Our partners - Shell

 
 
Building better communities for children
 
  Shell Social Investment Manager Jenny Odgers, Ashdale Primary Principal Rick Firns and Minister for Family and Community Services Senator Kay Patterson with students from Ashdale Primary School.

For the past three years, Shell in Australia has supported the Australian Early Development Index (AEDI) project which measures the developmental progress and school-readiness of children within a community. 

In that time, more than 31,000 children from 54 communities across six States and territories have completed the AEDI.

Each participating site varies greatly in geographical size and the number of children involved, from single rural towns with small numbers of children to entire health services and local government regions.
 
An AEDI checklist is completed for each child in their first year of school and provides a snapshot of how children are doing in crucial areas of development such as physical health, language and communication, emotions, behaviour and social competence.
 
The results provide communities with information for planning and evaluation, help schools plan for the future and highlight variations in children’s development within the geographic areas in the community.
 
The community of Geelong, in which is located one of Shell’s two Australian refineries, completed the AEDI in 2005 and has since used the results to ensure programs are implemented in the greatest areas of need.

The ‘Let’s Read’ program to improve literacy, also supported by Shell, was implemented in some areas of the community, while the ‘Go For Your Life’ program, which aims to improve physical activity and nutrition, was implemented in others. 

 
For more information about the AEDI visit the project website at www.australianedi.org.au
 
From Under the Microscope, Issue 1 2007
Last updated 22 March 2007