This is #7 in ARNEC’s series of webinars: Young children amidst COVID-19.

The ECD workforce matters, too: profiles, impacts, and support measures during and beyond the pandemic

In an effort to understand the situation of early childhood educators and childcare professionals, UNESCO Bangkok, UNICEF, ARNEC, ECWI and ISSA launched a regional survey on the impact of COVID-19 on ECE workforce between 20 April 2020 and 22 May 2020. The findings will be presented in this webinar.

In addition, some questions will be raised to trigger the exchange of ideas, insights, and practices between experts and participants during the webinar:

  • What is the role of the ECD/ECE workforce in fostering access to quality of early childhood education and childcare services?
  • What is the impact of COVID-19 on early childhood educators (pre-school teachers, childcare professionals and daycare workers) in government-supported and privately-run pre-schools and childcare centres in the region?
  • What interventions are necessary for the ECE workforce as pre-schools and ECD centres prepare to re-open and transition to blended learning approaches, including use of online platforms, among others?
  • What can we learn from institutions supporting the ECD workforce to address the impacts of COVID-19 on early childhood educators?

These questions will be answered by experts and practitioners, presenting the profiles, impacts, and support measures for the ECE/ECD Workforce in the Asia-Pacific region during and beyond the pandemic.

Panelists: Ms Maki Hayashikawa, Dr Chiam Heng Keng, Ms Samantha Page and Ms Tan Lee Jee.

Moderator: Ms Jessica Hampton, Education Advisor at ChildFund Australia and ARNEC Steering Committee Member, (Core Team Representative).

You can find out more about the panellists and their organizations here.