The Republic of Seychelles and the International Bureau of Education (IBE) – UNESCO worked together in organizing the second International Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in collaboration with the High-Level ECCE Policy Committee and the Institute of Early Childhood Development. It was held from 21 to 23 February 2019 at the International Convention Center, Victoria, Seychelles. The conference is focused on the theme “Big Data for Small Children”. Over 340 representatives of governments, non-government organizations, international development agencies and international experts from 23 countries had come together to discuss how to build reliable data collection and reporting systems as a paramount pillar to effective ECCE policy and programs.

I am deeply honored and privileged to be invited as one of the speakers during this momentous event. I would like to thank Cristian Fabbi, Senior Expert in ECCE at the IBE-UNESCO and Reggio Emilia Director, for extending the invitation and giving me this opportunity to be able to contribute to the field of ECCE on a larger scale. I am extremely delighted that I was able to play a part in the formulation of the Joint Framework for Action in building resilient, data-driven systems of ECCE that will be adopted by less developed countries.

My talk included unpacking the term “big data” and why it is important in early childhood education. Followed by sharing of concrete example of data management system and how they are used to protect children and engage parents. Then, concluding it with a recommendation on how to build a reliable ECCE data system.

Other international speakers were Dr Liang-Jin Guo from China on Policy Framework, Ina Furtenbach Linden from Sweden on Programmatic Framework, Dr Katsuki Sakaue from Japan on Financing Framework, Dr Sally Brinkman from Australia on Holistic Early Childhood Index (HECDI), Anirrudh Gupta from India on the use of data to improve ECCE outcomes, Staffan Lekenstam from Sweden on the Swedish data systems in health sector, Elma Tershana from Albania on the data and monitoring practices of the Observatory for Children and Youth Rights in Albania and Dr Anne-lisse Ducanda on the perils of technology exposure in early childhood. It was truly humbling to be with these people who do greater things for the benefit of the children all over the world!

To read more about this event, click the following:

The Second International Biennial Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education

Report: Big Data for Small Children

Big Data for Small Children: Monitoring Holistic Early Childhood Development