The existing skill gap in early childhood educators and the way ahead

The foundational cornerstone of a child’s education is high-quality pre-primary education, and the success of this stage determines the success of all subsequent stages. Currently, around 82.89 million children under six years of age are currently accessing early childhood education from either an Anganwadi centre or a private preschool.

In the early years, children are sensitive to how they are learning. The ability of their brain to form and reform new pathways (neuroplasticity) is high, allowing children to learn and unlearn habits easily.

With millions of children enrolled in the existing early childhood education system at place, the Indian education system is in dire need of skilled educators. It is important to be able to create an environment that encourages curiosity, movement, and multisensorial exploration that is handson and play based.

Anganwadis have played a crucial role in the health and nutrition of young children and mothers for decades. However, early education has been a small part of the training programmes of the workers and are not well-equipped to deliver quality education. There are around 13.77 lakh Anganwadi centres in use nationwide. An Anganwadi worker has a total of 21 key tasks and responsibilities, according to the ministry of women and child development. Since many roles and responsibilities are administrative in nature, the Anganwadi worker is forced to spend the majority of her time coordinating with the various stakeholders rather than putting out the effort to begin the process of educating, learning, and effectively caring for children.