Free mobile phone apps could be a vital part of improving disadvantaged children's education, accordingto Damian Hinds.
The education secretaryrevealed this morning that hisdepartment is launching a competition to identify which mobile phone apps are the best at helping with children’s early education at home.
“If our phones and apps can help us bank, shop, diet, exercise and figure out where we are, why not also help us with helping our children to develop their communication and reading?” he said.
The announcement was part of a speech on social mobility in whichMr Hinds pledgedto by 2028halve the number of children who start school without the speaking or reading skills they need.
More than a quarter of four- and five-year-olds (28 per cent) lackthe early communication and literacy skills expected by the end of Reception year, according to new.
Mr Hinds, speaking to the Resolution Foundation thinktank, said that it was a"persistent scandalthat children started school struggling to communicate and speak in full sentences".
He said that there were already apps with "helpful tips and imaginative ideas" for helping with children’s early development.
'Making sure the disadvantaged don't miss out'
“But not all of these are widely known about and parents won’t know, of course, which are the best. That’s why the department will be launching a competition to identify high-quality apps with the aim of making these free and easily accessible, making sure that disadvantaged families don’t miss out,” Mr Hinds added.
As well as the apps competition, MrHinds today announced that schools may bid for a share of £30 million being put towards providing high-quality nursery places.
"We’ve previously committed £50 million to expand school-based nursery provision andas part of this todayI’m announcingwe’re launching a capital bidding round of £30 million to invite leading schools to come forward with projects to create new high-quality nursery places demonstrating innovative approaches to closing the gap for disadvantaged children," Mr Hindssaid.
He also said that money would be spent on training early years professionals.
"To ensureprovision ishigh-quality, we must make sure we invest in people as well as in buildings and that is why we are investing £20 million to train and develop early years professionals focusing on the most disadvantaged areas of the country so we have the expertise to support very young children in their early language and literacy skills,” the education secretary said.
It was early years minister Nadhim Zahawi who first revealedin a letter to the earlier this month that the government was tospend £20 million on boosting early years teaching in disadvantaged areas – rather than keeping to the original pledge in last year'sto carry out a study intohowto increase the number of graduates working in early years in disadvantaged areas.
The U-turn prompted anger from prominent academics and early years organisations, who said it would“deny thousands of disadvantaged children vital support”.
