Early childhood education

The early years of a human being are the most formative years of his personality. These early years are spent in association with parents, sibling, friends and attendants. The child’s growth biological, psychological and sociological takes place within the home at the start of his career. The family presents to the child a concrete manifestation of the cultural process which builds up in the child in due time.

When the child attains 6-7 years of age he/she has gained control of his/her body and now seeks to control the world beginning by reigning over his immediate environment. He relies upon the use of speech to gain the information he seeks and as a result is often a living question mark.

Parental involvement in the process of the development of the child plays a crucial role in the education of the child. If parents pay heed and fulfill the legitimate needs of the child, then the child will successfully blossom into a responsible and worthy citizen. Instances of parental involvement in the child’s education can be manifested in forms such as reading story books to children, interpersonal communication with the child, exposing the child to social relations for the ripening of gregarious instincts of the child et al.

Since the child remains in the constant company of his mother it is traditionally said that a mother is equal to a hundred teachers. The impressions and experiences which a child has in these formative years leave a permanent and indelible mark on the personality of the child. From the point of view of psychoanalysis, the early childhood experiences are very important for the future development of personality and academic prowess of the child. The parents of course since they control the child during infancy are in the most strategic position to make or mar the future of their child.