19/08/2022.  

CIESPI has just published its sixth bulletin on its project Participatory and Inclusive Early Education aimed at improving the context of early education in low-income communities in Brazil. This work is part of an international project in partnership with the University of Edinburgh and researchers from Palestine, South Africa and Palestine.  The Brazilian work concentrates on our reference community of Rocinha in Rio de Janeiro.

Project staff interviewed a diverse group of twenty parents and responsible adults, residents of Rocinha, who had young children attending creches and pre-schools. They talked about how important these institutions were to their children’s development, how hard it was for some parents to find places for their young children especially for parents of children with disabilities, and how private institutions were outside the financial reach of many parents. COVID 19 increased the number of financially insecure families as parents lost jobs. 

Parents primarily defined participation as them accompanying their children at every point of their lives. Some wanted more information from the early childhood centers about their children’s school lives. Others would have liked more resources and advice for continuing their children’s education at home.  Many parents made strenuous efforts to turn daily experiences in the home into learning opportunities for their children. 

For a link to the bulletin click here.

For more information about the project click here.