The quality of inclusion in Danish preschools

Abstract

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to investigate quality in Danish preschools and to establish whether disadvantaged children benefit from preschool attendance in an inclusive perspective? The conceptual framework of the research project rests on bio-eco-systems theory [Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006. The Bioecological model of human development. Damon & Lerner (Eds.). Theoretical models of human development. Volume one of the handbook of child psychology (pp. 793–828). New York: Wiley. In: Siraj-Blatchford I & Mayo A (eds). (2012). Early childhood education. London: Sage Library of Educational Thought and Practice. (Vol. 1, pp. 201–262)]. In total, this theory includes quality of orientation, structure, process (measured with the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale, third edition [ECERS-3, Harms et al., 2015. Early childhood environment rating scale, Third Edition (ECERS-3). New York, NY: Teachers College Press] and family and network – with a specific focus on disadvantaged children. Quality aspects were analysed by exploring four dimensions of pedagogical quality, as proposed by Swedish researcher Sonja Sheridan [Sheridan, 2007. Dimensions of pedagogical quality in preschool. International Journal of Early Years Education, 15(2), 197–217; 2009. Discerning pedagogical quality in preschool. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 53(3), 245–261. London: Routledge]. In this article, the concept of quality represented in the ECERS-3, is compared with the Danish curriculum and discussed from an inclusive perspective based on the inclusion matrix.