http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,18571194%255E601,00.html

Preschool plan for all 4-year-olds

Patricia Karvelas

The Australian, March 23, 2006

FOUR-year-olds could be forced into formal preschool education under a plan by Education Minister Julie Bishop for a nationwide program to educate youngsters before school.

Ms Bishop wants all Australian children to receive the education through a preschool or an accredited childcare centre with trained staff.

The proposal is being drawn up by the Prime Minister's Department and will be taken to the next Council of Australian Governments meeting in June.

"The problem is there is no overarching policy to ensure that long daycare offers a preschool program that is carried out by a qualified early childhood teacher," Ms Bishop said.

The minister, who assumed the role in the January reshuffle, said the short hours of formal preschool were often inconvenient for working parents.

"They might not see the need for a qualified early childhood teacher as being necessary but we know it is," she said.

She said the way the year was funded depended on whether it was part of the childcare system or part of the school system.

"I think all funding options would need to be considered and so obviously the childcare rebate and the childcare benefit would be considered," she said.

Parents who use preschools currently are ineligible for the commonwealth childcare benefit and the childcare tax rebate, which is capped at 30 per cent. Ms Bishop now says this should be reviewed.

Many states have already moved towards more preschool education, but there is no uniform curriculum and not all childcare centres provide the service. In Queensland, from next year, preschool will be replaced by a year of prep at school for children aged from 4 1/2. It will be free and full-time.

The primary responsibility for establishing and providing funding for preschools rests with the states but users of commonwealth-approved preschools are able, if eligible, to access the childcare benefit. Preschools are required to have a qualified teacher on staff, something that childcare centres are not required to do.

Former Australian of the Year and director of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research Fiona Stanley said providing a national preschool year was the most "important investment" the Government could make.

"Some kids start behind the eight-ball in the first year of school," she said. "An increasing proportion of children are actually not ready for school.

"Julie's got it, absolutely, it's terrific. It's a good investment. If we actually invested in very good, educationally rich childcare, rather than it just being a baby-minding service, it would be fantastic."

Less than 60 per cent of NSW children attend a government-funded preschool the year before they start school, compared with 90 per cent who attend in most other states. Families using preschools in NSW are paying fees of almost $40 a week compared with the national average fee of $21, a Productivity Commission report has found.

"If it were part of the school system it would obviously have the structure in place, if it were part of the childcare system it would need to be restructured in order to accommodate it - either way it is a priority," Ms Bishop said.

"I think the commonwealth should be the driver in this. I think we need a national, consistent approach. It's clearly an area for further reform. The current debate is largely about childcare, but I think we need a much broader focus on ensuring that children can attend formal education programs so that they are able to perform better at school in literacy and numeracy.

"The problem is the rate of preschool attendance varies so much across states and it's also lower for children from non-English speaking backgrounds and those from lower socio-economic groups and indigenous children, and these are all issues we need to put on the table."

Liberal backbenchers have been calling for change, arguing that some state-run preschool systems are so poor that parents opt for long daycare, which fails to provide children with the basic literacy skills they need for primary school.

Earlier this year COAG agreed to give priority to improving early childhood development outcomes, as a part of a collaborative national approach.

Jonathon Kruger, executive director of Childcare Associations Australia, said the sector was interested in the proposal, but there would need to be significant consultation first.

"The infrastructure is there to run programs in childcare centres and many childcare centres around the country are already running quality kindergarten programs for this age group," he said.

"If the proposal is that early childhood teachers deliver preschool programs in long daycare centres then there are currently not enough teachers in the centre to do it," he said.

"If childcare centres are required to employ more highly qualified staff ... it will cost more to run centres and this cost has to be passed on to families."