3a - Abecedarian Approach Australia

3a is a set of evidence-based teaching and learning strategies for early childhood educators and parents to use with children from birth to five. Research has shown that 3a delivers enhanced educational outcomes by enriching and enhancing educator practice – both before and after a child starts school.

The approach consists of only four elements

3a is a set of evidence-based teaching and learning strategies for early childhood educators and parents to use with children from birth to five. The Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne is at the forefront of 3a strategy Australia-wide and offers specialist 3a training.

News and events

The Abecedarian Approach is one of the few evidence-based, proven programs that integrates basic principles of human learning and development into a fun, affordable, and effective approach to early childhood education.

The Abecedarian Approach was first implemented in a landmark study conducted in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with 111 children born into extremely disadvantaged life circumstances.The Abecedarian Project

The Abecedarian Project

The project was led by Craig Ramey and Joseph Sparling and centred on an intervention that involved intensive learning and social-emotional supports – starting in infancy and continuing until at least kindergarten entry – for children and their families.

The project sought to determine whether the provision of theory-based, active learning experiences could produce significant benefits in language and learning for children from highly impoverished, multi-risk families (who were known to be at risk for poor school achievement).

The intervention goals were:

to support families, and
to improve children’s early development and their school achievement.

The broad program included playful interactions, enriched care, and stable relationships among children and adults. Rich language interactions were individualised, frequent and intentional throughout the day, and took place through all the common events of living and caregiving. The intention was to have a broad-spectrum educational approach, because much of the day for children under two years of age included eating, dressing, exploration, play, and dynamic interactions with adults. The Approach emphasised the role of young children as active learners and the value of response-contingent feedback from the environment, and was devised into four key elements:

Language Priority - Download (PDF 2.2MB)
LearningGames® - Download (PDF 2.6 MB)
Conversational Reading - Download (PDF 2.8 MB)
Enriched Caregiving - Download (PDF 1.9)

Since the original study, the Abecedarian Approach has been used successfully in playgroups, long day care, family day care and kindergarten programs and parent support programs.

Language as the core of early learning

The Abecedarian Approach places a priority on children’s language acquisition, because language is a proven core of early learning and school readiness. Language allows children to organise their thoughts and explain their ideas; it gives them the means to express their feelings; and it gives them the tools they need to interact with peers and adults. Language also allows the child to use private speech, talking aloud to themselves to work through a problem or regulate their emotions. As a child gets older they internalise this speech so that it is no longer out loud but still a means of guiding their behaviour.

Abecedarian Approach Australia – 3a

The focus of the 3a approach is providing specific evidence-based techniques that advance the personal, social and academic achievements of very young children who, through local circumstances, may require additional attention and support to ensure success as they grow and learn.

The Abecedarian Approach Australia –3a – was developed after an international literature review of the findings of model early childhood programs and approaches, including the Abecedarian studies, and selected as the approach most relevant to supporting very young children living in disadvantaged circumstances, including poverty and social marginalisation.

Because it is vitally important to understand local context when seeking to implement any model program successfully, the core components of the Abecedarian Approach were reviewed and customised through sequential projects and activities that explored and adjusted content details to suit local conditions.

For example, the LearningGames® were redeveloped in consultation with Aboriginal communities through an adaptation and trialling process led by the Northern Territory Department of Education in collaboration with Professor Sparling and the Faculty of Education. The redeveloped games were published for use within remote and regional Aboriginal communities by Northern Territory Department , and are available under licence to early educators working with Aboriginal families.

Each of the elements of 3a has been aligned with contemporary Australian Early Childhood policy, including The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) and the National Quality Standard (NQS ).

3a is now used in a range of metropolitan, urban, regional and remote settings in different parts of Australia, including playgroups, long day care settings and kindergarten programs.

Abecedarian Education Foundation

Find out more about the Global Abecedarian Education Foundation.

The Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne is at the forefront of 3a strategy Australia-wide and offers specialist 3a training.

Preschool results

Cognitive and social–emotional outcomes

The Abecedarian Project research measured many aspects of children's growth and development at frequent intervals in their first 5 years. The assessments included cognitive and social–emotional outcomes for children and potential benefits for mothers.

For the first 12 months on four separate measurement occasions the Abecedarian treatment group and control group performed similarly and essentially at the national average.
After 12 months the control group's scores declined quickly. At 24 months, the control children were performing at the low end of the normal range – at an average Developmental Quotient of 85 on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development.
For the remaining preschool years (ages two through four), the Abecedarian treatment group scored an average of 10–15 points higher than the control group on three different types of developmental assessments.

Children's IQ

For the control group, 93% were in the normal range at age six months, but this dropped to 45% by four years – clearly consistent with the hypothesis of a cumulative toll due to lack of cognitive, language and social–emotional learning opportunities.
For the early educational treatment group, 95–100% scored within the normal range at all the ages tested. This pattern of consistent and large differences between the groups supports the hypothesis that high-quality early education can prevent cognitive delays or below normal intelligence in children from families experiencing significant disadvantage in everyday life.

Benefits for mothers

During the preschool years, the teenage mothers of children in the treatment group were significantly more likely to continue their own education. The teenage mothers continued their own educational advancement throughout their children's school years.
By the time their children were 15, 80% of mothers of children in the treatment group had some post-high-school education, compared with only 30% of the teenage mothers of children in the control group.

School-age results

The long-term outcomes from the Abecedarian Project are equally informative. The children in the preschool treatment group continued to receive benefits from their participation in the early childhood program – lasting throughout their school years and into early adulthood. During the school years, and in comparison with the control group, the children who participated in the Abecedarian preschool intervention had:

significantly higher achievement scores in reading and maths at ages eight, 12, 15 and, even later, at 21 years.
a lower rate of grade retention (i.e., failing at least one grade) that was almost half the rate for the control group
a lower rate of placement in special education by age 15 – only 12% of the treatment group versus 48% of the control group were placed in remediation or intervention programs.

Early adulthood results

The Abecedarian Project provided the rare opportunity to be able to follow more than 95% of the children living into adulthood. At age 21, the children who participated in the preschool intervention still showed signs of benefit from their participation, compared to the control group, specifically:

of the treatment group 67% were engaged in a skilled job or were enrolled in higher education, in contrast with only 41% of the control group.
young adults who had received the Abecedarian early education treatment reported fewer symptoms of depression at age 21
participants who received the centre-based treatment were 3.92 times more likely to report a healthy lifestyle in young adulthood compared to participants from the control groups
the use of illegal substances (e.g. marijuana within the past 30 days) was significantly lower for the treatment group compared to the control group.

At age 30, those in the Abecedarian Project preschool treatment group continued to show benefits from their participation in the early childhood program when compared to those in the control group. The key findings at age 30 are as follows:

Abecedarian participants had significantly more years of education by age 30 (13.46 years) than individuals in the control group (12.31 years).
Almost four times as many individuals in the treatment group (23%) compared to the control group (6%) had graduated from a four-year university degree.
As adults, Abecedarian participants were significantly less likely to develop hypertension and be affected by obesity.

Training options

The Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne is at the forefront of 3a strategy Australia-wide and offers three levels of 3a training delivered by FoE specialists. We can also customise 3a training for organisation-wide delivery.

What is the 3a Professional Learning Program?

The 3a Practitioner Professional Learning Program (PLP) is the 3-day training program that introduces participants to 3a.
It was developed by the Faculty of Education to help build and maintain the quality of interactions that occur between adults and children in your organisation.
This program is designed to support early childhood professionals who work with children from birth to five in implementing evidence-based teaching strategies from the Abecedarian Approach Australia (3a).
What are the different 3a training programs?

3a Practitioners… is a three day program and gives participants the skills to implement 3a strategies to support their early childhood setting. Participants become certified 3a Practitioners.
3a Affiliate Trainers… are able to lead practitioner level training within their organisation to build and maintain the quality of 3a at an organisational-level. This is a one day program and participants need to have completed a 3a Practitioner program.
3a Coaches… are well equipped to coach and mentor early childhood professionals in the implementation of 3a within your organisation. This is a one day program and participants need to have completed a 3a Practitioner program.
How often do you run public 3a training programs?

The Faculty runs public 3a training programs every 8 to 12 weeks in Melbourne. Upcoming programs are listed on 3a Training. If you’re interested in other dates or locations, please let us know.
What happens before training?

You will receive an email inviting you to set up your user account on 3a member website. This will give you access to the 3a Practitioner materials you will need to participate in training.
Click on the link in the email to set up your password and complete your details.
What do I need to do to achieve certification? What does certification get me?
- You need to attend the 3a Professional Learning Program for your certification
- Successfully complete the knowledge test for your PLP within 14 days of training. The knowledge test assesses your understanding of the training and you need to achieve a score of 80% or more to pass it. You can sit the test up to three times.
- Pay your 12 month certification fee to the University of Melbourne.
When you complete these requirements, you will become a certified 3a Practitioner, 3a Affiliate Trainer or 3a Coach for 12 months.
This gives you full access to resources available on the secure 3a member website, which will support you in implementing 3a in your setting.
You will also receive a certificate from the University indicating your certification status and validity period.
Do I have to complete the Practitioner training before I can do the Coach and/or Affiliate Trainer professional learning program?

Yes. All participants are required to complete the equivalent of the 3 day Practitioner PLP before participating in the Coach and/or the Affiliate Trainer Professional Learning Programs.
What happens if I don’t pass the knowledge test?

If you don’t successfully complete the test after three attempts, you must pay the certification fee again then wait for two weeks before resitting the test. During this time, we encourage you to review the training materials.
What happens when my certification expires?

All 3a Practitioners, Affiliate Trainers and Coaches maintain their certification for 12 months from the date of certification. A month before your certification expires, we will contact you by email and/or through their 3a website dashboard to begin the recertification process.

I’ve used some of the LearningGames before but haven’t attended the training. Can I become a certified 3a Practitioner?

No. In order to be a certified 3a Practitioner you must have completed the equivalent of the 3 day Practitioner Professional Learning Program and completed the requirements for certification which includes passing a knowledge test and agreeing to the Terms & Conditions.
How do I access the resources on the website?

Once you have registered, a week before your 3a Professional Learning Program you will receive an email to your nominated email address with details of how to complete your website account setup and log in to the 3a website.
I’ve changed my email address (or other details) – what do I do?

You can update your details yourself - including your email address. Log in to the 3a member website using your old email address and password. Then, click on “Update details”.
I’ve forgotten my password to the 3a member website – what do I do?

You can reset your password yourself. Click on the “Forgot password?” link on the login screen and a reset link will be sent to your email address.
Where do I get the LearningGames®?

The LearningGames® books are not included in the materials you receive during participation in the 3a Practitioner, 3a Coach or 3a Affiliate Trainer Professional Learning Programs. The University of Melbourne does not own the publishing rights to the LearningGames® and are not distributors. In early 2019 we were advised that the distributors of the LearningGames® in Australia have ceased production due to the end of their agreements with Professor Joe Sparling. Professor Sparling is working with other Australian distributors, but there will be a delay in the LearningGames® being available. Participants in our Professional Learning Programs will receive a selection of LearningGames® following participation in the Professional Learning Program as an interim action until the LearningGames® books become available again.

3a Training Overview

The Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne offers specialist 3a training for both individuals and Organisations.

Download brochure (PDF 1.7MB)

On brain early stimulation

Professor Craig Ramey

3a Family Booklets

3a Family Booklets are aimed at parents, carers and families and provide an easy to understand introduction to using 3a strategies.

Additional resources

Articles

Building and Sustaining a Culture of learning
Preschool Matters Magazine, Term 1 2016
Nicole Pilsworth, Jane Page and Collette Tayler, from the University of Melbourne explain the Victorian Advancing Early Learning Study which is proving to have positive impacts on educator practice, educational leadership and learning outcomes for children.
Building learning relationships with children
By Collette Tayler, Early Learning Review, June 2015
"The Victorian Advancing Early Learning (VAEL) Study is developing and testing a professional learning model focused on improving the quality of educator-child interactions in order to improve young children’s learning outcomes in their first four years of life."
The Victorian Advancing Early Learning (VAEL) Study
By Jane Page and Collette Tayler, Belonging Early Years Journal, Volume 4 Number 2, 2015, p37
The study is conducted by researchers from the Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne in partnership with Moonee Valley City Council, Hume City Council and Mission Australia. The research team – Professor Collette Tayler, Dr Jane Page, Nicole Pilsworth, Catherine MacBean and Isabel Brookes – is developing and testing a professional learning model specifically focused on improving the quality of educator–child interactions.
Links

E4Kids: Effective Early Educational Experiences, or E4Kids, is the most extensive longitudinal study ever conducted into the impact and effectiveness of early childhood education and care in Australia.
Joseph Sparling's Abecedarian Approach: Article from The Sydney Morning Herald, May 2, 2014, about 3a in the NT.
Learning in the early years: Article from The Age, Jan 13, 2014, about 3a in WA.
A Working Document on the Abecedarian Educational Program and its Probable Relationships to Child Outcome Behaviors: Sparling, J, 2011, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity: A Global Working Group, Chicago.

Members

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3a Community enquiries

For enquiries relating to the 3a dashboard, member access, certification or group, bulk or on-site training please email us at: 3a-info@unimelb.edu.au

3a - Abecedarian Approach Australia

The approach consists of only four elements

Language Priority

LearningGames®

Conversational Reading

Enriched Caregiving