Quality care and education through neurobiological research

Abstract

Recent neurobiological findings have been used by many to argue for the importance of the early years, and the need for state governments to provide a range of early childhood and family services. Appropriate investment in quality programs in the early years is known to improve school achievement, participation in tertiary education, lifetime income, physical and mental health (including longevity), social skills and general wellbeing. As James Heckman's (2006) now famous graph demonstrates, investment in the early years produces a much greater return per dollar than investment in schooling or post-school programs. In fact, societies investing more in early childhood are found to have higher literacy and numeracy levels, a healthier population, and less disparity in outcomes between those on low and high incomes.