Early Childhood Development Sector

Introduction

Early Childhood Development Education is one of the departments in Education Labour and Manpower Development sector headed by the Executive Committee Member in the Kisii County Government.

It has three main levels which include:-

Level I       -       baby class(2-3)years

Level II      -       Nursery (3-4)years

Level III     -       Pre-unit(5-6) years

At the County level the programme officer is directly in charge of ECDE Programmes with the assistance of four ECDE officers.

The ECD programme officers are responsible for all activities and resources related to ECD at Sub-County (SC) level. There are 9SCs in Kisii County. The provision of ECD services involve households, community and government efforts in the holistic development of children 0-5 years age range.

Access, equity and quality of education services in this sub-sector are constrained by various factors, which include insufficient number of trained teachers and care givers, inadequate number of ECD Centers, limited availability of teaching and learning/play materials, limited community participation, low morale of teaching staff due to poor remuneration, poor enforcement of ECD standards and inadequate nutrition and health support services.

The government has been providing community support grants in terms of instructional materials, infrastructure and top-up salaries for ECD teachers in 10 public ECD centers per constituency.

Mandate of ECD Programme

 The mandate of ECD is to provide holistic child growth and development which include cognitive, physical, social, moral and spiritual aspects of development. 

Vision

To be a leading county in the provision of holistic ECD services in Kenya.

Mission

Provision of holistic early childhood development services through coordinated partnerships, integrated quality service delivery and safeguarding the child’s rights and welfare.

Values

To execute its mandate, the ECD programme is guided by the following values:

  1. Accountability and transparency
  2. Quality services
  3. Professionalism
  4. Integrity and equity
  5. Teamwork
  6. Innovation and creativity

ECD Objectives

The general objectives of ECD programme are to:

  1. Provide education geared towards development of the child’s mental capabilities and physical growth
  2. Enable the child enjoy living and learning through play
  3. Develop the child’s self-awareness, self-esteem and self confidence
  4. Enable the child to develop understanding and appreciation of his/her culture and environment
  5. Foster the child’s exploration skills, creativity, self-expression and discovery
  6. Identify children with special needs and align them with existing services
  7. Enable the child build good habits and acquire acceptable values and behaviours for effective living as an individual and a member of a group
  8. Foster the spiritual and moral growth of the child
  9. Improve the status of the child’s health, care and nutritional needs and link him/her to health services such as immunisation, health check-ups and growth monitoring
  10. Enrich the child’s experiences to enable him/her to cope better with primary school life
  11. Develop the child’s aesthetic and artistic skills

 

More in this category: Youth Polytechnic Sector »