Early childhood diversity
Mildura
The experiences of pre-school children from the Pacific Islands and their families, who now live in Australia, will be examined in a study in the Mildura region.
The study is being conducted by the School of Rural Health and Sunraysia Community Health Services and will provide a snapshot of how experiences before starting school can affect a child’s development.
Fiona Tipping, Occupational Therapist at Sunraysia Community Health Services and Monash adjunct, said that there were significant gaps in early childhood development and by the time children started school it was hard to change their developmental pathway.
Mildura Rural City Council has a high proportion of children who are considered developmentally vulnerable. While not all those from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds are developmentally vulnerable, it is one of the risk factors.
A recent Mildura Rural City Council investigation found that the number of CALD children accessing funded kindergarten places in the year before starting school was extremely low and there are also low rates of utilisation of paediatric allied health services.
The Mildura region has a diverse population. The Pacific Island migrant community is one of the larger migrant groups in the region, with approximately 2000 Pacific Islanders from Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji and the Solomon Islands.
Dr Bernadette Ward from the School of Rural Health said early childhood was a critical time in development where experiences prepare children for transition to full time school, and establish lifelong learning pathways.
“We are interested in hearing from parents about what they feel is important for their family and child’s journey before they start primary school,” Dr Ward said. “This research will assist us to better understand the factors that influence people from rural Pacific Island migrant communities’ decisions in accessing services for their children.
“It will guide local services in the area of health and education and ensure early years services are appropriate and accessible for Pacific Island migrant children in the Mildura region.”
The researchers are calling on parents from Pacific Island migrant communities in the Mildura region, who have a 4-5 year old child due to start school in 2014, to participate in the study.
Those who want to participate in the study have been asked to contact Dr Ward on 03 5444 9064 / 0427 059 205 Bernadette.Ward@monash.edu or Fiona Tipping on +61 3 5022 5444 / 0437 844 503 ftipping@shcs.com.au