The foundation for educational achievement, job success and effective integration into society is set by experiences in early childhood. Early childhood is important in developing core capabilities such as motor, cognitive and social skills that directly affect later performance. Early childhood development is so important that if some milestones are not reached during that time, those skills and the ones that build on them will be poorly developed in teenagers and adults even with extraordinary intervention later in life.
Intelligence
Brains are built over time, according to Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child. The core architecture of the brain in early childhood is made functional through connections created between neurons because of experience or stimulation. The brain in early childhood has more plasticity (ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections) than adult brains. Childhood experiences prepare brain systems for more complex processing of visual, auditory and tactile information in school and adulthood.
School
Intelligence and behavior skills developed in early childhood are key predictors of performance in school. Professional intervention by educators offering enriching experience in cognitively relevant tasks to preschool-age children significantly improved later elementary school performance. Negative experiences in early childhood, including a lack of stimulation, poor nutrition and inadequate health care, lead to an increased likelihood of poor academic performance.
Health
In terms of early childhood development, health begins with prenatal care of the mother, including adequate nutrition and the absence of detrimental behaviors such as drug or alcohol abuse. A recent report published in July 2008 in the "Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine" found that adults with improved nutrition in early childhood may score better on intellectual tests, regardless of the number of years they attended school.
Beyond adequate nutrition, adverse environmental factors negatively affect early childhood development such as air pollution, toxic substances and the absence of routine health care and immunizations.
Policy Implications
The importance of early childhood development in supporting later achievement and effective social integration cannot be overstated. As summarized in the Science of Early Childhood Development report by the National Scientific Council at Harvard University (see reference 3), it is in the best interest of society to provide adequate prenatal care, early health care, parental training and support and rich, stimulating experience from infancy through early childhood education.
Expert Insight
Columbia University's National Center for Children in Poverty reports that there is strong evidence linking social-emotional health in early childhood to school success and health in adolescence and adulthood.
Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child, speaking about the importance of early childhood development, says, "Creating the right conditions for early childhood development is likely to be more effective and less costly that addressing problems at a later age."
