CRC/C/GC/7/Rev.1
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30.
The Committee calls on States parties to ensure that all young children receive education
in the broadest sense (as outlined in paragraph 28 above), which acknowledges a key role for
parents, wider family and community, as well as the contribution of organized programmes of
early childhood education provided by the State, the community or civil society institutions.
Research evidence demonstrates the potential for quality education programmes to have a
positive impact on young children’s successful transition to primary school, their educational
progress and their long-term social adjustment. Many countries and regions now provide
comprehensive early education starting at 4 years old, which in some countries is integrated with
childcare for working parents. Acknowledging that traditional divisions between “care” and
“education” services have not always been in children’s best interests, the concept of “Educare”
is sometimes used to signal a shift towards integrated services, and reinforces the recognition of
the need for a coordinated, holistic, multisectoral approach to early childhood.
31.
Community-based programmes. The Committee recommends that States parties
support early childhood development programmes, including home- and community-based
preschool programmes, in which the empowerment and education of parents (and other
caregivers) are main features. States parties have a key role to play in providing a legislative
framework for the provision of quality, adequately resourced services, and for ensuring that
standards are tailored to the circumstances of particular groups and individuals and to the
developmental priorities of particular age groups, from infancy through to transition into school.
They are encouraged to construct high-quality, developmentally appropriate and culturally
relevant programmes and to achieve this by working with local communities rather by imposing
a standardized approach to early childhood care and education. The Committee also
recommends that States parties pay greater attention to, and actively support, a rights-based
approach to early childhood programmes, including initiatives surrounding transition to primary
school that ensure continuity and progression, in order to build children’s confidence,
communication skills and enthusiasm for learning through their active involvement in, among
others, planning activities.
32.
The private sector as service provider. With reference to its recommendations adopted
during its 2002 day of general discussion on “The private sector as service provider and its role
in implementing child rights” (see CRC/C/121, paras. 630-653), the Committee recommends that
States parties support the activities of the non-governmental sector as a channel for programme
implementation. It further calls on all non-State service providers (“for profit” as well as
“non-profit” providers) to respect the principles and provisions of the Convention and, in this
regard, reminds States parties of their primary obligation to ensure its implementation. Early
childhood professionals - in both the State and non-State sectors - should be provided with
thorough preparation, ongoing training and adequate remuneration. In this context, States parties
are responsible for service provision for early childhood development. The role of civil society
should be complementary to - not a substitute for - the role of the State. Where non-State
services play a major role, the Committee reminds States parties that they have an obligation to
monitor and regulate the quality of provision to ensure that children’s rights are protected and
their best interests served.