Vocational School of Justice
PRESCHOOL EDUCATION DEVELOPS THE CHILD
Children, who receive good care and preschool education, turn into creative, productive individuals with high self-esteem. Parents tend to think like, ‘we have grandma at home’, ‘I can hire a babysitter’, and sometimes they decide not to send their children to preschool because of financial hardship. However, the experts point out the importance of pre-school education between the ages of 0-6 in terms of supporting the child socially, emotionally, physically, cognitively, and linguistically, and they say that “Preschool education is a must”.
Ezgi Oral, Lecturer at Child Development Program, Vocational School of Health Services, Izmir University of Economics, reported that from the ages of 0 to 3, a baby’s brain grew to 80% of its adult size and that it was especially important to support the child’s development during this stage. Oral said, “Children, who are not stimulated sufficiently during the initial years of life when their brain develops most rapidly, can never be able to reach their full potential. Stimulus at home won’t be enough for child development. Children need preschool education after the age of 3. Preschool education gives the child a chance to interact, socialize, and play with peers. Learning, which is required for healthy development, takes place in this way.”
‘Get to Know the Teacher’
Oral indicated that preschool education helped prepare the child for elementary school, thereby; the child got used to school environment, communicated better with peers, overcame the fear of school, and learned to self-care. Oral also warned parents to be careful about school selection. “Factors such as the distance of school to home or work, cost of school, its physical features, whether it has a yard or not become important. Parents should not be taken aback by the building and what is inside. They should inquire about the quality of education the school offers and they should definitely get to know the teacher,” said Oral.