Target: All children will have access to a quality early childhood education so they are ready for school
On this page:
Early childhood education enrolments
This chart shows the anticipated growth in enrolments needed in approved early childhood education programs (i.e. kindergarten programs) to achieve the target by 2020.
Source: Office for Early Childhood Education and Care, Department of Education and Training. The baseline represents available data when Q2 was released on 8 September 2008.
This chart shows the anticipated growth in enrolments needed in approved early childhood education programs (i.e. kindergarten programs) to achieve the target by 2020.
The proportion of three-and-a-half to four-and-a-half year olds in a quality early childhood education program has increased from 29 per cent to 32 per cent. This is expected to improve as the new, planned kindergarten services are opened and a new kindergarten funding scheme is implemented. As these new services are opened, the number of enrolments in approved early childhood education programs is anticipated to grow significantly from 2010-11 to 2013-14.
Progress toward the target
Reports
- Delivering on early childhood education 2009-10 (PDF, 127 KB)
- Child Care and Early Education in Australia - The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (external site) provides findings on a number of questions relating to child care and early education in Australia. Topics include:
- child care and early education attendance patterns for infants and four to five year old children
- parents' reasons for using care and satisfaction with their infant or child's care/education
- family, child and community factors related to current attendance at child care and early education services
- indicators of quality in formal and informal care/education programs attended by the infant or child
- developmental outcomes, such as health, social and cognitive development, for infants and children in relation to care/education attendance patterns, quality indicators, and other family, child and community factors.
- A Snapshot of Early Development in Australia - AEDI National Report 2009 (non-government site) provides communities around Australia with information on how local children have developed by the time they start school, across five areas of early childhood development: physical health and wellbeing, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive skills (school-based), and communication skills and general knowledge.
- Toward Q2: Tomorrow's Queensland Annual Progress Report 2008-09 provides detailed information on our progress toward the 10 targets over the first year.
- National Early Childhood Development Strategy - Investing in the Early Years (external site) provides the road map for action and for engaging effective partnerships across and between governments, with the non-government sector, and with families around the needs of young children. It covers children from before birth to eight years and aims to improve the health, safety, early learning and wellbeing of all children and better support disadvantaged children to reduce inequalities.
Media releases
Case studies
Travelling teachers program
Ensuring all children in remote or disadvantaged areas can access and participate in kindergarten programs is a challenge. The Queensland Government, in partnership with the Australian Government and C&K Pre-schooling Professionals, is currently testing how travelling teachers may be able to reach children in kindergartens, family day care and long day care settings.
Early Years Centres
The Queensland Government is establishing four Early Years Centres (EYCs). These centres will provide high quality, integrated early childhood education and care, family support and health services; form part of a comprehensive prevention and early intervention service system within their local community; and create strong links with existing child and family services in the community.
More information
Further reading
A Flying Start for Queensland Children (PDF, 1 MB) is a discussion paper on the future of education as part of the Queensland Government's plan to provide all Queensland children with a flying start in life.
Useful links
Last updated Thursday, June 24, 2010
^ to top
