Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/the-future-of-early-childhood-education/5025918/
Stabilizing to save” the child care industry is the field’s major emphasis right now. Rallying action during this crisis, in September 2020, 125 groups sent a letter to Congress requesting the necessary funding to support child care programs and schools (Letter to Congress, 2020).
It is challenging to think about the future of the early childhood education profession when the coronavirus pandemic weighs so heavily over our daily practice. In every place and in every setting, there are new safety protocols, heightened infection mitigation efforts, fewer children and families being served, and increased expenses (Zero to Three, 2020; CLASP & The National Women’s Law Center, 2020). Although child care centers typically have not been associated with the spread of the coronavirus (Gilliam et al, 2020), the child care industry is clearly near the verge of collapse given the multiple demands it is currently experiencing.
As we focus on stabilization funding, we: (1) notice our industry’s elevated status as “essential” for adults, rather than for children; (2) honor our colleaques who have shown a great deal of strength under stress; (3) ask how, at the appropriate time, the field might shift its focus from survival toward sustainability; and (4) suggest ways in which ...