The Minister of Education, Hon Chris Carter, has responded to concerns about funding for Playcentre. Playcentre receives disproportionately low funding compared to "professional" early childhood services. However, increasing compliance and administration is taking up increasing amounts of time for Playcentre parent volunteers. Parents Choice believes that parent-led Early Childhood Education (ECE) should be valued at least as much as those providers who earn a living or make a business out of early childhood education services.
The response provided by the Minister is as follows:
"Different types of services are funded at different levels because they have different operating costs...Kindergartens have high proportions of registered teachers, usually 100% and therefore can access the higher funding rates."
"Families who use teacher-led services face high fees, which can be a barrier to their children's participation in ECE. Higher funding rates for teacher-led services aim to reduce this cost barrier for parents. In Playcentres parents provide a high level of voluntary input. Higher subsidies for Playcentres would not necessarily increase participation. I can assure you government continues to support the work of Playcentre."
First we appreciate that Mr Carter replied to our concerns. We also accept that the government wishes to encourage participation in ECE. however, in our view parents who volunteer their time to look after their own children should not be discriminated against, in the allocation of government funding.
5 comments:
There is an arrogance to assuming that the stranger who has a course in how to sing nursery rhymes is more attuned to the needs of my child than I am. Some domains such as medicine and engineering provide professional qualifications that go outside personal expertise but care of children is not one of those areas. The experts on care of any given child are the ones who know and love that child , in 99 times out of 100 the parents. Third parties can sail in and be helpful but conventions on the rights of the child staunchly defend the expertise of parents. Given that, the care style the parents endorse is the one that is best for that child, by their judgment, and the funding should follow their decision since they are the most knowledgeable. To fund a third party not the parent is not logical or fair. Fund each child and let parents choose care location. ANything less is caving in to lobbies about careers, jobs, income and preferring some lifestyles over others so anything less than equal funding is not just in a democracy.
The clear evidence that attachment to primary caregivers is foundational in the healthy hot-wiring of the brain of our under
3's means that prioritising teacher-led ECE over parent-led is irrational
Chris Carter is quite wrong in assuming that addressing the funding disparity between parent and teacher-led services would not necessarily increase paticipation in Playcentres. Playcentre families volunteer a HUGE amount of personal time towards the administration and maintenance of PC. This time comes at a cost to families (less time for meeting our children's needs outside of PC, pressure on relationships, health(lack of sleep!), foregone income from doing paid work etc). Many families that would prefer to be involved in their child's preschool eductation find this cost too high and choose other services instead. Funding PC more equitably with other ECE services would make a huge impact on Playcentre viability and the quality of education that can be provided. Educator parents would have more energy to direct towards children's learning if the burden of administration could be lessened with funding for some paid administrative support.
Chris Carter is quite wrong in assuming that addressing the funding disparity between parent and teacher-led services would not necessarily increase paticipation in Playcentres. Playcentre families volunteer a HUGE amount of personal time towards the administration and maintenance of PC. This time comes at a cost to families (less time for meeting our children's needs outside of PC, pressure on relationships, health(lack of sleep!), foregone income from doing paid work etc). Many families that would prefer to be involved in their child's preschool eductation find this cost too high and choose other services instead. Funding PC more equitably with other ECE services would make a huge impact on Playcentre viability and the quality of education that can be provided. Educator parents would have more energy to direct towards children's learning if the burden of administration could be lessened with funding for some paid administrative support.
The Hon Chris Carter errs when he assumes that the families have higher costs. It is true that teacher-led services have high fees - which he subsidizes- but that is only because his government has recognized in that circumstance that care of a child is important. It is not logical to think care of a child somehow magically has no costs at home or deserves no parallel recognition. When you are home with a child part-time you lose half of your salary and if home for a few years full time you lose all your salary. The costs of care of a child who uses a Play Centre are much higher than for those who have salaries when you do the entire math not selective numbers. Losing your entire salary is a huge blow to any household. There is an interesting play on words he is using too when he says 'the goverment continues to support the work of Playcentre". Is this emotional support only, or financial, where it counts? The issue in fact is that the support is not financial and not enough. He also says he supports the 'work' of Playcentre. Well if he recognizes it is work, let's look at labor codes, minimum wages and recognition of effort for others.
Sorry but I'm with Parents'Choice on this issue, and with MP Jody Turner, and with Mum of Three. But I welcome the opportunity to notice what we're really talking about here because philosophically it is the crux of the issue. We are talking about how a traditional economy confronts the unpaid economy and in the past they had two quite separate dimensions. But the challenge now is to have the first recognize the second, to incorporate financial 'support' into for what so long has gone unpaid. Women are daring, all around the world really, to stand up and say you can't just assume and devalue our roles taking care of the vulnerable. If governments nod to us to leave these roles, but scorn us if we keep them, that's not fair. Nod to us for our paid work and our unpaid work both. PlayCentres and ECE are a dramatic example of where the rubber meets the road. They give us a chance to prove goals of equality.
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