Women students with pre-school children and the early childhood education facilities available to them: an exploratory study

Abstract

The dual aim of this thesis is to describe and analyse some aspects of a sample group of women students at Victoria University, who had pre-school children, and to explore the adequacy-suitability and proximity of the early childhood education facilities available to them and to their children. A survey of some background material preceded the field work. The most salient aspects emerging from this survey were the confusing, ambivalent and ambiguous attitudes prevalent in New Zealand towards early childhood education, and in particular towards Day Care. There emerged too, a contradiction between the attitudes of politicians, and attitudes of women presented, for example, in the 1975 Select Committee Report on the Role of Women in New Zealand. Discrepancies also emerged between the numbers of women who were employed and the numbers of places available in Day Care Centres for their pre-school children. This was further compounded by the minimum standard of Staff Training and educational provision, required in Day Care Centres. It was noted that responsibility for early childhood education was divided between the Department of Education and the Department of Social Welfare. Women in employment were seen to be a large group requiring quality early childhood education facilities for their children; however, women not in "gainful" employment also needed these facilities, and an attempt was made through comparison with some overseas studies, to look at whether other countries attempted to assess the existent potential demand, which New Zealand does not attempt to assess. No New Zealand figures were available on how many "working" mothers needed and would use quality early childhood education facilities if they were available; nor were there figures indicating how many other mothers needed and would utilize these facilities if they were available. It was found that there was also scant information on why this latter group may need to utilize such a facility. In Section II, some social changes, particularly those relating to the isolated nuclear family were examined, and related to the sample. Marital patterns, family structure, roles (relating to the sample) were examined and related to overall social changes which might be expected from changes within the family. Particularly salient of findings in the sample group was the "typical" small family, and the pattern of early marriage, early child bearing, and consequent minimal number of years of child rearing. Examination of the socio-economic level of the sample showed that the sample was predominantly in socio-economic level one. This indicated educational and social inequalities shown by access to the University by a "privileged" group. Salient findings relating to the role of the women as students indicated that there were poor study facilities available to these women, that access to the University Library was very difficult, and that study demands had to be secondary to family demands. A large proportion of the mothers worked (for money) as well as studying and bringing up a family. Findings relating specifically to the provision of early childhood education facilities indicated that there was very limited availability, (other than the Creche) particularly (but not only) for the children under three years of age, and that expectations for social, emotional and intellectual growth of their children were only partially being fulfilled by the facility at Victoria University. The children under three (in the sample) were seen by the writer as an "at risk" group because of the non-availability of early childhood education facilities for them other than the Creche. For older children, a multiplicity of Child Care arrangements and multiple use of facilities was evident. Finally, there appeared to be both a paucity of research in early childhood education in New Zealand (particularly with reference to Day Care), and also a paucity of high quality and suitable early childhood education facilities; particularly (but not only) Day Care facilities.