Welcome
The Early Childhood Forum (ECF), brings together national organisations and professional associations in the early childhood sector for all young children from birth to seven. ECF exists to promote inclusion, challenge inequalities, debate issues, celebrate differences and develop consensus to champion high quality experiences for young children and their families.
News & Events
Baseline blog
From Dr Pam Jarvis:
Following Damian Hinds’ speech about going ahead with ‘those changes already announced and making their way through the system’ remaining the policy of the DFE, I posted this on my blog, making the point that children are not in statutory education in the first term of reception, and it therefore being parental choice whether or not they take the Baseline test. I thought it keeps up the pressure! You are all very welcome to tweet and facebook:
http://histpsych.blogspot.co.uk/2018/03/baffled-by-baseline.html
Save the Children ECF presentation
Charlotte Lynch's presentation to the ECF general meeting on 8 March can be found by clicking on the link below.
Please also see Save the Children's Wonder Words presentation at
https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/what-we-do/uk-work/in-homes/wonder-words
Wonder Words is an innovative behaviour change campaign, helping families to talk, sing and play more with their babies and toddlers.
Download: Early_Childhood_Forum.pdf
Is Baseline Missing the Bigger Picture?
To see Pam Jarvis's presentation given at the March 2018 meeting of ECF please click on the link below:
Download: Jarvis_BL_2018_pres.pdf
ECF Chairman's response to the OfSTED report: Bold Beginnings
The Early Childhood Forum is concerned that recommendations from government ministers, who are proposing a baseline test for four year olds, and OfSTED, who have just issued a report on reception classes, appear to demonstrate that established knowledge and understanding of how young children learn are not being used to formulate policy. The strength of feeling from our members across the early childhood sector in rejecting these proposed changes and recommendations is very evident (see from examples from TACTYC and NAPE ) .
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Most other countries do not consider formal teaching of reading and writing until children are seven when they learn very quickly. What is being proposed and much of what is happening already will not only fail children at a young age, but consequently damage their progress and motivation for the rest of their education.
Research is plentiful - why do Ministers and now worryingly OfSTED- not heed the research?
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/09/skills-children-need-work-future-play-lego/
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Melian Mansfield
Chair Early Childhood Forum
This letter has been published in the Guardian and Nursery World
