A Symposium Recommends Encouraging Investment in Early Childhood Care Institutions
11-30-2021
Amman, November 30 (Petra)- A symposium held by the National Council for Family Affairs on Tuesday recommended the need to encourage investment in institutions that foster early childhood and to move towards training and rehabilitation and not merely with academic education only.
The participants in the “Early Childhood between Academic Discipline and Job Opportunities” symposium, which was held by the center in cooperation with Plan International Organization and the National Team for Early Childhood Development, unanimously agreed on the importance of aligning national plans and strategies related to early childhood with the labor market.
Dr. Muhammad Miqdadi, the Secretary-General of the National Council for Family Affairs, said that the symposium came as a continuation of a series of symposiums held by the Council previously on early childhood, in view of his role in improving the quality of life for childhood and the family, to come up with recommendations on ensuring early childhood development and providing professional and academic competencies.
And Dr. Miqdadi indicated that Jordan is one of the first countries that has taken the initiative to pay attention to early education, and has formulated policies, amended legislation, and developed executive plans for raising and educating children, addressing that there are 3.8 million children under the age of 18 in Jordan, including 30% of non-Jordanians, including many of refugees from neighboring countries.
He also pointed out that Jordan introduced the concept of organized early childhood care services at the beginning of the fifties of the last century, and the services gradually expanded with the spread of awareness about the growing requirements of working mothers, so many national plans for early childhood were approved
The symposium discussed, in two sessions, several axes related to early childhood, including the childhood specializations in Jordan, the available job opportunities and related disciplines, and their availability in Jordanian universities and colleges.
Dr. Khitam Al-Saghir from the Ministry of Higher Education, in her view, addressed the child education and early childhood education programs taught in Jordanian universities, as these programs provide specialized scientific knowledge in the field of early childhood for those working in this field.
Dr. Zubaydah Abu Shuwayma, the head of the Professional Investigations Department in the Ministry of Education presented the development of the childhood development program in the Ministry’s curricula, which was one of the branches of household economics and includes the competencies of mother care and child development and care.
The Director of the Curricula, Programs and Tests Directorate at the Vocational Training Corporation, Jamal Taha, emphasized the need for promoting the culture of training and qualifications and obtaining licenses to practice professions rather than merely obtaining academic qualifications for some majors, and he pointed out that society needs the practical professional works such its own need for other jobs.
The Head of the Early Childhood Department at the Hashemite University, Dr. Ayoub Al-Rousan, stressed the need for a comprehensive view in the case of early childhood programs, and the importance of providing adequate educational means to provide the students with the required skills, and providing job opportunities for these majors through the expansion of childhood care programs.
Amani Al-Sharif from Civil Service Bureau made a presentation on the realities of the labor market in the fields of childhood and early care, the preparation of male and female graduates, and job opportunities opening to them
