The South African universal preschool year: a case study of policy development and implementation

Where you live matters: Township neighborhood factors important to resilience among south African children from birth to 5 years of age

OBJECTIVE

This is a secondary analysis examining neighborhood factors predicting high rates of child resilience in South African Township neighborhoods.

METHODS

A population cohort of South African pregnant women (98%; n = 1238), were recruited and assessed across five years with high follow-up rates (83-96%). Resilient children were identified based on consistently meeting global standards for growth, cognitive functioning, and behavior. Community infrastructure, maternal risks, and caretaking behaviors were examined based on neighborhood as predictors of childhood resilience.

RESULTS

The rate of resilient children varied significantly by neighborhood (9.5% to 27%). Mothers living in high prevalence neighborhoods (HPN) compared to low prevalence neighborhoods (LPN) were older and more likely be living with three or more people in formal housing with access to water and electricity. In the HPN, resilient children had more food security and were less likely to have mothers with depressed mood. Migration to rural areas occurred more frequently among resilient compared to non-resilient children in the HPN.

CONCLUSION

This study applies a novel measure of resilience that is multidimensional and longitudinally defined. Living in formal housing with consistent access to food was associated with resilience. Migration to rural areas among families living in HPN suggests that rural areas could be protective.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov registration #NCT00996528.

Readiness of SNAP-Ed Implementers to Incorporate Policy, Systems, and Environmental Approaches into Programming

OBJECTIVE

To identify the readiness of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) implementers to facilitate policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changes in conjunction with delivering direct nutrition education.

DESIGN

Qualitative study using semistructured interviews.

SETTING

A southeastern state.

PARTICIPANTS

Purposive sample of SNAP-Ed staff (n = 19) from state implementing agencies (n = 3) in 1 state.

PHENOMENON OF INTEREST

Readiness using the validated framework: readiness equals motivation coupled with general-capacities and innovation-specific capacities (R = MC²).

ANALYSIS

Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were analyzed using an iterative approach to the analysis via emergent coding and constant comparison.

RESULTS

Although a general sense of motivation is present among implementers to meet the new federal guidelines, nutrition education is still prioritized. General capacity for SNAP-Ed implementers, comprised communication, training, and funding and staffing, was limited. Innovation-specific capacities around the implementation of PSEs revealed limited knowledge, experience, and resources among most implementers.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Identifying the nuanced and interrelated aspects of motivation and capacity of SNAP-Ed implementers to incorporate PSEs into their direct education interventions could inform tailored strategies for increasing readiness, such as through training, reallocation of resources, or program restructuring.

Measuring Early Childhood Development Among 4-6 Year Olds: The Identification of Psychometrically Robust Items Across Diverse Contexts

The last 15 years have seen an explosion of measurement tools for assessing the development of young children in low- and middle- income countries. This paper builds on and contributes to that literature by identifying a core set of caregiver-report items and a core set of direct assessment items that measure key developmental domains for children aged 4–6 (48–83 months) and that demonstrate adequate psychometric properties across diverse contexts, the first in this age group to the authors' knowledge. Data were harmonized from previous early childhood measurement efforts in 12 countries that all used the same base measurement tool. Data analyses yielded 20 caregiver report items and 84 child direct assessment items (grouped into 16 tasks) that show strong item-level statistics across countries and that cover the domains of early literacy, early numeracy, executive functioning, and social-emotional competencies. Next steps include adding data and items from other measurement tools to the same analytical framework and field testing across a number of contexts and early childhood measurement efforts. The vision is for the resulting core sets of items, along with guidance on data collection, management, and analysis, to serve as global public goods so that they can (i) present a starting point for linking across different early childhood measurement tools for children aged 4–6; (ii) increase quality across measurement efforts; and (iii) facilitate the scale up of early childhood measurement. When supplemented with items that capture local contexts and their measurement needs, these core sets of items should help to advance understanding of universal and context-specific factors that underlie child development and thus help policymakers make decisions that ensure children receive the quality early childhood care and education they need in order to reach their full potential.