Research
ELRU’s™ research and advocacy team is involved in many areas.
We work with national advocacy initiatives such as the ACESS (Alliance for Children’s Entitlement to Social Security) Young Child Campaign and CATCH (Co-ordinating Action for Children and HIV and AIDS) to monitor delivery of children’s services and draw attention to gaps.
Backup information and submissions for advocacy and policy development most recently including:
- Submission on the Children’s Bill and subsequnntly regulations under the Children's Amendment Act No 41of 2007
- Promotion of the Family Based Approach
- Development of an integrated ECD approach at local level
- Submissions to SAQA, Department of Education on unit standards and curriculum
- Developing an ECD Heritage concept
- Investigating enabling factors and barriers to scaling up provision for children aged 0 – 4 years
- Monitoring of effectiveness of integrated ECD service delivery pilot projects
- Investigating the quality of ECD centre programmes
- Stimulating debates on key ECD issues via seminars and published papers
- Providing advice and consultancy on ECD and child issues
Research on
- Grade R to Grade 1 transition
- Models for delivery of training workplace based, distance, conventional
- Anti-bias and human rights work with young children
- Effective safety nets for vulnerable young children (click here)
- Effective use of learner support material
- Models for effective delivery of care & education to babies and young
children in vulnerable circumstances - Indicators for the monitoring of ECD services and young child well being
(click here) - Recognition of prior learning in the ECD sector
- Evaluations of multifaceted integrated ECD pilots including the
Enrichment Centre model piloted by the Western Cape Masibambane
Consortium (click here) - Building on local and indigenous knowledge in ECD programming.
- Information on international & local ECD issues via our specialist library
- Stimulating debates on key ECD issues via seminars and published papers
- Providing advice and consultancy on ECD and child issues
- Running courses on research and evaluation methods
- Publishing ChatElru, a resource magazine for teachers & trainers
Recent articles and papers available from ELRU™
- Biersteker, L. (2008) Strengthening the foundation – expansion of early
childhood development services. Cape Town: Institute for Justice and
Reconciliation. - Biersteker, L & Dawes, A (2008) Early childhood development. In A Kraak
& K. Press HRD Review 2008: Education, employment and skills. Cape
Town: HSRC Press. - Marfo, K., Biersteker, L., Sagnia, J and Kabiru, M.(2008) The challenge of
the under-threes in Africa. In M Garcia, A Pence, & J Evans (Eds.), Africa's
future, Africa's challenge: early childhood care and development in sub-
Saharan Africa. Washington DC: The World Bank. - Biersteker L. and Kvalsvig, J. (2007). Priority Indicators, Measures and
Data Sources for Monitoring Early Childhood Development Outcomes
and the Quality of ECD Services Provision in the Years Prior to School.
In A. Dawes, R. Bray, R. & A.P. van der Merwe (eds.), Monitoring child
rights and well-being: A South African approach. Cape Town: Human
Sciences Research Council
Please email Linda Biersteker for information.