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The conference sought to encourage the further development of national ECEC and school policies which align with strategies agreed at the European level. The participants discussed the challenges facing ECEC settings and primary schools: developing provision which meets the needs of all children; working with children who use different languages and come from different backgrounds; supporting teachers and ECEC practitioners to work in new ways and with new curricula; encouraging parents and local communities to be more involved in the work of schools and ECEC settings; and helping children to prepare for their further education and personal development.

Other conference key themes were the professionalisation of ECEC, and diversity and integration of children with different backgrounds, in order to address or prevent social exclusion and transmission of inequalities, while contributing to long term social cohesion and growth. The conclusions drawn from the event were summarised in the .

The poll on early childhood education and care was open at the School Education Gateway from 20 March until 20 April 2017. There were fewer than 100 responses on this occasion and so the results should be interpreted with this in mind.

Results (N=68)

1) In my region, the opportunity for pre-primary school learning is enough to give most children a good foundation for future education. 

Comments:

Almost two-thirds (65%) of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, suggesting that there is general satisfaction with opportunities for pre-primary school learning. However, nine percent strongly disagree with the statement and a further 26 percent disagree, indicating that this sense of satisfaction is by no means universal. Overall the suggestion is that opportunities are patchy, with some countries, regions or local areas offering plentiful opportunities for pre-primary learning and others very few. 

2) In my neighbourhood/region, the needs of families from different backgrounds should be better taken into account into developing ECEC.

Comments:

An overwhelming 89 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the needs of families from different backgrounds should be better taken into account in developing early childhood education and care. Given the strong support for this view (only ten percent felt that their needs are already sufficiently taken into account), it is important that policy-makers and service providers ensure that the views and needs of families from a range of backgrounds are fully understood and acted upon. 

3) In general, the social status of ECEC staff is lower than that of teachers who work in primary and secondary school.

Comments: 

Over two-thirds of respondents (69%) agreed or strongly agreed that the social status of ECEC workforce is lower than that of primary and secondary school teachers, reflecting a general perception that the older the learner the higher the social status of those teaching them. However, a significant minority (31%) felt that their status is not lower, which can be seen as an encouraging finding for those concerned with raising the status of ECEC staff. 

4) In my school or region, primary teachers work closely with ECEC staff to exchange ideas and bridge transitions.

Comments:

Smooth transitions between education phases are a crucial element of integrated school systems. If transitions are not properly managed, there is a risk of children falling behind and, later on, of dropping out of the system completely.

In this context, it is significant that 60 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed, suggesting that there is, in many situations, insufficient liaison between ECEC staff and primary school teachers, both about exchanging ideas and bridging transitions.

But it is indeed encouraging that 40 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement.

5) In my neighbourhood/region early childhood settings and primary schools should collaborate more closely with parents. 

Comments:

This statement aroused the strongest reaction of all those in the survey. Not only is collaboration with primary schools seen as important but also with parents, according to poll respondents: almost half (49%) strongly agreeing and a further 43 percent agreeing that staff in both early childhood settings and primary schools should work more closely with parents. Only 8% disagreed or strongly disagreed. The opinions indicate that working with parents is even more of an issue to be addressed than working with primary schools.

Conclusion

Although the response rate for this survey was relatively low (68), the results indicate that some priority issues need to be addressed in ECEC, in particular:

• The low status of the workforce in ECEC settings compared to teachers in primary and secondary schools, suggesting that ECEC is the ‘poor relation’ in education systems;
• The need for an improved dialogue and interaction between ECEC staff and parents as well as a diverse mix of families;
• The need for better cooperation with pre-primary/primary schools and teachers in order to ensure smooth transitions between education levels in a more integrated system.

To end on a more positive note, most respondents agreed that the opportunity for pre-primary school learning is enough to give the majority of children a good foundation for future education.