SOCIALLY AND CULTURALLY STRONG EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE CHILDHOOD IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Learning is a synergistic process, resulting from the interplay between innate aptitude and environmental influences. This is also true for children, particularly when they are provided with environments that stimulate and support their growth and development. Early childhood education centres on learning experiences which children receive during their formative years, and it goes a long way to lay the foundation for their future success. The social and cultural environment in which children are raised plays an important role in the holistic development of young children, specifically in the acquisition of social skills and cultural norms. Most researchers have directed attention to early childhood education pedagogies, but there is a dearth of studies on the issue regarding the socially and culturally strong background of young children. Furthermore, few studies advocated the importance of equipping the adults who teach these theories and curricula in terms of interpreting children’s learning process at different stages and how they may help them develop competence in their cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. Hence, the paper argued that in achieving socially and culturally strong early childhood education for sustainable childhood, efforts should be geared towards the delivery of appropriate adult education programmes such as family life education to parents and other caregivers, strengthening and empowering the family unit, and promoting well-articulated and implemented social policies towards the holistic development of children.