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“What place does early childhood occupy in the country’s educational and social priorities?”

Berta Vila-Saborit, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia; Francesca Davoli, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia, and Maira Gloria Olmos Martínez, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia

In a week marked in Catalonia by the teachers’ strike, much has been said about ratios and quality in primary and secondary education. However, education for ages 0–3 is a decisive stage, often under-regulated, which is also seeking its place in public debate.

A Popular Legislative Initiative (ILP), promoted by nursery schools, proposes creating a specific law to regulate the first cycle of early childhood education. The aim is to guarantee equity, universality, and appropriate educational conditions for both children and professionals at a key stage of human development.

A decisive stage often under-regulated

Research in neuroscience, developmental psychology, and economics agrees that the first years of life have a profound impact on cognitive, emotional, and social development. Despite this consensus, the first cycle of early childhood education continues to have uneven recognition within the current education system.

The State Collective Agreement still does not explicitly guarantee sufficient non-teaching hours within the working day for indirect pedagogical work, such as planning, educational documentation, team coordination, relationships with families, or ongoing training.

Specialized literature identifies these aspects—currently unregulated and dependent on management models or the voluntary efforts of professionals—as essential conditions for educational quality.

In the 0–3 cycle, there are no established supports for addressing diversity: no resources are specified, nor is support provided, even though the decree establishing the early childhood education curriculum (2023) states that all children must receive an inclusive, high-quality educational response.

The right to education from birth

Various international organizations have emphasized that access to quality education from early childhood is a fundamental right. Nobel Prize–winning economist James Heckman (2016) notes that investment in education helps reduce inequalities, improve educational trajectories, and promote greater future participation in the labor market. In this sense, education for ages 0–3 is not only a pedagogical issue, but also a strategic social and economic policy.

This reality is directly linked to the current debate on the quality of the 0–3 cycle and highlights the need for a specific political approach to this educational stage.

The Popular Legislative Initiative promoted in Catalonia emerges precisely in this context. It is a proposal aimed at overcoming the limitations of a fragmented and insufficient regulatory framework. Its goal is to guarantee structural conditions that make it possible to place the child at the center of educational action.

From this perspective, regulating ratios, recognizing non-teaching pedagogical time, specialized professional training, attention to diversity, and improving working conditions become key elements in building a quality education system from the earliest stages of life.

A legislative proposal emerging from everyday practice in centers

The current legislative proposal does not originate from institutions, but from early childhood education professionals. They are directly familiar with the everyday reality of educational centers. The movement has been developing through territorial networks of educators, management teams, and pedagogical organizations across Catalonia.

This debate is not exclusively local. At the European level, the EDUFIRST project, funded by the Erasmus+ program, proposes rethinking early childhood education and care services from a global and integrated perspective. Its main contribution is to understand the quality of 0–3 education as a global concept interconnected at three levels:

Public policies that must follow the guidelines of the European Child Guarantee (Child Guarantee), social rights, and the 2030 Agenda, while also incorporating issues such as climate justice and responsive community dimensions.

The institutional organization of services, with contextualized city and neighborhood policies. It is essential not only to respond to identified needs but also to anticipate social and educational particularities.

Everyday pedagogical practices, based on scientifically validated pedagogical and psychological criteria.

According to this approach, improving only one of these areas is insufficient. Legislative decisions shape how centers are organized and, ultimately, the educational experiences children have every day. When these levels are not aligned, educational quality is affected.

What we mean by quality in 0–3 education

Quality at this stage does not depend solely on pedagogical methodologies.

Ensuring stable, high-quality educational environments is determined by resources, policy organization, institutional frameworks, and also by the knowledge of qualified professionals who implement educational practice.

It also depends on having sufficient time available for pedagogical planning and evaluation. In this sense, legislation is essential to provide the necessary resources and guarantee professional training. Providing resources for inclusion, so that diversity is addressed equitably, is also key.

A long-term vision

Positioning the first cycle of early childhood education as the first stage of the education system implies making significant political decisions. Regulating ratios, promoting co-teaching, or ensuring educational provision accessible to all families requires investment and a long-term vision.

The parliamentary processing of this initiative, if it ultimately gains the necessary support, will open a space for dialogue among professionals, institutions, and civil society. In this context, the underlying question is clear: deciding what place early childhood occupies in the country’s educational and social priorities.

Anna Vila, director of the Ralet Ralet Nursery School in Santa Eugènia de Berga, collaborated in the preparation of this article.

Berta Vila-Saborit, Professor of Early Childhood Psychopedagogy (0–6 years). Montessori training, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia; Francesca Davoli, PhD Professor – Early Childhood Education – Pedagogy of Early Childhood, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia, and Maira Gloria Olmos Martínez, PhD in Education, professor at the University of Vic and director of the Municipal Nursery Schools of Vic, University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia

This article was originally published in The Conversation. Read the original.