HANDS-ON Experience Learning September 2025 | Issue 31
OPPORTUNITY
4
Give every child the benefit of early childhood development
BUILDING BUZZING BRAINS By age five, a child’s brain reaches 90% of its adult size, and in the first few years of life, children form about 50% more neural connections than adults will have. This explosive networking lays the foundation for cognitive development that continues into early adulthood, constantly being pruned and remoulded, and shaping how someone learns about, makes sense of and behaves in their world. This is why early childhood development is vitally important for building thriving minds. Yet data shows that only about two-thirds (68%) of 3–5-year-olds in South Africa attend a group learning programme of some kind – which means about one in three children may be missing out on the cognitive stimulation they need during these early years. Data shows that about 40% of South Africa’s early learning programmes (ELPs) are in rural areas, often run by women who make do with few resources and little support. Moreover, the majority of ELP providers in the country have to charge parents and caregivers monthly fees to run their centres; of the roughly R14 billion families spent on ELP fees in 2020, more than a quarter – R3.7 billion – was paid by the poorest 60% of households. DGMT believes a digital work management tool called the ECD Connect app can help ELP providers to thrive, so they can give children the best possible start. Just as neural connections – built through constant ‘serve-and-return’ interactions – amplify the brain’s power, the potential of ECD practitioners could be unlocked through a dynamic network that connects them to one another and to rich learning resources.
1
BUILDING BUZZING BRAINS
Issue 31 /// September 2025