Early childhood education, care pushed in Senate bill

MANILA, Philippines—Sen. Edgardo Angara has filed a bill that would start compulsory education to as early as the infancy stage.

Angara’s bill would ensure universal access to early childhood care and development programs to all Filipino children aged 0 to 6 years and officially recognize this stage as the first cycle of education. Angara believed that children should start from the early formative years to have a good foundation.

The chair of the Senate committee on education said that his bill would adopt the “Early Years Act” proclaimed by the World Declaration on Education for All (EFA) which declared that “learning begins at birth…this calls for early childhood care and initial education.”

Aside from the EFA declaration, Angara cited the Dakar Framework for Action which urges “expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children.”

The former University of the Philippines president said that his bill would address concerns that only one of every four Filipino children or approximately three million of the 13 million children belonging to the 0 to 6 years age group were provided early childhood care and development last year under programs provided in day care centers and in public pre-schools.

Angara’s counterpart bill in the House of Representatives was authored by Sorsogon Rep. Salvador Escudero III, Davao Oriental Rep. Thelma Almario and Aurora Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara.

The bill called for the formation of the Early Childhood Care and Development Council (ECCD) to be composed of the representatives from the Department of Education, Department of Social Welfare and Development, National Nutrition Center and the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP). –Gil C. Cabacungan Jr., Philippine Daily Inquirer