BEIJING, Sept. 21 -- Research over the past two decades confirms that the period from birth to age 5 is critically important for a child's brain development.

Later experiences also can influence brain capacity, but in the early years particular types of activities are necessary for brain growth. A growing number of people now believe that early education is linked to success later on at school.

Many Western countries have paid attention to early education and mastered advanced teaching theories. For instance, the educational methods developed by Maria Montessori are well known in Italy and the United States. Project Head Start is designed to meet the needs of children in that age range from poor families.

In China, where competition in education is developing all the time, early education programmes have drawn parents' attention, meaning there is a huge market potential.

According to China's census in 2000, the number of infants and toddles aged 3 and under is about 70 million, of whom 10.9 million live in cities.

Statistics show that a Beijing family with a monthly income of 1,500 yuan (187.50 U.S. dollars) spends more than one third - about 532 yuan (66.50 dollars) - per month on the child. If the family's income is 5,000 yuan (625 dollars), the monthly expenditure on the child totals about 1,135 yuan (141 dollars).

Beijing, the first city to initiate early childhood education, has more than 100 such organizations and schools. But the market is not really supervised.

What's more, the market is short of professional teachers, and there is no specialized university course for educating children aged 3 and under.

The courses in pre-school education for children aged 3 to 6 are already relatively mature, but because of the difference between the two age ranges, it is fair to say that even graduates specializing in pre-school education are not qualified to carry out early education teaching.

(Source: China Daily)