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Protecting the Building Blocks of Early Learning: An Urgent Priority
In this special GLR webinar, Dr. Jacqueline Jones of Foundation for Child Development moderated a conversation exploring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young children and strategies and resources that can help support children’s emotional well-being.
Dr. Pamela Cantor, the Founder of Turnaround for Children, discussed the “COVID paradox” in which the physical distancing that keeps us and others safe can threaten the social connections that help us manage stress and build resilience. She explained the impacts that stress — and the resulting cortisol — can have on brain development but emphasized that positive relationships — and the resulting oxytocin — can protect children and help them manage stress and build resiliency. Cantor underscored the importance of context on brain development and explained how, to be effective, our education system needs to support the whole child and the learner inside that child. She outlined the five non-negotiables for whole-child design: Positive Developmental Relationships; Environments Filled with Safety and Belonging; Integrated Supports; Intentional Development of Critical Skills; Mindsets and Habits; and Rich, Instructional Experiences for Children. She discussed the Building Blocks for Learning framework and explained how the three R’s — Relationships, Routines and Resilience — can support healthy development, learning and stress management, both while children are at home and when they return to school.
Dr. Philip Fisher of the Center for Translational Neuroscience at the University of Oregon shared how he launched Rapid Assessment of Pandemic Impact on Development – Early Childhood (RAPID-EC) to gather and share real-time information about the challenges facing families of young children during this crisis. A weekly survey of a nationally representative sample of over 1,000 households with at least one child under age 5, RAPID-EC has uncovered significant increases in caregiver stress and decreases in family income with many respondents also reporting difficulties in paying for basic necessities and delays in seeking health care services. While the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are widespread, Fisher shared how low-income households and those in which a child has a disability are reporting much higher rates of mental health difficulties. Survey reports are posted each week to help inform public and private responses to the crisis. While many of the issues underlying the survey responses predate the pandemic, Fisher suggested that the findings can help leaders transform the early childhood system, making quality care and supports more accessible.
Elena Rivera of Children’s Institute shared her reflections on the presentations, highlighting the themes of the importance of families and relationships, the existence of disparities that must be addressed and an urgency to act now. She explained that this crisis offered the opportunity to “build back better” by holding families at the center, focusing on equity and taking action now. She encouraged webinar participants to lift up both stories and data to make the case for change, to connect with people through action and to build a movement to advance systems change for young children and their families.
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