CCL Home > Reports & Data > State of Learning in Canada
Report resources
If learning is a lifelong journey, then the first baby steps may be the most crucial.
A growing body of research tells us that children’s experiences and exposures in the first five years of life will have a lasting impact on their later success in school, the workplace and many other aspects of a long, healthy life.
For that reason, early childhood learning is a key focus of the Canadian Council on Learning. The opening chapter of our first State of Learning in Canada report is devoted to the issues affecting our youngest citizens, from their prenatal environment to school age.
The report surveys the research literature on early childhood learning and development, including factors that affect children’s health, learning, social development and care.
It concludes that while most Canadian children are born healthy and develop well, many are not so fortunate. In fact, one in four children enters Grade 1 with learning or behavioural problems that could affect future success in academics and life in general. Moreover, some children are significantly disadvantaged—inequities that must be addressed if Canada is to sustain its comfortable level of social well-being and economic prosperity.
There are more than 2 million children under the age of six in Canada. As our society ages, however, their proportion of the population is dropping, from 9% in 1975 to 6% in 2005.
At the same time, many aspects of early childhood development remain unknown and unexplored. Such knowledge gaps increase the risk that we might overlook emerging challenges, or lack the tools to address them.
Below is what we do know from research into six key indicators of learning among preschool children:
Birth weight—Babies who weigh less than 2.5 kg (5.5 lb.) at birth have higher risks of delayed learning and development. Six per cent of Canadian babies are born with low birth weights, a proportion that has remained constant for the past 25 years. The frequency of low birth weights in Canada is slightly below the OECD average. Physical development and movement—Nearly 90% of Canadian children aged four and five have average or above-average control of their large- and small-muscle movements. While the genders are similar in large-muscle strength, control and co-ordination, more boys (14%) than girls (9%) are delayed in the kinds of fine-muscle control needed to hold a pencil and turn pages. Cognitive development—Cognitive development involves mental processes such as thinking, reasoning and counting. Every child develops at a different pace, but cognitive development generally occurs in discrete stages. Most Canadian children are at an average or advanced level of cognitive development. However, 21% of four- and five-year-olds from low-income families showed delayed development on a test involving copying and understanding symbols such as letters and words, compared to 13% of other children. In a test of familiarity with numbers, 26% of kindergarten-aged children from low-income families showed delayed development, compared to 14% of other children. Language and communications—Most Canadian children assessed since 1994–1995 show average or advanced degrees of “receptive vocabulary”—the ability to understand spoken words. However, more than 25% of four- and five-year-olds from low-income families have delayed receptive vocabulary development, compared to 11% of other children. The National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth found that almost 90% of four- and five-year-olds had average or better communication skills. However, more boys (14%) than girls (8%) fell within the range considered delayed. The survey also discovered that a growing proportion of preschoolers are being read to daily by their parents or other adults (67% in 2002–2003, compared to 56% in 1994–1995). However, only 58% of young children in low-income families were read to regularly, compared to 69% of other children. Emotional and social development—Developing bonds of attachment to parents and other significant adults, controlling emotions and integrating with peer groups are all important parts of growing up. As toddlers, more boys (16%) than girls (13%) are highly aggressive physically. While girls are more likely to be indirectly aggressive (e.g. isolating, taking revenge), the overall proportion of preschool children displaying high degrees of indirect aggressiveness decreased from 11% in 1994–1995 to 7% in 2002–2003. Early childhood education and care—More than half (53%) of Canadian children aged six months to five years were in some kind of non-parental, child-care arrangement in 2002–2003. Of all Canadian children under the age of six, 43% took part in organized activities such as play groups, infant stimulation programs, and parent-and-child lessons. In 2004, Canada spent 0.25% of Gross Domestic Product on early childhood services, including child care, for children up to the age of six—the lowest of 14 OECD countries with comparable information. Scandinavian countries, by contrast, spent up to eight times as much in relation to their GDPs.
Birth weight—Babies who weigh less than 2.5 kg (5.5 lb.) at birth have higher risks of delayed learning and development. Six per cent of Canadian babies are born with low birth weights, a proportion that has remained constant for the past 25 years. The frequency of low birth weights in Canada is slightly below the OECD average.
Physical development and movement—Nearly 90% of Canadian children aged four and five have average or above-average control of their large- and small-muscle movements. While the genders are similar in large-muscle strength, control and co-ordination, more boys (14%) than girls (9%) are delayed in the kinds of fine-muscle control needed to hold a pencil and turn pages.
Cognitive development—Cognitive development involves mental processes such as thinking, reasoning and counting. Every child develops at a different pace, but cognitive development generally occurs in discrete stages.
Most Canadian children are at an average or advanced level of cognitive development. However, 21% of four- and five-year-olds from low-income families showed delayed development on a test involving copying and understanding symbols such as letters and words, compared to 13% of other children. In a test of familiarity with numbers, 26% of kindergarten-aged children from low-income families showed delayed development, compared to 14% of other children.
Language and communications—Most Canadian children assessed since 1994–1995 show average or advanced degrees of “receptive vocabulary”—the ability to understand spoken words. However, more than 25% of four- and five-year-olds from low-income families have delayed receptive vocabulary development, compared to 11% of other children.
The National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth found that almost 90% of four- and five-year-olds had average or better communication skills. However, more boys (14%) than girls (8%) fell within the range considered delayed.
The survey also discovered that a growing proportion of preschoolers are being read to daily by their parents or other adults (67% in 2002–2003, compared to 56% in 1994–1995). However, only 58% of young children in low-income families were read to regularly, compared to 69% of other children.
Emotional and social development—Developing bonds of attachment to parents and other significant adults, controlling emotions and integrating with peer groups are all important parts of growing up.
As toddlers, more boys (16%) than girls (13%) are highly aggressive physically. While girls are more likely to be indirectly aggressive (e.g. isolating, taking revenge), the overall proportion of preschool children displaying high degrees of indirect aggressiveness decreased from 11% in 1994–1995 to 7% in 2002–2003.
Early childhood education and care—More than half (53%) of Canadian children aged six months to five years were in some kind of non-parental, child-care arrangement in 2002–2003. Of all Canadian children under the age of six, 43% took part in organized activities such as play groups, infant stimulation programs, and parent-and-child lessons.
In 2004, Canada spent 0.25% of Gross Domestic Product on early childhood services, including child care, for children up to the age of six—the lowest of 14 OECD countries with comparable information. Scandinavian countries, by contrast, spent up to eight times as much in relation to their GDPs.
Although a great deal of information on early childhood learning is collected at the regional and provincial levels, it does not provide a complete, pan-Canadian picture. Nor do the data tell us everything we need to know, including how Canada compares to other countries.
To address these gaps, the Canadian Council on Learning’s Early Childhood Learning Knowledge Centre will expand efforts to monitor and report on the state of early learning in Canada.
For example, while many indicators of early learning are assessed just before school age, the knowledge centre, a consortium of organizations led by the Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development at the Université de Montréal, will promote the use of additional indicators of child development from before birth to the age of four. The centre will also explore the environment in which children are growing up, including the resources and services available to families.
In early 2007, CCL plans to publish the first in a series of detailed reports on early childhood learning. The Council intends to add early childhood development data to its Composite Learning Index.