Debe Lawson, immediate past chair of PAT, put a successful motion at thePAT gathering in Harrogate which insisted that early learningopportunities should prepare children for life, not just for school. Shewas later quoted in the press as supporting a reduction in the startingage for school to six or seven, in line with successful practice inScandinavian countries.
Ms Lawson told delegates, 'Teachers, nursery nurses and early yearsprofessionals are struggling to provide a play-based curriculum, due tothe pressures of performance tables and targets, where researchers haveobserved children being called away from free play to do adult-directedactivities. Is this only to maintain a healthy position in a leaguetable and not to advance the development and learning of the child?'
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