by jim mustard for j fraser mustard the founders’ network founding chairman council for early...
TRANSCRIPT
By Jim Mustard for J Fraser MustardThe Founders’ Network
Founding ChairmanCouncil for Early Child Development
February 6, 2009
Socioeconomic Determinants of Health, Learning, and Behaviour: How Do Societies Achieve Equity
from the Start?
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Evolving Perspectives in Immersion
Education in the Global Village
How do diverse populations with different cultures and language communicate with each other?
Canada set a target of being a bilingual country.
What is the best time to learn two or more languages?
World Health Organization
Michael Marmot
Inequalities in Health and Development
Closing the Gap in a Generation
WHO, August 2008
Chapter 5
Equity From the Start
Hertzman and Marmot
Equity: actions, treatment of others, or a general condition characterized by justice, fairness, and impartiality
WHO, August 2008
Science of Early Child Development
“The science of ECD shows that brain development is highly sensitive to external influences in early childhood starting in utero with life long effects.”
WHO, 2008
Developmental Neurobiology
03-080
Health Learning (literacy) Behaviour
Experience-Based Brain development in the early years of life sets neurological and biological pathways that affect throughout life:
Why do we care about brains?
You are your brain.
BUTYour brain is not just produced by your genes.
Your brain is sculpted by a lifetime of experiences. The most important time in brain development is the first few years of life.
Kolb, U Lethbridge
08-039
What is experience?
Everything that you encounter both pre- and postnatally as well as in adulthood…
Examples: sounds, touch, vision, smell, food, thoughts, drugs, injury, disease…
Kolb, U Lethbridge
08-026
Does Experience have the Same Effects on Brain Development at Different Times in
Life?
No !
There are qualitative differences at different stages of life.
There is something fundamentally different prenatally vs infancy vs juvenile vs adult.
One difference is gene expression.Kolb, U Lethbridge
08-029
All the neurons have the same DNA.
How do they differentiate for their diverse functions?
08-081
Diamond & Hopson, 1998
“The nerve cell, or neuron resembles a miniature tree…” A newborn has @100 billion neurons when they are born and form 1 trillion connections by the time they are 3
SIGNAL-SENDING NEURON
RECIPIENT NEURON
Synapse
Dendrite
Axon
Two Neurons04-039
03-012 Synaptic Density
Rethinking the Brain, Families and Work Institute, Rima Shore, 1997.
At Birth 6 Years Old 14 Years Old
02-066The Fear Response or Stress Pathway
Visual Cortex
Visual Thalamus
Amygdala
Scientific AmericanThe Hidden Mind, 2002, Volume 12, Number 1
Amygdala and Hippocampus
Sensory Stimuli
PIT
Cortisol CortisolCRF
ACTH
Amygdala Hippocampus
AdrenalCortex
HypothalamusPVN
+ + - -
LeDoux, Synaptic Self
03-002
PrefrontalCortex
Limbic HPA Pathway - Stress
Cortisol – Over Production
Behaviour (ADHD, violence), depression, diabetes, malnutrition, cardiovascular disease, memory, immune system, drug and alcohol addiction
Cortisol – Under Production
Chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, immune system (autoimmune disorders) rheumatoid arthritis, allergies, asthma
05-212
01-012
"Significant correlation with registered
criminality (teenage) appeared for language
development at 6, 18, and 24 months.”
Early verbal skill development depends uponlanguage exposure which requires holding the infant and toddler (touch).
Early Learning and Criminal Behaviour
Stattin, H. et al
102; 369, 1993
Journal of Abnormal
Psychology
A “Natural” Experiment:Romanian Orphan Adoption
Children adopted into middle class homes after 8 months in the orphanages show at 11 years in contrast to children adopted early:
1. Abnormal brain development (small brain, low metabolic activity, abnormal EEG)
2. Social and cognitive problems (IQ loss)3. High vulnerability to behavioural
problems (ADHD, aggression) Kolb, U Lethbridge
08-031
Epigenetics(nature and nurture)
The process by which normal gene expression is altered by experience.
Genotype vs Phenotype
08-014
The Brain and Literacy
Brain Pathways
“Higher levels of brain circuits depend on precise, reliable information from lower levels in order to accomplish their function.
Sensitive periods for development of lower level circuits ends early in life.
High level circuits remain plastic for a longer period.”
Knudsen 2004
07-123
Early Child Development and Language
Starts early – first 7 months
Sets capability for mastering multiple languages
Sets literacy and language learning trajectory
04-200
0 1 4 8 12 16
AGE
Human Brain Development – Language and Cognition
SensingPathways
(vision, hearing)
LanguageHigherCognitive Function
3 6 9-3-6
Months Years
C. Nelson, in From Neurons to Neighborhoods, 2000.
Con
cep t
i on
01-003
Kolb & Whishaw, 2009
09-018Brain Areas Activated by Language Tasks
Kolb & Whishaw, 2009
09-019 Neural Webs for Language Tasks
Early Experience and Brain Architecture and Function
Affects gene expression and neural pathways
Shapes emotion, regulates temperament and social development
Shapes perceptual and cognitive ability
Shapes physical and mental health and behaviour in adult life
Shapes physical activity (e.g. skiing, swimming, etc.)
Shapes language and literacy capability
07-001
The Brain and French Immersion
07-105
01-040 Levels of Literacy:A Reflection of ECD
Level 1:Level 2:
Level 3:
Level 4:
indicates persons with very poor skills.people can deal with material thatis simple. 42% of Canadians
is considered a suitable minimum forcoping with the demands of everyday life.
people who demonstrate command ofhigher-order processing skills.
Level 5: competence in sophisticated reading tasks, managing information and critical thinking skills.
Enrollment in EFI and CE by SES
SES
Core English (CE) Early French Immersion (EFI)
09-015
Willms, 2008
Lower 20% Middle 20% Highest 20%
88
12
82
18
76
24
68
32
59
41
Assessment Results09-016
Willms, 2008
No French Immersion Early French Immersion
N = 558 N = 358
% with scores below 1.0 % with scores below 1.0
General Knowledge 12 5.3
Behaviour 10 5.6
Cognition 15.1 3.9
Language and
Communication 14.1 2.2
Physical 12.2 3.4
Enrollment by Program (%)09-017
Willms, 2008
Grade 1 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 10 Grade 12
Core English 69 77 60 73 82
Late French
Immersion -- -- 17 11 9
Early French
Immersion 31 23 23 16 9
Abecedarian Study – Reading
Age 8 Age 12 Age 15 Age 21
Age at Testing
0
1.2
0.8
0.4
Effect Size PrimaryGrades
Preschool Preschool &Primary Grades
04-153
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5
Canada
Australia
Italy
Germany
Netherlands
United States
United Kingdom
Austria
Hungary
France
Finland
Norway
Sweden
Denmark
Public Expenditures - Early Childhood Programs Selected OECD Countries (%), 2004
Rates of Return to Human Development Investment Across all Ages
Pre-school Programs
School
Job Training
ReturnPer
$Invested
R
2
4
6
8
0 6 18Age
Pre-School School Post School
03-074
Carneiro, Heckman, Human Capital Policy, 2003
Preschools
Chaos
Child care
Parenting centres
Children’s mental health centres
Kindergartens
Local school authori
ties
Public health
Munici-palities
Community
services
Parks & recreatio
n
Early interventio
n
Health Social services
Education
Family support
IT takes a Village to Raise a ChildIT takes a Village to Raise a Child
What does it take to raise a village?What does it take to raise a village?
Changing the Way we do things
Whether the issue is early human development, childcare, french immersion, food security, youth
engagement, literacy, suicide, global warming, poverty, employment, crime,
civil societies….
All our governance systems must move towards an
intersectoral/holistic approach. This is especially important at the local level where services, programs and
relational supports need to be connected and integrated towards a
communities vision
The Components to Raise the Village
The Message: Critical importance of early human development - hope
The Process: who to involve, where to start, questions to ask, steps to follow.
The Content: What are the components that create a comprehensive and integrated system of programs and supports
The Evidence: EDI, 18 month screening…
School communities are a natural place to start to engage the broader community with an inclusive and meaningful
process.
Process
It’s all about relationships
Get the Message Out !Regional Leaders Retreats
The revitalization of community comes through citizen participation and through having communities that understand EHD and value all their families and children.
An important first step in mobilizing community is to foster and encourage the coming together of a new cross sectoral leadership - with the usual and unusual suspects - to share their knowledge, assess needs, determine priorities and then commit to act!
CARS-Communities Achieving Responsive Services- “Road Map”
*Begins with what currently exists in the community and collectively plans the future-involves stakeholders.
*Develops a common community vision, community values, and community action plan
*Mobilizes community partners and resources.
*Is ongoing, celebrates and revitalizes the “village”
*Developing regional models of integration will help to provide evidence and to inform policy framework towards universality.
Content
The integration and coordination of quality ECD community based services and supports-works!
ECD &parentingcentres
ParentsSupporting
Parents
Play & natureBased activities
Toy and resource
libraries
Nutrition program
Family Resource Programs
Information & referral
services
Pre/Postnatal Health Care Early
Intervention
Pediatric
Care
Home/Local-based satellites
Libraries
Home-visitingnetwork
Recreation Programs
FamilyChild Care
Specialized services
Childcare
evidence
03-085Early Development Instrument (EDI)
Physical health and well-being
Communication skills and general knowledge
Social knowledge and competence
Emotional health/maturity
Language and cognitive development
Decrease in the % of vulnerable children as a result of improved ECD in Western Australia
Year 2003 2006
Floreat 47.22% 14.3%
Wembley 47.11% 11.8%
AEDI
07-204
Canada – EDIChildren 5-6 yrs
Adapted from NLSCY/UEY 1999-2000; EDI 1999-2000
07-026
% Vulnerable
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4SES - Income
30
20
10
0
Cost to Individuals and Canadian Society of
Poor Early Child Development (estimates)
Crime and Violence $120 Billion/year
Mental Health $100 Billion/yearBehaviour andDrug Use
07-158
Guiding Principles• This about support for the family and development of the
“whole child.” Explore, play and celebrate -not schoolification
Intrinsic motivation is a key
• In the process everyone needs to feel included, valued with a sense of belonging.
Share the load - no matter the age or the stage of life.
• Relationship based change where each family is a gift to our community.
Creating a leaderful world where Being at our best means not being the best at everything!
Each of us has a gift that when combined with others creates a ship full of leaders and that’s leadership
Growing Together from our infants to our elders
Creating Resilient Communities
It’s not about putting all our eggs
in one basket… but by each of us putting one egg in “this
basket” of support for families and children, we can celebrate the common wealth we create in ensuring equity from the
start for every child.