Literature Review: What can we learn from the Childcare and Early Education Literature?

Samantha McMahon is a final year Social Work student who has completed her studies at Deakin University and had the unusual final fieldwork experience of being in the office of the Federal Member for Bendigo, Lisa Chesters MP, where she was able to observe political processes at work, visit Canberra and conduct a research study to inform the Australian Labor Party's interest in early childhood care and education. Lisa Chesters MP is the co-chair of the Parliamentary Friendship of Early Childhood and the secretary of the ALP Social Policy Caucus committee. The following is a review of the literature based on the research Samantha conducted. This demonstrates that we have quite a long way to go in Australia if we are to gain the benefits other countries have had from their early childhood service system.