Early childhood care and education
Ecuador Implements Family Care Service for Early Childhood to Promote Education and Development
Executive Summary, The Ecuadors´ Ministry of Education through the Undersecretariat of Specialized and Inclusive Education and the National Directorate of Early and Basic Education implemented the Family Care Service for Early Childhood SAFPI to promote the integral development of 3 and 4yearold children This service is aimed at children who do not attend any early education programme and focuses on preparing families and linking them with the community through learning experiences based on the Early Education CurriculumThe following objectives have been established Guarantee the right to education for 3 and 4yearold children through a flexible and assisted modality Promote the integral development of children taking into account the sociocultural context Strengthen the family´s responsibility in their children´s education through participation in educational activities According to the Ministry of Education´s administrative records in the 20182019 period 16813 children were served by SAFPI while in the 20192020 period this figure reached 19975 children During the 20202021 period specifically in March 2020 the country was declared in a health emergency due to the COVID19 pandemic which unexpectedly led to confinement and a decrease in the number of children served to 1851 due to the educational service being provided via home visits However for the 20212022 period national coverage reached 20528 childrenCurrently in the 20222023 period the SAFPI service attends 16969 children who with the support of 629 teachers develop motor and communication skills identity construction and the ability to relate to other people The goal is to provide a flexible assisted educational service that guarantees the rights of children to education promoting family participation and sociocultural context especially in emergency situations such as the COVID19 pandemic
Ecuador -