For Parents
In 2012, the AEDI will be implemented nationally for the second time. The AEDI will take place from May to July 2012, with results expected in 2013.
The AEDI was first implemented nationally in 2009 when information was collected on 261,147 Australian children in their first year of full-time school. The AEDI measures five areas of early childhood development: physical health and wellbeing, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive skills (school-based), and communications skills and general knowledge.
In 2012, teachers will complete an AEDI Checklist for children in their class. Although information for the AEDI is collected by children's teachers, the results are reported for the communities where children live, not where they go to school.
The results for the AEDI are population results, which places the focus on all children in the community. Therefore the AEDI examines early childhood development across the whole community. Research shows that moving the focus of effort from the individual child to all children in the community can make a bigger difference in supporting efforts to create optimal early childhood development.
The 2009 results provided information that is being used to influence early childhood initiatives in communities. The 2012 AEDI and future cycles will enable us to build on the momentum and enhance the AEDI's capacity to contribute to better early childhood outcomes for Australian children.
The AEDI helps communities to see how children in their community are developing prior to reaching school and gain an understanding of the importance of the early years as a time for building lifelong emotional and learning capability.
