Grow ECD’s curriculum is now free to all ECD centres in South Africa
ELOM results show Grow learners are ‘on track’ and ahead of national average
Grow ECD’s tried, tested and proven online curriculum is now available for FREE to any ECD centre in South Africa. This daily, practical curriculum covers two age groups: from 0–2-year-olds and from 2-5-year-olds. The recent 2024 Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) results shows that learners in preschools properly implementing the Grow ECD curriculum are achieving great results, with 70% of learners on track across the developmental domains and even higher scores on the Social-Emotional Rating Scale. The government has recently announced its goal of universal access to ECD by 2030. Rolling out the Grow ECD curriculum free of charge to all ECD centres is a step in reaching this much-anticipated target.
“We’re so excited to share the positive 2024 ELOM Dipstick Report results and be in a position to now offer the Grow Curriculum free of charge to all ECD centres in South Africa. It is our gift to the sector,” says Lisa Voortman, Head of Education at Grow ECD.
“Research has proven that early childhood education is the foundation of a child’s learning journey. Ensuring that children receive quality education in their formative years sets them up for success. The ELOM results show that preschools using the Grow curriculum are providing a quality education to their learners,” she says. Currently, 232 ECD centres across South Africa are using the curriculum, with over 11 300 learners benefiting from it every day.
Grow understands the challenges ECD teachers face
Grow ECD has been working with early learning centres for 15 years. “The work is rewarding but we see the challenges preschools face, particularly in under-resourced areas,” says Voortman. “Teachers are not appreciated and supported. Often they are unqualified and don’t know how, or don’t have the time, to plan and prepare for lessons. We also see that some teachers don’t know how to use educational resources adequately to support children’s developmental milestones. Teachers need a curriculum that is easy to understand and implement.
“We have seen that ECD centres struggle to integrate best practice play-based learning despite having qualified teachers because teachers of all levels need ongoing support, mentorship and guidance. Another issue we’ve found is that there is usually no stimulating programme for 0-2-year-old children,” says Voortman.
A curriculum for early learning teachers at every level
Grow ECD created the online curriculum and teacher's guide with these challenges in mind. This NCF-aligned and age-appropriate curriculum is an easy-to-use interactive daily lesson planner, available on your phone.
“The curriculum acts like a mentor in a teacher’s ear, showing and guiding her step-by-step to implement play-based education. It is not limited to a physical book so every teacher can access the planner at any time, on her phone and data-free,” she says. “We know a teacher’s day is incredibly busy and taking time to plan and prepare is crucial if you want your week to run smoothly. The curriculum supports her with that planning by showing her exactly what to do for every day of the week and every hour of the day.”
Data-free, multimedia content brings the daily curriculum to life
Grow has taken the book-based written curriculum, given it a serious upgrade and put it onto the phone with incredible features. Voortman explains, “The multimedia, locally-relevant content is engaging and inspiring with videos, voice notes, photos, songs, rhymes, printouts and tips for every day’s lessons. It provides an easy-to-use, step-by-step guide that teachers can use to plan every hour of every day, from morning ring to extension activities. It is data-free and available on any Android phone, tablet or laptop so teachers can plan their lessons at home.
“Much of what you find online is American and not appropriate for our learners and not aligned to the NCF. Curriculum books are limiting as they cannot be updated regularly so they become outdated. They also require teachers to read a lot of print, sometimes in their second language. The online curriculum is always up to date, it is colourful and exciting to look at,” says Voortman. The curriculum also complies with the Department of Basic Education’s registration requirements.
Grow ECD preschools are developmentally on track
The 2024 ELOM results prove that the Grow ECD Curriculum works. (ELOM is a dipstick and standardised assessment tool that determines whether children are developmentally on track for their age.) Grow ECD conducted an ELOM study across three provinces, evaluating 91 learners aged between 4 and 5 years. The results are inspiring, with 70% of children in Grow ECD centres being developmentally on track, compared to the national Thrive by Five Index, which reports that only 45.7% of children are on track.
Grow ECD-aligned schools also scored well on the Social-Emotional Rating Scale, which assesses emotional readiness for school and peer relationships. Results showed that 80% of Grow ECD learners met the standard for social relations, while 76% demonstrated emotional readiness for school – a testament to the holistic approach that Grow ECD centres provide.
Voortman says "Many teachers spend hours planning and preparing without being sure that the planning does not leave gaps in the children’s learning. These results prove that following the Grow ECD Curriculum is covering all the necessary bases and ensuring learners are on track for their age.”
Praise for the curriculum
Pamela Petersen in Ravensmead, Cape Town, is the owner of Sunset Educare Centre, where 124 learners benefit from the Grow curriculum. She says, “Now the teachers have a better understanding on how to implement the curriculum and use my classroom resources better. The children are so happy to come to the Educare Centre, because they learn every day something else and they are excited to learn through play!"
Education Alliance Finland (EAF) / EdTech Impact rates the Grow curriculum with a 93% score in pedagogical quality, making the Grow curriculum one of the top-rated early learning resources globally. EAF praise states: “well-designed stories and activities,” as well as the curriculum’s ability to engage children in thought-provoking lessons.
Get started today!
To get started, ECD centre owners must download the Grow Giraffe app on an android device. For assistance they can contact the Grow ECD helpdesk: WhatsApp/Call: +27827954693 or support@growecd.org.za.
For more information visit GrowECD.org.za
About Grow ECD
Grow ECD is a non-profit social enterprise within the Taking Care of Business (TCB) group, dedicated to transforming Early Childhood Development (ECD) in South Africa. We equip and connect ECD centre owners with the skills, support, and resources they need to provide 5-star early learning and build financially sustainable centres.
Our holistic model makes it possible for ECD businesses to become more sustainable while ensuring high-quality early education is accessible to every child.
Our services include:
- Free ECD management app – A powerful one-stop-shop to manage admin, finances, assessments, parent engagement, and teacher development and connect preschools with hundreds of downloadable business and education resources.
- Data-free online training – Professional and personal development courses for ECD owners, managers and teachers.
- Play-based, online curriculum – A daily, NCF-aligned, DBE-approved curriculum and teacher’s guide designed to help teachers of all levels provide quality education for 0-5-year-olds.
- ECD Business Accelerator – An intense six-part training programme that equips centre owners with a social-entrepreneur mindset and provides the essential skills to take their ECD centre to the next level.
- Small Business Programme – A comprehensive, step-by-step three-year programme to building a successful ECD Centre which includes practical training, mentorship, and resources to help ECD centres improve business sustainability and education quality.
