Evaluating the impact of facility and household-level factors on early learning development in Philippi, Western Cape

Abstract

Early learning opportunities in South Africa are both inaccessible and unequal in quality due to facility and household-level factors. With minimal resources, Early Childhood Development (ECD) facilities in poor communities provide low-quality ECD services to children. Part of the reason that ECD facilities are under-resourced and of poor quality is their inadequate funding. The disparity in quality means that poor children may still lag behind children who have had access to high-quality, well-resourced ECD facilities. Beside facility-level factors, the process of early learning is also influenced by household factors. Studies have found that low-cost stimulations such as storytelling, singing and playing with household objects can be used as tools to promote early development within the confines of the household.