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Terms of Reference
The Inquiry will seek to ascertain and report on the views of early childhood education stakeholders in relation to the following issues:
- the degree to which Australia is successful in ensuring that all children in
Australia have equitable access to a high quality free preschool education;
- the current barriers that prevent all children from accessing preschool
education and the challenges that need to be addressed;
- the roles that the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments should
play in ensuring universal access to preschool education;
- initiatives that would guarantee that all children do have access to a high
quality preschool education;
- strategies and arrangements that would strengthen the links between
preschool education, early childhood education in schools and other
early childhood services.
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Submissions to the inquiry can be made via email or mail, or at invitational
national and state/territory forums to be held over coming months.
The national forum will be held on 21 October 2004. Participants are invited
to forward a submission to be tabled at the forum.
Suggested areas of focus
The Inquiry is underpinned by a commitment to equity and the belief that all children in Australia should have access to a high quality, free public preschool education.
It seeks to establish the role that the states and territories and the Commonwealth should play in ensuring equitable and universal access to preschool education for children of all backgrounds and from all localities.
It aims to provide a report which will include proposed initiatives which will support the achievement of the underpinning objective.
- The degree to which Australia is successful in ensuring that all children in Australia have equitable access to a high quality free preschool education:
Who is missing out, and why?
Are the needs of Indigenous children, their families and communities adequately addressed?
Are children with special educational needs adequately catered for?
What are the key issues for ensuring quality: are they adequately addressed?
- The current barriers that prevent all children from accessing high quality preschool education and challenges that need to be addressed:
- nationally
- in states and territories.
Are there barriers to equitable access by all children?
What strategies and programs are in place to address these barriers and how adequate are they?
Should the commitment to universal access provide for at least one year of preschool education in the year prior to school (ie 4 year olds) – or should it be for two (ie 3 year olds also) or more years?
Should access to preschool education be free for all children/families?
- The roles that the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments should play in ensuring universal access to preschool education:
Does the Commonwealth have a role and if so, what should the Commonwealth responsibilities be?
What changes, if any, should be made to the roles played by the states and territories?
Should the Commonwealth and State/Territory Governments work together and if so, what is needed to support this co-operation?
Is the current funding model adequate and appropriate to achieving the goals of access and equity?
Are the current structures adequate and appropriate to achieving those goals?
How best can the information about successful models be shared across Australia?
- Initiatives that would guarantee all children do have access to a high quality preschool education:
What policies, structures, resources or other proposals might be needed?
What national goals and targets should be developed to ensure that all children can access preschool education?
What would a national plan for preschool education involve?
- Strategies and arrangements that would strengthen the links between preschool education, early childhood education in schools and other early childhood services.
What are the important links to make?
What are the urgent priorities in improving links?
What structures/policies/processes are needed at the national level?
What structures/policies/processes are needed at the state/territory level?
Ms Kathy Walker, National Preschool Education Inquiry
c/o AEU, Ground Floor, 120 Clarendon Street, Southbank Victoria 3006
