Over 40 per cent of preschoolers' parents are noticing delay in language development in their children below five years of age, hampering their ability to communicate. This was revealed in a survey carried out by the Early Childhood Association (ECA) as it reviewed pandemic effects on toddlers after witnessing behavioral issues among children. ECA is a national body bringing together professionals working in the field of early childhood education. According to the survey findings, “Pandemic babies were learning to speak later than pre-pandemic babies and even simple actions like pointing at something or saying ‘bye-bye’ were not seen in pandemic babies. Parents were working round the clock during the pandemic due to which interaction with children suffered, leading to language development problems.” The survey included over 5,300 responses from parents and teachers. Explaining the language development delay, ECA president Swati Popat Vats said, “It is the ability to use language to communicate. For example, a child may draw a tree but will not be able to tell the teacher what it is. If the teacher asks a prompting question of whether it is a tree, he/she might respond in one-word of yes or just nod. This is true not only about communication in English but also in their mother tongue.” A lot of it is also due to online classes amid the pandemic, according to Vats. “Online pre-school meant a lot of talking was done by the teacher, unlike a traditional pre-school session where the children are prompted to speak,” she said, adding that several educators have also noticed reduced eye-contact among children. According to experts, language delays can frustrate children as they are unable to communicate their needs and find it frustrating to see the stress and anxiety on their parents' faces. “Language delays are tied up with emotional development and social development — because they are unable to work through their emotions using language, they are using their bodies to show their frustration. It translates into shrieks, shouting, kicking and throwing things,” states the report. The survey findings echoed the impact as it showed that over 40 per cent of surveyed parents are struggling with attention and behavioral issues. But there are other contributing factors to these issues such as decrease in sleep and reduced time of physical activity. Other survey findings show around 60 per cent of children get less than one hour of outdoor play or exercise every day. Whereas only 25 per cent children are getting their correct duration of sleep for 8-9 hours, indicating that many children are sleep deprived. Subsequent to the concerns revealed via the survey findings the ECA and its sister concern Association for Primary Education and Research (APER), both having a combined 48,000 educators as their members across India, have issued guidelines for teachers to make the process of recovery more effective.
