Early Childhood Case Studies

Introduction

Australian Indigenous children are among the most disadvantaged groups of children in our country, if not the most disadvantaged. Research has identified a number of disturbing issues and inequities facing this group of children and their parents. Major issues identified by SNAICC include access to preschool services and childcare, and escalating numbers of Indigenous children in out-of-home care.

There is now powerful, relatively new evidence from neuroscience that the early years of development from conception to age six, particularly for the first three years, set the base for competence and coping skills that will affect learning, behaviour and health throughout life. Recent brain research has shown clearly that a child’s brain development is intimately linked to, and influenced by, the child’s environment – a complex interaction between genetic inheritance and experience. The care, nutrition and stimulation the infant receives affect the actual “wiring” of nerve pathways in the brain.

Research has confirmed that some factors place children’s development (including brain development) at increased risk, while other factors help to protect and promote that development. The more risk factors children are exposed to, the more likely it is that their development will suffer. However, the more protective factors there are in their lives, the more likely it is that they will develop well. Risk and resilience factors operate at the level of the child, the family and the community environments.

There is encouraging evidence that good nutrition, nurturing and responsive care-giving in the first years of life, linked with good early child development programs, improve the outcomes for all children’s learning, behaviour, and physical and mental health throughout life. Good early child development programs that involve parents or other primary care-givers of young children can influence how they relate to and care for children, and can vastly improve children’s outcomes in later life. The earlier in a child’s life these programs begin, the better.

In addition, there is a growing body of evidence that patterns established early in life can have long term consequences in areas such as literacy, crime prevention, mental health problems and some adult health problems. Many of the developmental, learning and behavioural problems that emerge later in life also have their origins in the early childhood years.

In light of the range of evidence and renewed interest in the importance of the early years of life, Australian communities are now confronted with how to maximise young children’s life chances by placing increased emphasis on rich, positive experiences for them and their families. The Centre for Community Child Health in Melbourne has been at the forefront of this advocacy campaign and in assisting communities to integrate this emphasis into their strategic planning towards improved community health and wellbeing.

Through the work of SNAICC, Indigenous groups have indicated their interest in these new findings. Consideration is being given to culturally appropriate ways in which the “Early Years message” can translate into initiatives for young Indigenous children and carers. There is a need for exploration of current practice within services for Indigenous children in their early years, and particularly their first three years. As a first step, CCCH and SNAICC have collaborated in a timely national project aimed at identifying and broadly disseminating examples of good practice or innovation in programs working with young Indigenous children and their carers.