A group of teachers is calling for the Ministry of Education to implement early childhood education standards to improve the quality of teaching and learning.

The recommendation was submitted to the Ministry of Education along with three others by five educators who participated in the Voluntary Visitor Exchange Programme sponsored by the US Consul General.

Jennifer DeRosa-Holder, Sherri-Lee Bucci, K. Marion Dyer, Shelley Knight and Carmelita Smith were members of the team who participated in an eleven-day trip where they visited schools in Washington DC, Florida, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

The team looked at early childhood education programmes in action.

When they returned to Bermuda, they listed four recommendations that were submitted to the Ministry of Education:

— To implement early childhood education standards to provide accountability and to improve the quality of teaching and learning.

— To have Rutgers University conduct an evaluation of early childhood education in Bermuda and to help with continuous improvement based on early education research.

— To partnership with the Edmund J. Hmielesk Early Childhood Center, Perth Amboy, NJ, regarding the Creative Curriculum.

— To collect supporting data regarding teaching a second language in preschools.

Team Leader Mrs. DeRosa Holder said in a statement: "The team visited head start and early childhood centres, the Capitol Hill Cluster School, elementary schools, preschools, Montessori and Charter schools and a Waldorf school, to observe and obtain information on their early childhood programmes.

"We had guided tours of centres with infant/toddler groups, preschools with multi-aged bilingual classes of three and four-year-olds or three to five-year-olds, and in addition toured a school-within-a-school designed around the Reggio Emilia model, a programme, which uses art as an approach to learning."

She added: "Our overall experience in this exchange has helped us to reflect on best practice and focus on a framework for delivering high quality educational experiences to young children throughout the Bermuda Public School System. We thank you the US Consul General for the opportunity to engage in these activities which provided us with an enriching and fortifying experience."

US Consul General Grace Shelton said: "The Consulate is delighted to be able to offer Bermudians the opportunity to participate in the exchange program sponsored by the State Department. We have received very enthusiastic reports from the returning visitors, and Washington has likewise had very positive feedback about the professionalism and enthusiasm of the Bermudian visitors.

"The Consulate will continue to invest in this exchange programme during my tenure as Consul General, with the possibility that next year's programme focus will be on gangs."

The programme began in 2005 and was created to give Bermudians the chance to meet with their professional counterparts in the US.