The government will try to provide a place for every child in NI whose parents want them to attend pre-school education, Angela Smith has said.
The education minister also said the admission age for children attending pre-school education would go up from two to three years and two months.
The announcement followed research published on Tuesday which highlighted the benefits of pre-school education.
It was conducted by Stranmillis and Birkbeck teaching colleges.
"It is so clear cut the advantages that pre-school brings to children and it stays with them," the minister said.
"Their development is probably five months ahead throughout their primary school career."
The research by the Belfast and London colleges tracked 800 children from Northern Ireland at the age of three.
Training
It showed children who went to any form of pre-school education were up to five months ahead of those who had not.
The seven-year study cost more than £500,000 to complete.
It found that the quality of provision given to children attending pre-school education also varied, with the biggest factor being the amount of training given to staff.
The study also ascertained that staff involved in pre-school education in Northern Ireland were better trained than their counterparts in England.
It found that playgroups in Northern Ireland had higher standards than those in similar research in England.
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