In Celebration of Infant/Toddler Teachers

by Charlotte Madison, Executive Director, Child Development Laboratories
University of Connecticut – School of Family Studies

Teachers of infants and toddlers have struggled for professional status. Even among early childhood teachers, those teachers working with the youngest of our population have often been considered the least important. This image is rapidly changing. Over the past five years reports chronicling research on the brain point to the first three years of a child's life as being the most critical window of opportunity for learning.

New technologies such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET scan) have allowed scientists to observe the brain in great detail and accurately record and measure activity levels of various parts of the brain. These scientific investigations have expanded our understanding of brain chemistry and the effects of environmental factors on the brain. At birth, a baby's brain contains all the nerve cells it will ever have but the pattern of wiring between them has not been stabilized. We now know that sensory experiences drive neural activity which changes the physical structure of the brain. If a baby is deprived of a stimulating environment, the child's brain suffers. Research has found that children who have limited play experience or are rarely touched develop brains 20% to 30% smaller than normal for their age. This knowledge has changed some of our fundamental assumptions about how children grow and develop. The nature vs. nurture argument is no longer relevant. We now know that it is the interplay between nature and nurture that determines a child's development. This knowledge has profound implications for our current definition of education in this country. Up until recently little attention was given to infant/toddler programs. They were generally considered to be a form of baby-sitting and only minimal qualifications were considered necessary for those who worked in these programs. We now know that this was an incorrect assumption and that those who work in high-quality infant/toddler programs must be highly trained professional teachers. It is time to redefine education and to recognize that high-quality early care and education is a system of learning that affects child development and is essential for the healthy growth and development of our children.

Infant/toddler teachers have complex responsibilities. First and foremost they must have a solid understanding of what the developmental needs are for infants and toddlers. The child's emotional security and emerging independence and autonomy are dependent upon the teacher's knowledge of these important developmental issues. Infant/toddler teachers must be able to assess the child's development through focused observation and systematic documentation and use this knowledge to plan meaningful curriculum for the children in their care. Most importantly they must be able to develop sensitive, warm and responsive relationships with each child. They must be able to read the child's cues and respond appropriately. We now have the scientific proof for what parents and caregivers have long known. Babies thrive when they receive consistent, warm and responsive care. This care not only meets the child's need for nutrition, sleep and physical comfort but also provides for the child's emotional, social, physical and cognitive development. Infants and toddlers learn in the context of supportive relationships and they need to form secure attachments to those who care for them. Infant/toddler teachers can provide this secure attachment and provide the necessary stimulating environment for learning.

Developing trusting relationships with parents is another equally important infant/toddler teacher responsibility. Quality infant/toddler programs become extensions of the family. Parents and teachers form partnerships and work in tandem to support the child's growth and development. Infant/toddler teachers are important resources for parents and can help them to understand their child's growth and development. Infant/toddler teachers can also compensate and help children overcome deficits that may be in their home environment.

What we have learned from recent research on the brain is that quality early care and education programs for infants and toddlers is not a luxury or fringe benefit for working parents but is essential for the healthy growth and development of all children. This knowledge has profound implications for teachers of infants and toddlers. We can no longer afford to have these teachers be the least trained and the least valued. They must be the best trained and the most valued.

References

Meisels, S. J. & Fenichel, E. (Ed.). (1996). New Visions for the Developmental Assessment of Infants and Young Children. Washington, D.C: Zero to Three.

Nash, J.M. (1997). Fertile Minds. Time Magazine: 48-56.

Shore, R. (1997). Rethinking the Brain. New York, New York: Families and Work Institute.

Charlotte Madison, Ph.D. is a former Infant/Toddler Teacher