Improving the Quality of Early Childhood Education and Care in Oman

Abstract

Children are seen as the future of Oman and the importance of early childhood education and care (ECEC) has been acknowledged by Omani policymakers and key stakeholders as a constituent of Vision 2040. However, the ECEC sector is mainly left to private entrepreneurs and standards either do not exist or are vague. Although parents are eager to have their children benefit from ECEC, many weak points are lowering the quality of ECEC in the country, such as the lack of a national policy framework for ECEC that governs the particularities of the sector in Oman, the limited access and equity in childcare and preschool education that result of the privatization of ECEC, the lack of training targeting teachers, caregivers, and staff working in ECEC services, and the lack of a bilingual national curriculum framework that governs the holistic development of the child. Hence, this chapter attempts to outline ways to improve the quality of ECEC in Oman, focusing on major domains. Implications are made and suggestions are proposed.