children’s development, said Dr Nayeli Gonzalez-Gomes, reader in psychology at Oxford Brookes University and lead researcher on the study.

The researchers called for better promotion of formal childcare, including an emphasis on education as well as care, and support to help lower-income families access pre-school provision, while additional funding should be made available to expand childcare facilities. care.

Kathryn Ingold, a public health adviser at Leeds City Council, said the findings echoed their own research which found that children’s communication and language skills were particularly affected by the pandemic.

The UK government earlier this year was announced plans to extend free childcare to children aged nine months to allow parents of young children to enter the workforce, although critics claimed it would make little difference and proposals to increase the child:adult ratio would put the quality.