Early Childhood Education And Care Practitioners Research Articles

Acts of bridging in communication with newly arrived Ukrainian children in the Norwegian ECEC context

In this paper, we explore emergent communicative practices in a situation where a group of newly arrived children start attending early childhood education and care (ECEC) in a new country. The data are collected in a unique multilingual ECEC setting, organised temporarily for Ukrainian children that had arrived in Norway. Previous research on newly arrived children in ECEC settings in the Nordic context focuses mostly on how one or a few children are integrated into majority-language-speaking groups of children. Our study, however, provides an opportunity to explore communication practices that arise when a group of children share a language with some of the practitioners working with them, but not others. In this paper, we present an analysis of several narratives from practice, where we discuss how children and practitioners use their semiotic resources to accomplish their goals in communicative acts. The narratives show how the ECEC practitioners support children in their communicative efforts and bridge linguistic resources between languages. Inspired by the theory of bridging and bonding social capital (Putnam, 2000), we give a definition to acts of bridging and show that these acts of bridging can be performed by both children and practitioners with different language competences.

A Delphi Study to identify strategies to mitigate the adverse impact of COVID-19 on children under the age of five in Wales

The COVID-19 global pandemic has caused widespread impact on education across all settings and contexts, including early childhood education and care (ECEC). In Wales, it is estimated that roughly three-quarters of children under the age of five (c.155,000 children) were impacted by the closure of ECEC settings. While literature is still emerging on the long-term impact of the pandemic on children under five, little research has explored the potential strategies to mitigate these adverse impacts. This research project used the Delphi method to investigate what experts and ECEC practitioners believe are the most effective strategies to mitigate the adverse impact of the pandemic on children under five, using Wales as a national-level case study. Between May and September 2021, three consecutive surveys were distributed to study participants, who were identified as ECEC experts (n=39). Furthermore, alongside the traditional Delphi study a one-off anonymous online survey was also sent to the wider ECEC practitioner community in Wales (n=378). The dominant theme within the strategies suggested by the study participants was the importance of high-quality play experiences. The importance of universal provision and quality support for practitioners and families was also highlighted. These themes were dominant in both expert and practitioner groups, despite consensus not being found between them. This paper presents and critically explores these identified themes, providing the foundation for replication and portability of this work and its outcomes to ECEC settings in other nations and jurisdictions.

Im/migrant parents’ voices as enabling professional learning communities in early childhood education and care

ABSTRACT The existing body of knowledge on the global experiences of im/migrant parents within early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings reveals a broad spectrum of concerns, which encompass various aspects of institutional education and care, as well as the parents’ own patterns of engagement in this realm. Navigating through the multitudinous and increasingly diverse array of parental perspectives, which are often marked by conflicting opinions, poses a significant challenge for ECEC practitioners. Against this background, this article draws on a collection of im/migrant and refugee parents’ experiences in the ECEC settings of the very different socio-cultural contexts of Tanzania and Norway. It explores how these voices can serve as sources of inspiration for the development of professional learning communities (PLC) among ECEC professionals. Furthermore, this article examines how professionals can manoeuvre through the impossibilities of satisfying every parent and instead create arenas for constructive dialogue (and disagreement).

Feasibility and initial psychometric properties of the observe, reflect, improve children’s learning tool (ORICL) for early childhood services: A tool for building capacity in infant and toddler educators

Child observation is a critical component of quality pedagogy in early childhood education and care (ECEC). The ORICL (Observe, Reflect, Improve Children’s Learning) tool was co-designed by ECEC researchers, policymakers, leaders, and practitioners to support this work. Educators rate the experiences of individual children, and responses of educators and peers on 118 items across five domains. In this study of the utility of ORICL, the tool was used by 21 educators across 12 ECEC services for a total of 66 children. Descriptive statistical analyses were used to determine how educators used the full range of the ORICL rating scale, and the psychometric properties of the tool were explored. Findings suggest that the ORICL items can be readily observed and rated by educators for children aged under 3 years, the rating scale is appropriate, and there is early evidence to support the domain structure of the tool.

Improving quality of teaching and child development: A randomised controlled trial of the leadership for learning intervention in preschools.

Substantial research indicates that high quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) confers a wide range of benefits for children, yet quality in ECEC remains inconsistent. Given the variability in training and qualifications, one strategy for improving ECEC quality is in-service professional development (PD). The current study evaluated an evidence-based in-service PD programme, Leadership for Learning, via a cluster randomised controlled trial involving 83 ECEC services and 1,346 children in their final year of pre-school. Results indicated significant improvements in teaching quality across treatment centres and child development outcomes in language, numeracy and social-emotional development. This study provides strong support for making evidence-informed PD routinely available for ECEC practitioners.

More than words – how second language learners initiate and respond during shared picture book reading interactions

ABSTRACT Initiating conversations and responding to initiations of others via gestural and verbal means are prerequisites for participating in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) interactions. However, research to date has not addressed the multimodal initiations and responses of young second language learners (SLLs) in natural ECEC settings. This study investigated their initiations and responses during shared picture book reading interactions with ECEC practitioners with a focus on modalities, strategies, as well as the multimodal meanings and types of utterances. Participants were 30 SLLs in German ECEC institutions. Results showed that SLLs responded to the initiations of the practitioners predominantly verbally and initiated interactions mostly multimodally. Furthermore, the children produced more combinations of multi-word utterances and gestures in their initiations than in their responses. These findings complement the body of work demonstrating the varied communicative skills young SLLs use in their interactions as well as by underlining the importance of gestural cues in everyday ECEC interactions.

Implementing active play standards: a qualitative study with licensed childcare providers in British Columbia, Canada.

With an increasing number of children attending regular early childhood education and care (ECEC), this setting presents an opportunity to develop physical activity habits and movement skills of children. These behaviours play an important role in the development and well-being of children. In 2017, an Active Play Standard was introduced in British Columbia, Canada, to mandate practices related to physical activity, screen time and movement skill development in licensed ECEC. A capacity-building initiative including training and online resources was released alongside these guidelines to support implementation. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine the barriers and facilitators ECEC practitioners faced in implementing the standard, and to explore the role of the capacity-building initiative. Data were collected via semi-structured telephone interviews with educators (n = 23). Data were coded using thematic analysis and sorted into three major themes influencing provision of physical activity opportunities: attributes and impact of the Active Play standard and capacity-building workshop, characteristics of providers and characteristics of ECEC settings. Future studies should consider targeting factors including organizational culture and climate, and provider capacity to provide physical activity and fundamental movement skill programming, and support for facility level policies and collaborative planning processes that create a positive physical activity culture.

Constructing a Socially Sustainable Culture of Participation for Caring and Inclusive ECEC

The aim of this research was to explore a socially sustainable culture of participation in which all members of the community can be heard, make initiatives, express their opinions, and alter their practices. We conducted the study by analysing three separate sets of empirical research data in which participation was investigated in an early childhood education and care (ECEC) context and in club activities for children aged 4–12 and the elderly. The data include children’s perspectives regarding participation, ECEC practitioners’ perspectives on a culture of participation, and children’s and ECEC practitioners’ shared project-based practices. The results show that children and ECEC practitioners were willing to commit to new practices and construct a collective ‘we-narrative’. A we-narrative created a foundation for the conceptual model of a socially sustainable culture of participation, including the prerequisites of participation in adult practices, the goal of participation in children’s and adults’ shared activities, and a tool for strengthening participation. According to the results, a socially sustainable culture of participation is holistic and dynamic, and children can have an effect on daily activities, including basic care situations, as well as part of the educational activities.

Autonomous and responsible? Parental rationalities for their involvement in ECEC in the Czech Republic

ABSTRACT This article examines different rationalities for parental involvement in their children’s early childhood education and care (ECEC). Starting from Foucault’s governmentality and the context of the transforming and diversifying Czech preschool system, it analyzes parents’ rationalities for their involvement in ECEC and discusses how they relate to the neoliberal ideal of the responsible autonomous family. Analyzing data from interviews with parents in six ECEC facilities with different characteristics, it identifies five rationalities for parental involvement and shows how the neoliberal processes of responsibilization and autonomization play a central role in the (de)legitimization of these parental rationalities. Reflecting on how the rationalities of parental involvement gain or lose legitimacy in relation to dominant norms and ideals helps ECEC students and practitioners to understand how social inequalities are potentially exacerbated through the promotion/expectation of certain forms of parental involvement in parent – ECEC facility relationships.

Indigenous caregivers and indigeneity in Bogota: between two worlds

ABSTRACT Recently, the government of Bogota (Colombia) has focused on improving Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services in a way that considers diversity. The national policy and the political project for Bogota recognise ECEC services based on a positive discrimination approach. Among them there is an indigenous ECEC service, known as House of indigenous Knowledge (HIK), staffed by Indigenous professionals. Based on ethnographic research in three HIKs this article aims to study the legitimacy of indigenous caregivers (ICs) as early childhood professionals (ECP). Using the political sociological approach of Boltanski and Thévenot On Justification, the paper aims to analyse the professionalism of ICs in terms of competing ‘regimes of actions’. It shows the importance of ICs’ implicit cultural knowledge compared to the ‘western’ ECEC practitioners’ expertise. It sheds light on what IC practice ought to be: rooted in Indigenous traditions, while at the same time, acknowledging a ‘western’ vision of ECEC professionals’ practices.

A socio-constructivist approach to developing a professional learning intervention for early childhood education and care practitioners in Wales

ABSTRACT In 16 Flying Start early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings within a Local Authority in Wales, observations of adult-child interactions, using the Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Wellbeing Scale (SSTEW), highlighted that interactions that support children’s problem solving, curiosity, concept development, and higher-order thinking were the least well developed aspects of practice. A two-day professional learning intervention ‘Talking Science’, underpinned by a socio-cultural understanding of science learning in ECEC was designed. The intervention was delivered via a collaborative, socio constructive model of delivery en masse to all 64 practitioners in the 16 Flying Start settings. This qualitative mixed method research project adopted an interpretivist paradigm; the aim was to better understand ECEC practitioners’ perceptions of science and how these perceptions both shaped provision and supported children’s concept development in their settings. Data collection took the form of scribed notes from group discussions, feedback from practitioners during discussions and evaluation feedback about ‘Talking Science’. The experiential professional learning programme with a focus on science in everyday practice appeared to be supportive of practitioners’ developing confidence and subsequent engagement with science provision for young children. ‘Talking Science’ also provides a model which may have wider implications when designing ECEC professional learning.

Lessons Learned from Norway on Risky Play in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC)

Risky play is defined as thrilling and challenging forms of play that have the potential for physical injury and has been linked to developmental and health benefits for children in the early years. Currently, in Western contexts, children’s opportunities for risky play is decreasing. Social factors such as practitioner and parental attitudes and beliefs have been found to impact children’s opportunities to engage in risky play. In risky play research and literature, Norway is regarded as a less risk-adverse Western country. Therefore, this research aimed to understand the impact of social factors on children’s affordances for risky play in a Norwegian Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) context. Research was conducted at a Norwegian ECEC institution and participants included 28 children, aged 3 to 4 years, and 4 ECEC practitioners and 5 parents. The study employed participant observation field notes and semi-structured interviews with parents and practitioners. This research identified themes in social factors that may contribute to children’s affordances in risky play in ECEC, including assumptions about childhood, parents and practitioner attitudes, and pedagogical practices.

Language-aware operational culture

This study examines how practitioners of minority-medium Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in Finland reflect on language awareness (LA) in their professional learning communities (PLCs). The study is conducted within in-service training for ECEC practitioners and it also highlights how these practitioner reflections can be of use and support developing future in-service training within the action research framework. The data include nine group discussions on a reflection task, with 41 primary participants and 165 secondary participants from each primary participant’s respective PLC. As a starting point, the researcher-trainers identified six language-policy themes on LA in national policy documents. These were presented for practitioners, who then discussed them both in their respective PLCs and within the in-service training. The in-service discussions were audio-recorded and transcribed for qualitative-content analysis. During the analysis, the focus was on the dynamics of minority-majority positions, with the following themes emerging: i) Language contacts; ii) bilingual children and multi-layered identity; and iii) developing multilingual pedagogies. The results showed that the same insights often were treated both as strengths and weaknesses, and that a need exists for support so that practitioners can implement language-aware educational policy into their operational cultures.

Encouraging intercultural attitudes and practices in contemporary ECEC services. Insights from A research conducted in Italy, Spain, and Hungary

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the results of a European survey that was part of a European funded project, entitled ‘Multicultural Early Childhood Education’, carried out between 2017 and 2018, in three countries: Italy, Spain, and Hungary. The goal was to explore the intercultural training needs of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) professionals, to support them to meet the needs of different children and families, with a focus on the ones with immigrant, refugee, and Roma background. It was an exploratory study about the cultural background of ECEC educators, through an analysis of their competences and training needs, with an attention to the issues of multiculturalism and interculturality. The research was focused on the ‘good practices’ promoted within the educational contexts of partner institutions. The survey was carried out through a semi-structured questionnaire, delivered to a sample of 477 practitioners and pedagogical coordinators/coaches working in ECEC services of Tuscany, Barcelona, and Budapest, collecting 260 completed questionnaires. Analysis of the data collected shows the importance of strengthening the relationship between ECEC services and immigrant families to promote the inclusion of children and their families. The analysis also shows that training and support are needed for ECEC practitioners to improve their practice in this field.

Barriers for Outdoor Play in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Institutions: Perception of Risk in Children’s Play among European Parents and ECEC Practitioners

ABSTRACTRisk aversive perceptions and practices among ECEC practitioners and parents have proven to be an important reason for the decline of young children’s opportunities for free outdoor play. Yet, there are also cultural differences in the perception of children’s risky play. This study aims at examining the factors that ECEC practitioners and parents experience as barriers for children’s outdoor play, especially those associated with risk. ECEC practitioners and parents in five different European countries (Greece, Portugal, Estonia, Croatia and Norway) received questionnaires about their perception of children’s outdoor play. The sample consists of 32 ECEC practitioners and 184 parents. Results show that parents and ECEC practitioners from Norway are less risk aversive to children’s play than those from the southern European countries. Traffic is a barrier for outdoor play among parents from all countries (above 50%), and stranger danger is particularly noticed in parents from Greece (80.6%) and Portugal (62.9%), whereas in Norway this value is only 13.3%. The mean average age from which parents allow their children to play outside is quite different between the participating countries, ranging from 5.8 years in Norway to 11.8 years in Greece. In total, fear of children getting injured and adults’ own concern/anxiety are only mentioned as barriers by 9.4% and 3.1% of ECEC practitioners, respectively. Lack of play spaces (74.3%) and poor play facilities (80%) are also considered obstacles to letting children play outside by Greek parents, whereas Portuguese ones emphasized media alerts (61.3%). Our results suggest a differentiated approach between countries to tackle the reported barriers to children’s outdoor risky play.

A gendered contribution to play? Perceptions of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) practitioners in England on how their gender influences their approaches to play

ABSTRACT There is a persistent suggestion that the lack of men who choose to work with young children (0–5 years) is detrimental to children’s learning and development. This study analysed whether practitioners believed that men who work with young children adopt specific approaches within a play pedagogy. Practitioner beliefs about how their gender influences their practices were gathered through qualitative surveys and open-ended, photo-based interviews. This paper argues that practitioners use conflicting scripts to discuss their gendered approaches to play; it proposes that opportunities to explore gender critically, through gender sensitivity training, are vital for ECEC practitioners to ensure that a high-quality workforce is developed that can be flexible in its practices and pedagogy.

Why nurturing curiosity is an ethical endeavour: exploring practitioners’ reflections on the importance of curiosity

ABSTRACTSeveral authors have argued that early childhood education and care (ECEC) is essentially an ethical practice based on certain values and conceptions about the purpose of education. Is this also the case for educational practices surrounding the highly valued notion of curiosity? While psychological approaches portray it as neutral, this article aims to explore curiosity's normative connotations. To do so, an ethnographically informed approach and video-stimulated recall focus-group interviews have been used to gather Norwegian ECEC practitioners' reflections on the importance of curiosity. The reflections have been analysed using the concept of ethical rationalities and can be grouped into four approaches to valuing curiosity: the relational approach, the virtue approach, the consequentialist approach and the essentialist approach. The analysis suggests that different practices for nurturing curiosity are constrained and others are enabled, depending on the preferred ethical rationality. To prevent the nurturing of curiosity from being based on an assumed and restricted range of theoretical and ethical perspectives, it is necessary to invite practitioners’ reflections on values associated with curiosity.SHORT ABSTRACTWhile psychological approaches portray it as neutral, this article aims to explore curiosity's normative connotations in the daily practices of ECEC. To do so, an ethnographically informed approach and video-stimulated recall focus-group interviews have been used to gather practitioners' reflections on the importance of nurturing curiosity. These have been analysed using the concept of ethical rationalities and can be grouped into four approaches to valuing curiosity: the relational approach, the virtue approach, the consequentialist approach and the essentialist approach. To prevent the nurturing of curiosity from being based on a restricted range of theoretical and ethical perspectives, it is necessary to invite reflection on its value.

Parent-practitioner partnerships in early childhood provision in England, Hungary and Kazakhstan: similarities and differences in discourses

ABSTRACTWhilst international policymakers have reached consensus on the importance of investing in early childhood development and increasingly monitor that investment using standardized measurement, the nature and rationale of early childhood education and care (ECEC) provision remain diverse. In the context of that disparity, this article explores an aspect of ECEC provision that is commonly recognized for its potential to enhance young children’s development and learning, yet for which characteristics remain variable: partnerships between ECEC practitioners and parents. The article reports and discusses results from a cross-cultural narrative study that investigated the nature of such partnerships in three different countries: England, Hungary and Kazakhstan. During focus group interviews, ECEC academics (n = 16) discussed five themes that emerged from literature reviews. Findings indicate more differences than similarities between the countries’ narratives concerning ECEC parent-practitioner partnerships, suggesting such partnerships may be an aspect of ECEC provision for which a homogeneous approach and quality measure across countries are not feasible.

Gender matters: male and female ECEC practitioners’ perceptions and practices regarding children's rough-and-tumble play (R&T)

ABSTRACTThe aim of this study was to explore Norwegian early childhood education and care (ECEC) practitioners’ perceptions and practices regarding children's indoor and outdoor rough-and-tumble play (R&T) from a gender perspective. A questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used together in a mixed method design to provide quantitative data of patterns among a larger group of ECEC practitioners, as well as to gather greater in-depth insights on ECEC practitioners’ attitudes, thoughts and actions concerning children's R&T. The results of the study showed that ECEC practitioners acknowledged both positive and negative sides of R&T; that they allowed this kind of play significantly more in outdoor environments than indoors, and that R&T often produced uncertainty and a need for control by the practitioners. The most surprising result from the questionnaire was the lack of gender differences in allowing children's R&T in ECEC. However, the interviews revealed that although a basic difference in attitudes between male and female practitioners originally existed, female practitioners changed their attitudes and practices towards R&T as a result of gaining more knowledge and experience of this play through their male colleagues. In addition, a high consciousness of trying to adopt common understandings, rules and practices regarding R&T also contributed to a change of attitudes.

Pre-school practitioners, child poverty and social justice

Purpose – Several ideas exist about social justice and how inequalities can be tackled to help families and children in poverty. The Coalition government released the UK’s first Child Poverty Strategy in 2011. Pervaded by neoliberal ideology, the strategy mentions “empowering” pre-school services and practitioners within the childcare market “to do more for the most disadvantaged” (Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Department for Education (DfE) 2011, p. 35). The purpose of this paper is to bring to light how Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) practitioners across England have engaged with policy discussions and adopted expectations concerning their place in addressing child poverty. Design/methodology/approach – Using a phenomenological qualitative research design the paper draws upon 30 interviews with pre-school practitioners in three geographic areas of England. All interviewees worked with families and children in poverty and were senior ECEC practitioners within their pre-school settings. Findings – Many interviewees shared the Coalition’s construction of child poverty as a problem of “troubled” parenting. These views pervaded their interaction with parents and intersected with the regulatory influence of “policy technologies” to influence their practice within a context of austerity cuts. This limited practitioners’ poverty sensitivity and their promotion of social justice. Therefore this paper concludes by critiquing the contribution which ECEC practitioners can make to addressing child poverty. Practical implications – The findings suggest there may be a need for poverty proofing toolkits in the pre-school sector. Originality/value – This paper provides a rare insight into how pre-school practitioners have engaged with, adopted and adapted assumptions about their role within policy discussion over child poverty and the promotion of social justice.