More than 30 per cent of B.C. kindergarten students don't have the skills they need when starting school – and many may never catch up, according to a provincial study released Tuesday.
The report, an annual inter-university project at the University of B.C. that compiled results from kindergarten teachers, found that 30.3 per cent of children were vulnerable, up from 28.5 per cent last year and 26 per cent in 2004.
The national average for the Early Development Index (EDI), where children arrived developmentally unprepared in terms of child development, is approximately 25 per cent.
While some districts reported rates of childhood vulnerability below 10 per cent, some soared well over 60, including South Fort George in downtown Prince George (62.8%) and Chilliwack North (61.8%).
The largest trends of increasing vulnerability occurred in Vancouver, the Comox Valley and Langley. The most positive trends occurred in Fort Nelson, West Vancouver and Revelstoke.
The highest rate in Metro Vancouver is in Strathcona, at 58.5 per cent. West and North Vancouver revealed the lowest vulnerability.
Dr. Clyde Hertzman, Director of UBC's Human Early Learning Partnership, told ctvbc.ca the level of inequality by neighbourhood is very large.
"Across the province, when you look by neighbourhood, about half of the variability in vulnerability is associated with the socio-economic status of the area, things like what the people make and the income of the families," he said.
But Hertzman said the kids who aren't prepared aren't necessarily from low-income families.
"The other half comes from level of services for children and the community support. These are things that aren't related to income like access to quality learning and care programs," he said.
"It doesn't have to be a rich place."
via www.ctvbc.ctv.ca
