EdX

The Best Start in Life: Early Childhood Development for Sustainable Development (edX)

Offered by SDGAcademyX, SDG Academy,
The Best Start in Life: Early Childhood Development for Sustainable Development (edX)

Children are our future – so how do we give them the best beginning for a happy and healthy life? What does a successful early childhood care program look like? How has a child’s brain developed at the age of 3? How does nutrition impact the future well-being of a child into adulthood?

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Learn the answers to these questions and more in "The Best Start in Life: Early Childhood Development for Sustainable Development". With leading experts in the field – hailing from Harvard University, New York University and UNICEF, among other institutions – we’ll explore how neuroscience, sociology, anthropology and other studies have influenced our understanding of early childhood development.

This course is for:

  • Graduate students and advanced undergraduate students in international development, teaching, nursing and medicine, and other fields who are interested in the key concepts and practices in early childhood development
  • Teachers, healthcare professionals and other practitioners interested in the societal and biological factors impacting the children they support
  • Sustainable development practitioners who want to understand the lifecycle of needs and support necessary to help children globally, including those who work for international aid organizations and nonprofits in the realms of poverty, nutrition and education

What you'll learn

  • All about the brain: how neurological makeup affects children’s development
  • The intersection of childcare, education and other programming with policies at the national level and beyond
  • Case studies: how factors such as forced migration impact a child’s future

Syllabus

Module 1: Introduction
Early Childhood Development for Sustainable Development
The State of the World's Children
How Brain Architecture Develops
The Impact of Adversity & Toxic Stress
Resilience & How to Foster It

Module 2: Child Development: Prenatal to Age 3
Development in Culture & Context
Physical Development
Cognitive Development and Perception
Language Development
Social Development
Emotional Development & Temperament

Module 3: Child Development: Ages 3 to 8
Physical Development
Cognitive Development & Executive Function
Language
Socio-emotional Development

Module 4: Tour of ECD Programs and Sectors Part I
Introduction to Multi-sector Aspects
Health Programs
Nutrition & Parenting Programs

Module 5: Tour of ECD Programs and Sectors Part 2
Social Protection Programs
Early Care & Education Programs
Child Protection Programs

Module 6: Communities and Situations of Conflict and Migration
Uganda Case Study
Community Based Programs
Conflict & Migration

Module 7: From Programs to Policies
How is Policy Created?
Quality, Governance & Sustainability
Financing ECD Policies

Module 8: The Future: Innovations and Growth
Innovation in ECD
Innovation from Around the World
Conclusion: The Future of ECD

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Reconciliation Through Indigenous Education (edX) EdX
The University of British Columbia,UBCx

Reconciliation Through Indigenous Education (edX)

Education Teacher Professional Development

Advancing reconciliation in classrooms, organizations, and communities through the teaching and learning of Indigenous ways of knowing. This course will help you envision how Indigenous histories, perspectives, worldviews, and approaches to learning can be made part of the work we do in classrooms, organizations, communities, and our everyday experiences in ways that are thoughtful and respectful.

Sep 22nd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Education Learning Teaching
Details
Laudato si': On Care for Our Common Home (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

Laudato si': On Care for Our Common Home (edX)

Humanities Social Sciences

A mini-course on the urgent call to action: protect the earth and its inhabitants from ruin. What is “Laudato Si”? First presented by Pope Francis – spiritual leader to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics – to his faith-based cohort, it is a call to action addressed not only to Catholics, but to all people of the world. Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home raises the profile of the grave ecological crisis that humanity has created and issues a moral clarion call for urgent action to protect the earth and its inhabitants from ruin.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Ethics Sustainable Development Laudato Si
Details
The Korean Story: Secrets of an Economic Miracle (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

The Korean Story: Secrets of an Economic Miracle (edX)

Economics & Finance

What can the world learn from the Korean development story? The Korean Story discusses the socio-political and historical context that has shaped the economic growth of South Korea. It probes into how South Korea, post the Second World War, was able to transform its economy within three decades to emerge as a leading innovation and technology center in the 21st century.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Economic Development Korea Sustainable Development
Details
What Works in Education: Evidence-Based Education Policies (edX) EdX
Inter-American Development Bank - IDB,IDBx

What Works in Education: Evidence-Based Education Policies (edX)

Education

Learn what works in education and how to identify, analyze and implement evidence-based education policies that improve learning. This course summarizes the main theoretical and practical research surrounding evidence-based education policies and delves into the key improvements and challenges observed in education systems in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Education Learning Early Childhood
Details
Feeding a Hungry Planet: Agriculture, Nutrition and Sustainability (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

Feeding a Hungry Planet: Agriculture, Nutrition and Sustainability (edX)

Food & Nutrition Social Sciences

How do we create a healthy and sustainable diet for the growing world population? Agriculture is more than waving fields of wheat; our ability to grow food from existing natural resources – and without decimating those resources – is key to sustainably feeding the world. In this course, learn about food security worldwide, the effects of malnutrition, how we manage ecosystems that provide food resources and more.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Health Sustainability Nutrition
Details
Fired Up About Energy (edX) EdX
Smithsonian,SmithsonianX

Fired Up About Energy (edX)

Education

Fired Up About Energy – explores common student misconceptions related to the study of energy and suggests methods for effectively representing and discussing the topic in the classroom. This online workshop: “Fired up about Energy ” is based on ideas presented in Good Thinking! an original animated series developed by the Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC) and FableVision Studios as a professional development resource for K-12 science educators.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Education Energy Teaching
Details
Natural Resources for Sustainable Development (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

Natural Resources for Sustainable Development (edX)

Sci: Energy & Earth Sciences

Explore the sustainable development opportunities and challenges in using oil, gas and minerals. Natural resources represent a potentially transformational opportunity to support development but are ultimately finite How do we make the most of them without destroying the planet? In this 12-week course, produced by the Natural Resource Governance Institute, the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment and the World Bank, learn about efforts to sustainably manage extractive industry investments.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Natural Resources Sustainable Development Minerals
Details
Ethics in Action (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

Ethics in Action (edX)

Social Sciences

What do the world’s great religious and secular philosophies have to say about ethical conduct? Which virtues are common across faiths? And what role do religious communities have to play in building a more just and sustainable world? The challenges of sustainable development are more than technical or political—they are also moral, calling on us to examine who we are as human beings, and who we want to be going forward.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Ethics Poverty Peace
Details
AI in Practice: Preparing for AI (edX) EdX
Delft University of Technology,DelftX

AI in Practice: Preparing for AI (edX)

Robotics & Computer Vision

Learn to recognize and understand the implications of Artificial Intelligence for organizations, and the importance of compliance and ethics when AI is applied in practice. This course is not about difficult algorithms and complex programming; it is a course for anyone interested in learning about the benefits and implications of AI when applied in practical settings.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Education Artificial Intelligence Organization
Details
Conceptual Change: How New Ideas Take Root (edX) EdX
Smithsonian,SmithsonianX

Conceptual Change: How New Ideas Take Root (edX)

Education Science

Conceptual Change: How New Ideas Take Root — explores the ways students learn and develop new conceptual understandings, and shows how student misconceptions can be uncovered and addressed as a part of effective learning. This online workshop: Conceptual Change: How New Ideas Take Root? is based on ideas presented in Good Thinking! an original animated series developed by the Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC) and FableVision Studios as a professional development resource for K-12 science educators.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Science Education Learning
Details