Proud dad moment, my daughter graduated from nursery. In this post I’ll explain why this is a more important moment than graduating university…
Most people think that your later life outcomes are determined by your GCSEs or Uni degree. But what if I told you that your development at the age of 5 was the greater predictor of them all…
From pre-conception, to pregnancy and throughout the first 5 years of a child’s life, many inputs (time, money and activities) go into developing a child cognitive and socio-emotional abilities.
There is an assessment made by teachers at this age which results in a judgement of whether a child has reached a ‘good level of development’ and is school ready.
It is these early life investments that are the key mechanism for all future attainment ( including GCSEs), a range of other life outcomes and ultimately social mobility.
Research I’ve done in the past finds the teacher assessment at age 5 ALONE a significant predictor of GCSEs (and hence A levels and reaching Uni).
In some ways it is scary that our life outcomes are predictable at such a young age.
Given we know this, there has to be much more emphasis on giving all children the best start in life.
Shifting the celebrations from later life success to development at age 5 is a good start.
As they say don’t ask me what someone prioritises, show me what they celebrate (I made this up :D).
#socialmobility