Today most of the don't want to live in joint families, and in most cases both are working couple. The kid is left at home with made or servant. Now while staying at home with servants or mad the kid will not learn anything good, because the mad or servant will not bother to teach right thing to kid. So it is better for such parents to send their kids to play schools at the age of 2 or above years, atleast the kid will learn something from teachers and other students.

The Student to Teacher ratio in Play Schools is usually less when compared to normal schools. It means, Kids in a Play School, get more attention and care. Additionally, education in Play Schools is much more fun and interactive than in normal Schools

Ideally, the right age to start schooling is age 7 because it is at that age the muscles of a child's wrist are properly developed to wield a pencil and use it in a right manner. Until then, the child absorbs and learns things, languages, ways of communication etc. from his or her surroundings, siblings, family, parents etc. Nowadays, people send their kids to school as soon as they turn 2 or a few months after because they are in a hurry to get back to their own works and/or because the grandparents are not available to look after them. It is true that a child learns quickly when he or she is kids of her own age, but sending the child off to school at such a young age also creates problems. Chief of which is the child either becomes too shy and introvert because of the separation anxiety or they turn this anxiety in aggression. Normal mental development is hindered. Although children quickly recover and get on with it, some part of their mental makeup never recovers. At least, it is my observation.

@ Kalyani. I fully agree with you. The right age for schooling is 7 and that is what is followed in major countries of Europe and many other countries. Waldrof schools and schools following Krishnamurthy's philosophy still do that. Even our old Gurukul system did that. The body and mind is ready for learning after the internal organs have well developed and that the development of internal organ is manifested by change of teeth. Now a days children lose their tooth much before 7 owing to the pressure that the young brain suffers. The energy that Nature stores for the development of internal organs is deviated and directed to the development of intellect ( with over stimulation). Sending them early to school has become a norm and it is beneficial for the parents. The benefits that we see in children are actually  short termed and not good in long terms and that has been proved by psychologists.

The formal schooling begins at between 5 and a half and six years very much like here in almost all the European countries except Finland. They also have play schools where fun activities and skill development takes place for children above three years . Normally these play schools run just for two hours and twice a week to prepare children , more a weaning process..

usha manohar wrote:

The formal schooling begins at between 5 and a half and six years very much like here in almost all the European countries except Finland. They also have play schools where fun activities and skill development takes place for children above three years . Normally these play schools run just for two hours and twice a week to prepare children , more a weaning process..

True Usha, but the kind of play schools that are established now are more business like and commercial. I have seen it when I sent my son to a play school. True that there are many fun activities, games etc. involved but in the later term of the school, the children are made to start writing standing, lines, sleeping lines etc. draw circles, made to colour various forms within lines and made to learn a number of nursery rhymes and stuff which I feel is not fair for a 3 year old. The kids quickly learn those things by heart but can we call that real learning which is achieved through constant hammering and sometimes even punishments?

Kalyani, many of the play schools now follow the Montessori system of education which is interactive technology with NAEYC guidelines that lays stress on visual learning.. children have the ability to do their best during the first four years after birth which is a proven fact .. if the schools adopt the right methods a child benefits greatly during those most formative years!

usha manohar wrote:

Kalyani, many of the play schools now follow the Montessori system of education which is interactive technology with NAEYC guidelines that lays stress on visual learning.. children have the ability to do their best during the first four years after birth which is a proven fact .. if the schools adopt the right methods a child benefits greatly during those most formative years!

I agree with you Usha, a child's learning development is at its best until 5 years of age, but the kind of education and learning that playschools provide is not really in keeping with the guidelines. The education at that age should be focused on language, social development and cognitive learning skills but here they are made to write which is quite difficult as the required muscles are still undeveloped and focus is on learning only specific poems and rhymes rather than on language as a whole.

If we look at the life span of humans and compare it to other animals, we find that humans have the longest childhood. According to most of the school of thoughts of Psychologists it is 0 to 21 years, when one becomes adult. Many would say it is 18 years. But that makes it one fourth of the total life span. Nature never does anything without any use. This long childhood has a message that learning need not be rushed. First 7 years are called formative years because the seed of emotions and intellect is sown by nature and needs a nurturing environment. It is also formative years because the rhythms of body - strengthening of internal organ system, sleep-wake rhythm, food habit  and bowel rhythms have to establish , a preparation for learning ahead in life.

That is not true Kalyani, children have the ability to pick up language skills at two simultaneously learning 2or 3 languages at the same time. It happened with my own children because they had to learn tulu, kannada and English while hey were toddlers ..also the more their brain cells are used the less wastage because a new born has trillions of cells which gets repleted to a few millions by the time they are adults mainly because of dis use during early years  .. more importantly a child knows it's limits and will not exert more than it can . Also , children spend just 2 or 3 hours,at play schools which is just right for social interaction and some early learning process. Most of their cognitive skills and values get taught at home . So home atmosphere is far more important .