Learning and the learner are at the heart of lifelong learning,
itself a cyclical, episodic and continuous concept that involves both intended
and unanticipated episodes of learning of both informal and formal nature.
Basic education is a part of lifelong learning. The importance of valuing the
learners' experiences in order to create both the curriculum and opportunities
for learning is paramount: education for all as well as for all. Participation
in learning builds self-confidence, citizenship and autonomy.
Basic Education is the compulsory and free formal and informal
fundamental training or knowledge, skills and experiences that all children
under school going age needs to acquire, from preschool to Junior High School.
In other words, is the prerequisite to further education. The compulsory and
free nature of Basic Education comes in, when all rules and regulations are
well adhered to.
Throughout the world, the trend is towards the development of free
market economies and globalization; this is accompanied by an awareness of the
importance of education and training. For most of our countries, common
characteristics include declining demographic trends. This in turn increases
the importance of the quality of education, be it for children, youth or adults
of all ages, and the need for education throughout life.
The foundation of basic education begins at
birth. Early childhood education and care must be holistic and integrated to
ensure the survival, growth and development of young child. In particular, more
attention should be paid to young children under 3 years old, children in
difficult and emergent situations and in rural areas for their participation in
and access to quality early childhood programs.
The primary child caretakers are parents, and
the family and community environment plays an important role. In this regard,
an effort to link early childhood education and care with adult education
deserves attention. The learning that parents and grandparents do enhances the
learning that children do. In turn, the success or failure of learning at
school has an impact on how adults learn later on in their lives. The vision,
provision, policy and system of early childhood education and care can vary
across countries, but there is a growing consensus that some form of early
childhood programs focusing on the child's holistic development is essential to
favour the social, psychological, affective and cognitive development of the
young child.