People hold differing opinions on the appropriate age for children to begin school. While some advocate for an early start, others believe that it is better to wait until a child is older. Both stances are reasonable, but I believe that a decision should be tailored to the child’s physical, emotional and cognitive readiness rather than implementing a fixed age.
On the one hand, proponents of starting school earlier argue that it provides with a head start for children in their academic journey. Early exposure to academic life will teach children basic skills such as arithmetic, painting, literacy at a very young age. This can also teach children to foster discipline and prepare for the higher education in the future. Furthermore, children who start school at an early age have the advantage of finishing university in their early 20s. For example, if a child is to attend school at the age of 4, with additional 15-16 years of elementary, primary and tertiary education they are expected to graduate as early as possible. This, in turn, will provide the opportunity to work and explore and be competitive in the job market unlike those who start doing so after they turn 24-25.
On the other hand, delaying formal education allows children to mature physically, emotionally and cognitively before entering the academic system. Young children may face struggles of different sorts including short attention span and underdeveloped motor skills. For example, a 5-year-old might find it difficult to understand complex mathematical concepts such as multiplication and division, whereas a 7-year-old wouldn’t find it as tiring as the one who is younger. Thus, waiting for children to grow up before introducing them to school might appear to be logical as it would ensure that they will not need to face aforementioned issues.
In my opinion, enforcing a universal law regarding children’s age is not appropriate and should be made on an individual level, through looking at a child’s developmental stage. Parents and early year childhood instructors must assess whether or not one is ready to attend school. Factors such emotional resilience, cognitive ability and social skills must be carefully considered to ensure seamless transition of a child to school. With that being said, this approach would minimize the risks related to a toddler’s prematurity and maximizes the chances of thriving academically.
To sum up, while both perspectives have their advantages, a flexible and child-centric approach is the most effective,.