The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) measures the development of children in Australia in their first year of full-time school.

Research led by CCCH Associate Director Professor Sharon Goldfeld looked at the association between children’s preschool attendance and their level of vulnerability on all AEDC domains: physical health and wellbeing, social competence, language and cognitive skills, emotional maturity and communication skills and general knowledge.

The findings, published in Early Childhood Research Quarterly, showed that children who attended one preschool program in the year before school were less likely to be developmentally vulnerable on the AEDC domains, suggesting that preschool programs such as kindergarten promote children’s healthy development and protect against learning vulnerabilities.

More information

• Read the Herald Sun article – Children who attend preschool more socially and emotionally mature, study finds – 19 November 2016
• Read the full paper in Early Childhood Research Quarterly (subscription required)
• Visit the AEDC website