Early childhood experiences have a profound impact on brain development—affecting learning, health, behavior, and ultimately, income. There is a growing body of evidence that early childhood nutrition and early stimulation and learning programs to extend school completion all improve learning outcomes. Despite the proven and lifelong benefits, more than 175 million children—nearly half of all pre-primary-age children globally—are not enrolled in pre-primary education. ¹ For children who do have access to early childhood education, poorly trained educators, overcrowded and unstimulating environments, and unsuitable curricula diminish the quality of their experiences. How can researchers collaborate with educators and policymakers to ensure children have opportunities to reach their full potential? What are the implications of this research in the current context of the COVID-19 pandemic?

Please join Innovations for Poverty Action for a webinar titled “Promoting Early Childhood Development: Recent Evidence and Policy Lessons,” the third webinar in a three-part series on evidence in education, from preparing young adults for the workforce to school management to early childhood development.

This panel will discuss evidence that can inform ECD programming and policy around the world. Emma Naslund-Hadley (Inter-American Development Bank) will highlight the impact of bilingual and intercultural preschool math curricula in Panama on the math skills of preschool-aged children in the Ngäbe region, home to its largest indigenous population and the most impoverished region in the country. Elisabetta Aurino (Imperial College London) will discuss how household food insecurity was associated with negative early childhood development outcomes in Ghana based on longitudinal data. Cynthia Bosumtwi-Sam (IPA) and Horacio Álvarez Marinelli (IDB) will provide insights on using evidence to inform policy and Sarah Kabay (IPA) will host and moderate.

The presentations will be followed by a discussion and Q&A, where we will cover how the evidence can inform policy, particularly in the face of the current COVID-19 pandemic.