A Mapping of Early Childhood Development Standards and Good Practices
Lessons for South Asia
Highlights
This report provides a mapping and an analysis of a sample of existing standards for early childhood development (ECD), which will underpin the subsequent development of guidelines for minimum standards for ECD services in South Asia. These guidelines, to be developed by the UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA), are expected to serve as a tool to guide the development of quality ECD and early learning programmes and services across the region.
The report presents a desk review of documents and mapping of a sample of ECD/early learning quality standards from select low- and middle-income countries, including standards available in a few South Asian countries. It seeks to identify enabling factors for and bottlenecks to the implementation of these standards. In addition, there are case studies of three countries identified as more experienced in the context of the study with the potential to generate more learnings for developing the guidelines.
The report looks at key areas covered by the ECD/early learning standards (such as health, nutrition, early learning, safety and protection) as well as at some critical gaps. It reviews the intended uses of the standards and any evidence on how they have contributed to improving the quality of ECD/early learning services, based on a rapid analysis of monitoring mechanisms and their effectiveness in improving the quality of ECD/early learning services.
