Education Minister Hekia Parata was unable to attend the New Zealand HomeBased Childcare Association's conference in Queenstown on Saturday, but through a representative she issued a challenge to delegates.
Home-based educators need to be proud and professional about what they do if they want to change people's perceptions of their work as "just babysitting" or "just being a mum at home", New Zealand Home Early Childhood Education Association president Carol Stovold says.
Early childhood education services in Dunedin have applauded a series of recommendations aimed at improving the quality of early childhood education (ECE) in New Zealand.
Education Minister Anne Tolley has been reassuring the early childhood education sector on the future of its services, as consultation on an independent task force's report comes to a close.
The Central Otago Kindergarten Association is meeting a shortfall in funding so work can begin immediately on the new Maniototo Kindergarten.
Playcentres must not be left to wither through lack of support, educationalist Bruce McMillan says.
An 11.7% increase in the cost of early childhood education has put increased pressure on the family budget.
The message of playcentre being a high-quality education option for parents, which was worthy of community and Government support, rang loud and clear through the Octagon, Dunedin, yesterday.
Pupils at Wakatipu Kindergarten let their hands do the talking on Thursday, with green paint used to put their handprints on pieces of paper, protesting proposed cuts to early childhood funding.
David Clark argues that the Government's early education cuts will hit Dunedin families and children especially hard.
A Dunedin early childhood education centre will be one of about a dozen nationwide to host the launch of a petition on Tuesday calling on the Government to reverse cuts to funding and commit to more investment in early childhood education.
The Dunedin Kindergarten Association is putting building projects on hold, as government funding to the organisation is expected to drop by $1.2 million next year.
About 1000 people packed the Octagon, in Dunedin, on Saturday, to give the Government the clear message that cuts to early childhood education were not a popular move.
The Central Otago Kindergarten Association has been forced to raise costs to parents because of the Ministry of Education funding cuts to early-childhood education (ECE) announced in June.
Queenstown Montessori is expanding its roll to 38, which will ease demand for pre-school places and give Wakatipu parents choice in the style of education they want for their children, the owner says.
Families using the Waldronville Playcentre are worried the land on which their facility is situated will be sold from underneath them if they cannot justify their existence to the Ministry of Education.
Two Dunedin education specialists have been selected by the Ministry of Education for a controversial task force, set up to look at early childhood education (ECE) funding.
A taskforce has been set up to look at early childhood education (ECE) funding, which Labour says will see cuts.
The smiles said it all at the official opening of the Arrowtown Early Learning Centre on Friday, the result of five years of research, lobbying, planning and applying for funding.
Some parents could pay more for early childhood education under changes that will be announced in Thursday's budget, Prime Minister John Key says.
