THE City Government of San Fernando held on March 25 at Heroes Hall the moving-up ceremonies for the completers of its Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) program for 2019.
This marked the children’s completion of the 10-month ECCD program of the city government, earning their Pre-Kinder 2 certificates. The program was implemented through the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO).
Aileen Villanueva, CSWD officer, said the children, aged four to five years old, will now move up to kindergarten, which marks the beginning of their “formative years” or “formal schooling” under the mandate of the Department of Education (DepEd).
“Our Pre-K2 completers will move up to Kinder. They are ready to begin their ‘formative years’ under DepEd, after completing our 10-month program,” said Villanueva.
Also, during the first leg of ceremonies, Pre-Kinder 2 completers were joined by the Pre-Kinder 1 completers, a set of children aged three to four years old, who will still undergo the ECCD program to earn their ticket on their way to Pre-K2.
The ECCD program, Villanueva explained, contains several domains of development for the children before entering kindergarten, including physical, socio-emotional, cognitive, and language, among others.
“With ECCD, we are preparing the skills of the children in preparation for learning in schools. They have various skills which we develop for their formative years to be successful,” she added.
Mayor Edwin “EdSa” Santiago, during his speech, said that the ECCD is his personal favorite part of educational life.
“In all chapters of educational life, ECCD is my favorite. This is the stage when you will feel the love and care from parents and child development workers. It is also the first step in learning until you finish your studies,” said Santiago.
The next moving-up rites for the ECCD program will be on March 27, April 2, 3, and 4, where some 3,000 completers are set to receive their Pre-K1 and Pre-K2 certificates of completion. (PR)