ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF RESEARCH Copyright 2008 by THE PACIFIC
IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION RESEARCH ASSOCIATION
2008, Vol.2, NO.1. pp.83�-98 ISSN 1976-1961
Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
Botswana: Policy (2001) Implementation
Kabita Bose*
University of Botswana
Abstract
In an effort to implement the recommendations of the 1 994 Revised National Policy
on Education (RNPE) (Republic of Botswana, 1994) and to fulfill the aspirations of
Vision 201 6 (Republic of Botswana, 1 997), Early Childhood Care and Education
(ECC&E) Policy was released in 2001 in Botswana. After five years of operation it
became imperative to review the status of the ECCE programs in terms of adherence
to the stipulated policy requirements and maintenance of quality standards. Hence a
study funded by the Office of Research and Development (ORD), University of
Botswana (UB) was conducted in the southern part of Botswana which has the
highest concentration of various types of ECCE programs. The study was conducted
in two phases the first covering the heads and teachers of the ECCE centres while the
second phase included the ECCE Policy Stake Holders (EPSH) of Botswana. The
present paper concentrates on the second part covering the important EPSH who are
responsible for the implementation of the policy. In doing the research, a structured
interview schedule was used. The data was analyzed qualitatively. The findings
showed that there is an increased participation in child care provision, education and
registration of ECCE centres (Republic of Botswana, 2006-b); thus the existing
centres do adhere to the ECCE policy requirements to a certain extent. However
greater efforts are required to ensure an effective implementation of the 2001 ECCE
policy and to raise the quality and proper delivery of ECCE programs in Botswana.
Keywords: Botswana, ECCE, ECCE Policy, ECCE programmes, ECCE Policy,
implementation, ECCE curriculum, ECCE Teacher Training
* [email protected]
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Introduction
ECCE refers to education and care in early years, which spans the human life
from birth to age of eight years. During this period, they develop very fast and need
Developmentally Appropriate Practices for an overall development. ECCE is under
stood to encompass a holistic view of the needs of the children as they grow old and
mature (Obanya, 2005). Children need to grow in a safe and loving environment
where they could fulfill their basic requirements of health, nutrition, sanitation and
continue to master more and more complex levels of thinking, movement, feeling and
interaction with others in the environment.
ECCE arrangements and programs as stated by Kohen, Lipps, and Hertzman
(2006):
... provide more to children than just a place to be cared for while their parents
are at work or studying. Several studies have shown that such programs may enhance
children's cognitive and social skills." (p.1)
Access to ECCE programs makes children enter school more ready to learn as
compared to those who don't (Magnusan and Waldfogel, 2005) and brings better
performance in children in later years (Henderson, 1987). An early intervention can
bridge the gap between the child's two worlds-the home and the school (Spodek,
Saracho and Davis, 1991), and can provide academic and life-course achievement
amongst all groups, both advantaged and disadvantaged children (Kohen et aI., 2006).
Researches show that participation in ECCE programs enable children to become
social, and develop strong literacy skills and thinking abilities. A society can benefit
from ECCE programs (Seefeldt and Galper, 1998) as it makes one aware of the value
of literacy skills, reduces stress and anxiety for working parents as their children are
in a safe learning environment.
The first goal of Education for All (EFA) is Early Childhood Care and Education
which believes in (Education for All Global Monitoring Report, 2008):
Expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education,
especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children. (p.l)
In order to fulfill this, it is necessary to augment ECCE programs, and more
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Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
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attention needs to be paid to the quality of those programs.
ECCE Programs: Quality and Accreditation
The subject of quality in ECCE has high priority amongst those concerned with
welfare of young children. Early years workers, managers, inspectors, financers,
parents and researchers are all seeking to understand the meaning of quality. Quality
is a challenge rather than a problem to be solved (Dahlberg, Moss and Pence, 1999).
While the positive effects of early child care programs have been found to extend
across nations and types of programs, these effects are demonstrated if the programs
are of high quality; that is, they have low child to adult ratios, the facilities and equip
ment provide, stimulating and age appropriate activities, and the programs are staffed
by consistent caregivers with training in early childhood education (Kohen et aI.,
2006).
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has
worked to raise the quality of programs for all children from birth through age eight.
A major part of NAEYC's efforts to improve early childhood education is through
different systems of accreditation for programs that are committed to meeting national
standards of quality. The criteria used to accredit are as follows (NAEYC, 1 998):
• interactions among staff and children
• curriculum
• staff and parent interactions
• administration
• staff qualifications and development
• staffing patterns
• physical environment
• health and safety
• nutrition and food service
• program evaluation
To ensure such a quality in ECCE programs national level policy initiatives need
to be made starting with a situation analysis followed by evolution of policy guide-
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I Kabita Bose
lines that would lead to the establishment of a national accreditation system.
Botswana's aspirations
An access to ECCE is one of the aspirations of the people of Botswana (Republic
of Botswana, 1 993). Over the past few decades, after independence, a number of
Institutions have come up in Botswana, to cater for the children from 0 to school
going age. But no standards were set which could guarantee the availability of a
uniform, quality care and education services. This indicated that there is a need to
provide an appropriate institutional framework to meet the basic learning needs of
children. It was felt that the government should take up the responsibility and provide
preschool education. As a result, the RNPE recommended that the Pre-Primary
Education Unit of the Ministry of Education (MOE) would be responsible for ECCE
policy formulation, and its implementation. They should establish standards for
facilities and the quality of the ECCE programs, along with supervision and monito
ring of pre-primary education. To coordinate all ECCE related activities MOE estab
lished a Pre-school Development Committee (PDC) consisting of representatives
from various Ministries and other interested parties (Republic of Botswana, 1994).
The National Vision statement of Botswana-Vision 201 6 called for improve
ment in the quality of pre-school education (particularly the public facilities), through
close monitoring of licensing; and by introducing pre-schools in all primary schools
(Republic of Botswana, 1 997). A comprehensive ECCE policy was developed in
2001 by MOE in close collaboration with key stakeholders such as Ministry of Local
Government (MLG), Non Governmental Organisation (NGO)s and UNICEF. This
effort was in line with the implementation of the RNPE recommendations and fulfill
ment of the Vision 201 6 aspirations.
ECCE Policy
The main objectives of the 2001 ECCE policy were to establish the authority of
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Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
Botswana: Policy (2001) Implementation
the pre-school unit of MOE to accredit ECCE centres in terms of quality. The policy
aimed at encouraging the participation of women in social and economic activities. It
intended to strengthen and support ECCE services by laying down regulatory
standards required for establishment and operation of quality ECCE programs. It out
lined a very broad coverage that would offer a three-tier system catering to children
from 0-2.5 years (Baby-Care), 2.5-4 years (Day-CarelNursery) and 4-6 years (Pre
primary). It granted a period of three years to adopt the policy fully and acquire the
required standard, like hygienic condition, physical structures, environmental condi
tions, food and developmental materials. The roles and responsibilities of the differ
ent players in implementing the policy were defined as follows:
• MOE was given the primary responsibility of providing support m every
possible way to all ECCE centres. Whereas, MLG shared the responsibility of
registration, inspection and supervision of Baby-care, Day-carelNursery and
other educational care centres (Republic of Botswana, 200 I).
• The MOE was made responsible for establishing a minimum curriculum
framework for day-care and pre-primary services, and the PDC was made
responsible for an early stimulation curriculum in baby-care services.
• For training of ECCE personnel, various Colleges of Education in the country
were given charge to train teachers for pre-primary level whereas Lobatse Day
Care Training Centre (LDTC) was given the responsibility of Baby-Care and
Day-carelNursery centres.
The Policy went through government consultative machinery (Republic of
Botswana, 2003), and was adopted fully in 2004. Any service provider that met all
the basic requirements was licensed to run the services.
Policy Review
Years after release of the ECCE policy document in 200 I, a study was conducted
in two phases in Gaborone, in the southern part of Botswana, to establish the current
status of ECCE programs. The practitioners (school heads and the teachers) of 40
ECCE centres and important ECCE Policy Stake Holders (EPSH) of the Government
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of Botswana participated in the study. The study was funded by the ORD, UB.
Phase I:
• The first phase of the study covered the status on the ground and the
limitations as perceived by the practitioners. It showed that most of the service
providers were private and more than 80% were catering to children from 2.5
year to 6 year olds; the baby care services (0-2.5 years) were almost non
existent.
• The study revealed that the ECCE centres did attempt to adhere to standards
and regulations laid down in the 2001 policy document to a certain extent.
Some of the ECCE procured licenses and achieved high standards in providing
appropriate buildings and physical infrastructure that are essential for running
an ECCE centre. It was also found that all the centres did not achieve high
standards.
• The study showed that 80% centres maintained NAEYC recommended staff/
child ratio and also had recruited Teaching Assistants (TA) that is mandatory
for quality ECCE services.
• The study revealed that the centres did not succeed in achieving a similar
standard in acquiring a standard curriculum, providing trained teachers and
offering affordable fees structure. Sixty two percent of them made their own
arrangements by using other alternatives like adopting curricula used by other
countries, e.g., South Africa, Zimbabwe, Great Britain, etc.
• The study further revealed that almost half of the teaching population did not
have any formal training on ECC&E. The study also showed that the fees
structure of the ECCE centres was arbitrary, inconsistent and unaffordable by
a common man (Bose, 2008).
Phase II (covered in detail in the current paper):
The researcher felt the need to study the other aspect as perceived by the EPSH
as it is necessary to study all dimensions, i.e., the perceptions of the practitioners as
well as those of the planners, policy makers and policy implementers to get the com-
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Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
Botswana: Policy (2001) Implementation
plete picture. This would not only give their perspectives regarding the current status
of ECCE centres, but would also give an insight into the issues and problems that
accompany the actual, effective implementation of the policy.
Objectives
The objectives of this study were to assess the views of the EPSH on the issues
concerning the current status of ECCE programs, and the implementation of ECCE
policy. In order to do that the following objectives were identified:
(a) To assess the compliance with the registration and licensing policy
(b) To inspect the physical infrastructure of the centres
(c) To find out the curriculum followed by the centres
(d) To examine the training background of the teachers
(e) To evaluate the implementation of the policy guidelines
(f) To gauge the problems and challenges faced during the implementation of
ECCE policy
(g) To suggest a way forward
Methodology
A survey design was adopted for the study. The study used qualitative approach
and a purposive sampling technique was used where the officers who were directly
responsible for executing 2001 ECCE policy were carefully chosen. Attempt was
made to select people from the MOE such as the chief planner and executer of policy.
People from MLG (City Council, Gaborone) and other associated agencies like Day
Care Association, and Social Welfare Department, who formed the PDC, were select
ed as they shared a joint responsibility of managing ECCE centres. In all four (4)
officers, who were available and had an in-depth understanding of all the oppor
tunities and challenges faced while implementing the policy, were selected. Interview
schedule was developed and the four officers were interviewed at length in a separate
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detailed session focusing on their areas of responsibilities. The interview schedule
included questions pertaining to the standards and quality of ECCE programs, the
policy implementation exercise, the challenges faced during the process of imple
mentation, and the measures to be adopted to resolve the issues. The researcher
recorded the conversation during the process of interview with the consent of the
interviewees. The conversational transcripts were coded, analyzed qualitatively and
presented in a descriptive form as well as verbatim wherever necessary.
Results and Discussions
The EPSH were asked to reVIew the current status of ECCE programs of
Botswana and give an account of the policy implementation. The analysis of the re
sponses fell into three parts. The first part deals with the implementation of ECCE
policy with respect to the compliance with the registration and licensing policy, the
physical structures, the curriculum and the teacher training. The second part deals
with the problems and challenges faced during the implementation of the policy. The
third part deals with the way forward.
Implementation of ECCE Policy: EPSH had converging views on the findings
related to the physical infrastructure and implementation of policy guidelines includ
ing registration and licensing policy.
The Government of Botswana's National Development Plan Mid Term Review
stated that "All the Councils in the country were introduced to the ECCE Policy
guidelines to ensure implementation and monitoring" (Republic of Botswana, 2006a,
p. 99). All members of EPSH supported this by saying that:
Yes, we try to monitor and implement the rules and regulations that are stipu
lated in the ECCE policy 0/2001.
For an effective policy implementation, it is necessary to have sound registration
practices and licensing policy. All members of EPSH reported that the appropriate
authorities adopted selective measures for issuing licenses. They felt that some of the
ECCE centres compromised in providing physical infrastructure; operated in resi
dential premises or in unsafe places with no enclosures at all; and could not even
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Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
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provide the minimum recommended space of one square meter per child; used adult
sized heavy furniture, adult size toilets, and even used pit latrines outside the main
structure.
The centres that operated without licenses were given temporary licenses for
three months to improve upon their standards and then allowed to apply afresh and
those who failed were closed down. At times various stakeholders E.g. politicians
interfered with the task of issuing licenses and objected closure of disqualified service
providers. And many service providers, mostly NOOs, abused ECCE centres by
fabricating day-care centres to provide services to HIV/AIDS victims or orphans for
business purposes.
However, steps were taken to curb such irregularities. In short all was not well in
the area of the actual licensing being carried out. They were in agreement that
genuine service providers were granted licenses because:
They comply to a large extent with the policy, and are adequately qualified and
cooperative whereas others resist to any kind of advice, as that might affect their
business.
On the findings related to the curriculum and teacher training, the members of
EPSH from MOE and all other members of EPSH and PDC had differing perceptions
perhaps both reasonable in their respective contexts. For each finding the views of
both sides have been presented indicating the arguments presented by each subgroup.
According to the EPSH from outside the MOE the stipulated standards laid down
by the 2001 policy document were not being strictly followed. They said that:
Almost everything needs improvement for quality ECCE programs.
They objected to the teachers being untrained and not using a standard, pre
scribed curriculum. According to them the main focus should be on production of
adequate number of well qualified and highly motivated local teaching staff and a
sound curriculum framework to fall back on for guidance in quality teaching/learning
process. They stated that:
ECCE policy demands teachers to be qualified, and yet the MOE does not pro
vide teachers with ECCE qualifications. The untrained teachers are unable to deliver
quality services and provide children with less nutritious food like soft porridge and
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I Kabita Bose
'fona' (citric powder drink) on a daily basis.
There is only one day-care training centre in Lobatse (LDTC) which does not
meet the demands of qualified Early Childhood Education teachers. Local day care
centre teachers lack skills and experience, whereas expatriate teachers mostly hold
diploma in primary education, which is often inappropriate in an ECCE centre.
EPSH recommended that the formal and distance learning educational insti
tutions need to take up the responsibility of generating locally trained teachers; and
privately operated ECCE training centres must be developed without any delay.
It was interesting to note that the EPSH and PDC members outside MOE, who
shared a joint responsibility of managing ECCE centres and executing the policy,
were not satisfied with MOE's performance. They indicated that MOE should have
had a greater commitment.
After so many years of release of policy document, it is very difficult to accept
that the curriculum is still not in the market!
Yet the ECCE centres multiplied in number, and children attended such centres
because the perpetrators who do not have any background of ECCE advertise their
day care centres business, and parents send their wards to them ignorantly.
The chief planner and executer of the policy, the MOE, on the other hand repor
ted that activities needed for effective implementation of the policy were being
carried out. A blue print of the curriculum for pre-primary sector (4 to 6 years only
and not for 0-2.5 years, and 2.5-4 years) had been developed and a task force had
been set up to pilot the blue print by the 2008. The member further stated that the
National curriculum would certainly be introduced by the 2009 (Republic of
Botswana, 2006b); and the responsibility of training pre-primary teachers has been
assigned to Colleges of Education, giving room to LDTC for preparing day-care and
baby-care service providers.
In all these deliberations the question of some of the ECCE centres procuring
licenses without meeting the stipulated requirements of the ECCE policy as found in
Phase I of the study still remained unanswered. The findings revealed that efforts
seem to be made in the right direction, and yet the EPSH, who are the main planners
and executers of the policy, were also not satisfied with the status of the ECCE pro-
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grams. Thus the researcher felt the need to go deeper to find out whether there had
been any constraints that came in the way of an effective implementation of the
policy to have a thorough understanding of the outcome that is not very positive. This
lead to the findings related to the problems, and challenges faced during process of
policy implementation.
Problems and Challenges of Policy implementation: all the members of EPSH
reported that the implementation of policy guidelines had not been very smooth. They
had to cross a number of hurdles to carry out regular monitoring and inspection. The
problems they faced were as follows:
Lack of human resources was the major hindrance in proper implementation of
the policy. Although the government had established a preschool unit, in the MOE, to
provide an enabling environment to the ECC&E, there was a scarcity of officials, and
added manpower was necessary. One Principal Education Officer in the Preschool
unit with no regional educational officers left the officer with very little time and
means to monitor and evaluate effectively.
Monitoring policy that a) required joint responsibility e.g. inspection by council
officers and the health inspectors (Environmental Health) for granting and renewal of
licenses, b) delegated power to EPSH other than MOE or MLG for inspection
faltered. Due to work load, shortage of staff and lack of motivation the scheduled
inspection often went into the back burner. This allowed some service providers to
continue to operate without a renewed license.
Management of ECCE was raised as an issue. The schemes of service of MOE
and that of the MLG in the administration of the day care programs needed clarifica
tion. A re-structuring of the roles and responsibilities that were laid down in the
policy document for both MOE and MLG personnel was felt necessary.
Allocation of plots for ECCE centres was indicated as a major issue. A number
of day care centres operated from residential houses because of scarcity of plots. A
limited number of plots were allocated by the Department of Lands for civic and
community use, and the process was time consuming. On the other hand the alteration
of residential land to civic land was a tedious process. In addition, Gaborone, unlike
rural areas, is divided into zones, and not all zones are permissible to convert land use
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from residential to civic. Allocation of more plots and an easier, alternative measure
of plot allotment would be necessary.
Importation of Trained Teachers from international market due to shortage of
teachers was perceived as a problem due to a long, tedious process. As a result a lot
of centres operated without any trained teachers. At times expatriate teachers, who
did not possess any relevant teaching qualifications, were recruited without a
thorough scrutiny to avoid the delay!
Lack of financial resources had been a major problem. Some centres operated
by NGOs, churches and VDC's, did not adhere to regulations because of monetary
constraints and could not provide the required furniture, the salary of a qualified
teacher, whilst others who were supposed to convert residences to ECCE centres by
restructuring the houses by fitting child size toilets, basins, kitchen and storage space,
also failed to do so.
Priority of ECCE related activities were questioned. Many activities regarding
development of resource materials; establishment of teacher training programs, re
view exercise of LDTC were left unattended due to low priority.
Thus the problems and challenges are multiple and complex, just like the chal
lenges of any activity that is an appendage and nor a main stream activity. This leads
the researcher to the last point of suggesting a way forward.
A Way Forward: It is necessary to resolve these problems and offer a vigilant
inspection and monitoring exercise, by reinforcing the pre-school unit of the MOE.
Modified policies for monitoring exercise, management, allocation of plots, impor
tation of trained teachers, and provision of financial resources to ECCE centres are to
be adopted. The policy should attract international talent by reducing hurdles and
delays in the recruitment processes, since there is a shortage of this skill in the local
market. The roles and responsibilities of various policy executing officers need to be
defined in clear terms for less ambiguity. Sine most of the service providers come
from private sector in Botswana, a regular monitoring and inspection would lead to
an achievement of the standards laid down in the policy document.
And lastly, there is a need to prioritize ECCE in Botswana. The EPSH suggested
that Mainstreaming of ECCE program by providing universal access to ECCE would
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Early Childhood Care and Education Programs in
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perhaps provide a key to all problems! As the respondents said:
Without that ECCE will never get the attention that it deserves.
They felt that the Government should seek support from some international
organizations to facilitate universal access to ECC&E, which will certainly enable all
the service providers, whether in government primary schools, a private or a church
based centre, to adhere to the standards stipulated in the policy document. Main
streaming the project would automatically prioritize all the necessary activities that
Government requires to carry out for an effective implementation of the ECCE
policy. According to the Botswana and UNESCO report (Republic of Botswana,
2007):
An access to ECCE needs serious advocacy in Botswana as very few people are
accessing the programs. This sector of education is predominantly private owned,
hence is too costly for many Batswana. This calls for a speeding up of a main
streaming program for ECCE and perhaps UNESCO should consider providing seed
money to jump start the project (p. 25).
Conclusion
The study revealed that there is an increased participation in child care provision,
education and registration of ECCE centres (Republic of Botswana, 2006b); however
a lot more needs to be achieved for an effective implementation of the 2001 ECCE
policy to raise the quality of the programs. The Physical Infrastructure in many is
below standard, some are up to the mark. The broader issues related to resource
generations like the curriculum development, the launching of fresh teacher training
programs, and reviewing of the existing teacher training programs need immediate
attention. The absence of locally trained teachers and a long, delayed procedure of
recruiting a teacher from the international market could only guarantee a centre
operating without any trained teachers; in the absence of a prescribed National curri
culum one could only expect discrepancies in teaching/learning process; and without
introducing more ECCE training programs for teachers and without carrying out a
review exercise of the existing training centre, promised way back in 2001, one would
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only fail to adopt the stipulated standards that are laid down in the policy document.
The abundance of ECCE centres in Botswana is more than welcome as an access
to ECCE is limited to 7% of the total population (Republic of Botswana, 2004).
Nevertheless, mushrooming of ECCE centres, without the stipulated standards would
only ensure wider coverage but no quality. There needs to be a common understan
ding of all the curriculum development and teacher training needs among all the
stakeholders of ECC&E. Cohesive measures to strengthen both aspects need to be
taken. The problems and challenges are complex as ECCE is merely another activity
and not a mainstream activity of those designated to face this responsibility. The
government needs to mainstream ECCE and channelize the required resources to pro
vide a broader coverage, to establish ECCE professionals, to strengthen and support
ECCE services.
To conclude, it can be stated as 'Without mainstreaming ECCE in Botswana very
little will happen'.
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