Scott Rozelle Visits CDRF and Delivers a Lecture on Child Development
On 5 September 2023, Scott Rozelle, Professor and member of Asia-Pacific Research Center at Stanford University, visited the China Development Research Foundation (CDRF) and gave a lecture on child development, entitled "Common Prosperity Begins at 0-3: Perspectives and Evidence from the World and Rural China".
The lecture was joined by Zhao Yingxue, program Leader of the 1000 Day Initiative, and Qian Yiwei, Associate Professor of the Research Institute of Economics and Management at Southwestern University of Finance and Economics. Fang Jin, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of CDRF, and Cai Jianhua, Senior Advisor of Child Development Research Institute at CDRF, attended the lecture. The lecture was hosted by Du Zhixin, Deputy Director of the Child Development Research Institute, and attended by Assistant Directors Cao Yan and Shi Lijia, and relevant program staff.
Rozelle elaborated on the close relationship between early childhood development and common prosperity. He pointed out that from a global perspective, a well-educated labor force is the key to lifting a country's economy from middle-income to high-income levels. In China, rural children are a disadvantaged group in need of attention. Investing in early childhood development and improving education for rural children not only has high returns, but is also an important step towards narrowing the gap between urban and rural areas and achieving common prosperity.
Rozelle explained that a child's early cognitive abilities can have a profound impact on his or her later development, such as academic performance, health, marital status, and crime rates. And a child's early educational investment is related to factors such as a family's educational background and economic status. For example, mothers with a high level of education are more inclined to buy books and toys for their children and invest in their education from an early age. Moreover, common prosperity is not only an economic concern but also a social concern. The Gini Coefficient can serve as an important reference. High-income countries such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Sweden and other countries with lower Gini coefficients are very different from the United States in terms of social equity, where the Gini coefficient is much higher.
According to Rozelle, China has made significant progress in child nutrition. His ongoing research indicates that, 10 years after implementing the nutrition improvement plan, China's child anaemia rate has decreased to 5%, a figure lower than that of the United States. However, he also points out that an assessment of more than 19,000 rural infants in 10 provinces shows that more than 40 per cent are still at risk of lagging behind in language, cognitive, social-emotional and other areas of development. This is mainly due to the lack of interactive parenting behaviors in families, rather than purely nutritional or genetic issues. This indicates rural families' lack of awareness of the importance of early childhood education, and the lack of scientific parenting methods and tools to create a nurturing environment that stimulates the development of children.
European countries such as Norway, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany have adopted early childhood education and maternity support. They have established minimum standards on maternity leave and childcare allowances, supporting parents focus more on their children's early care and education. In contrast, the United States still faces many challenges in early childhood education, such as underinvestment and regional disparities. The United States and some South American countries have similarities with China in terms of early childhood education, and their successes and lessons are worth reviewing.
Rozelle concluded by making recommendations for advancing early childhood development. He argued that the public sector should act quickly to implement parent training programs in rural areas to ensure that all rural children can grow up in a nurturing environment. In recent years, digital technology has rapidly evolved globally, providing new avenues for early childhood education for rural children. He recommended the exploration of using apps for remote parent training and education. This model can break through time and space constraints and extend to remote areas. However, its implementation might encounter challenges when used by primary caregivers. China has made many achievements in promoting early childhood education in rural areas, but the amount and efficiency of the funding can be further increased. He suggested that a variety of models should be piloted according to local conditions to find the most appropriate service model for different regions. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the services are effectively implemented by improving the quality of the programs and strengthening the training of caretakers and home visitors.
At the end of the lecture, Fang Jin summarized the event. Fang Jin expressed his gratitude for Rozelle’s visit, mentioning how he has integrated early childhood development with Chinese reality,which in turn has a significant impact on the public and the government. Fang Jin also shared the foundation's priorities and goals, especially the in-depth study of intervention mechanisms. He looked forward to further cooperation between the two sides in jointly promoting early childhood development.
