Quality Early Childhood Research Articles

Ensuring access, equity and quality in early childhood education in Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar: Challenges for nations in a populous economic corridor

UN Sustainable Development Goal 4.2 specifies that countries need to ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary school education. This paper considers where Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar stand in terms SDG Target Indicator 4.2.2. National data sets were used to assess equitable access to early childhood education and policy documents were analysed to determine how countries address the quality dimension. Overall, findings indicate (i) large variations in access to early childhood education among Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar; (ii) variations in access based on family wealth; (iii) the need to enhance the quality of the data collected to measure access to early childhood education and monitor progress towards Sustainable Developmental Goal Target Indicator 4.2.2; (iv) a lack of attention to the measurement of the quality of early childhood education; and (iv) the need to address policy-implementation gaps in all four countries.

The influence of perception on the provision of early childhood education in the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana

An individual is born with millions of neurons and the quality of the experiences he/she will have at the early years can potentially determine the future life of that person. This makes quality early childhood education pivotal. However, the perception people have about this influence how they prepare themselves to provide that quality early childhood education for young children. Thus, this qualitative research purposively sampled 26 participants to elicit their views about the perception they have about the criticality of early years experiences and how the perception influenced how they were providing the early childhood education within the Kumasi metropolis of Ghana. Data in the form of interview were analysed thematically. The study found that experiences through the early childhood education are criticality serving as the foundation for future education. The study also found that developmentally appropriate infrastructure (such as tables and chairs sized to the height of learners, spacious and well-ventilated classroom), teachers who are specifically trained in early childhood education and child friendly pedagogy should be in place to ensure quality early childhood education and that how early childhood education was perceived greatly influenced how it was provided. The recommendations based on the findings are that, there should be more advocacy by teachers and headteachers on the criticality of early years experiences to ensure people’s sufficient appreciation for quality early childhood education for young children. Importantly, early childhood education should be completely detached from the primary and basic school to enable it receive the due attention and the needed provision. Individuals with the right perception should be engaged with the provision of ECE.

The conundrum of a global tool for early childhood development to monitor SDG indicator 4.2.1

The UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda, by contrast to the Millennium Development Goals, provides a global policy framework to address the quality of life of beneficiaries of the remarkable reduction in mortality in those younger than 5 years since the child survival revolution began in 1982.1 The SDGs explicitly commit all governments and the global health community to actions that will “ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education”.

Effects of Prekindergarten Curricula: Tools of the Mind as a Case Study.

Research demonstrates that children's participation in quality early childhood care and education often has immediate positive effects on their social‐emotional, self‐regulation, and achievement outcomes. Most of the research on the impacts of early child care and education has focused narrowly on the United States, but advocacy for economic and social investment in early childhood care and education to support future children's growth and well‐being now exists on an international scale.The longer‐term outcomes from prekindergarten programs have not been as strong. To improve children's long‐term outcomes, one suggested strategy is an intentional, scripted curriculum. Our goal in this monograph is to provide a fully integrated and comprehensive account of a large‐scale, longitudinal, field‐based randomized control trial of the Tools of the Mind (Internal consistency of the Tools) prekindergarten curriculum that occurred in the United States. Our intent is twofold. First, we examine the impact of the Tools curriculum itself, addressing both the potential impacts of the curriculum to improve prekindergarten quality and children's academic, executive function, self‐regulation, and social outcomes. Second, we consider the broader question of whether the use of intentional, scripted curricula during early education can, more generally, enhance both short‐ and long‐term outcomes in children.Developed from a Vygotskian framework, Tools focuses on equipping children with cognitive tools for learning that they can then apply to the task of acquiring and sustaining academic knowledge as well as behavioral competencies. Thus, Tools is an integrated, comprehensive curriculum, not a supplementary one. The Tools approach follows from a socio‐cultural perspective on child development that emphasizes children's acquisition of skills and cultural tools in collaboration with knowledgeable others.The methodology of the 4‐year longitudinal cluster randomized control trial is described in detail. We provide comprehensive information about recruitment, randomization of treatment condition, child assessment instrumentation and procedures, as well as observational assessments, including fidelity of implementation and teacher and child classroom behaviors.We provide results comparing 32 classrooms assigned to the Tools condition and 28 assigned to the business‐as‐usual control condition for children's academic, executive function, self‐regulation, and social gains from prekindergarten to the end of first grade. Developers of the curriculum specifically expected to see benefits on these measures. There were no positive effects for Tools on any of the outcomes.The lack of expected curriculum effects required careful consideration and raised more general questions about how curriculum experiences manifest themselves in assessed skills. As a first step to understanding the findings, we focused on teachers who were implementing Tools and examined the degree to which the curriculum was delivered as intended and the relations between fidelity of implementation and children's outcomes in prekindergarten. Results indicated a wide variation in observed fidelity of implementation but no consistent associations between fidelity of implementation and any child outcomes.In terms of more general practices and interactions associated with positive student outcomes, developers of the curriculum hypothesized that implementing Tools would enhance classroom practices and teacher–child interactions. Among the aspects they expected to be affected were the amount of non‐instructional behaviors, teacher‐led and child‐directed activities, teacher and child talk, social learning interactions, classroom emotional climate, quality of teacher instruction, and children's level of involvement. Teachers varied as much within treatment and control classrooms as they did between conditions on most of the aspects examined. We found no differences between experimental conditions on most practices and interactions.Curricula vary in scope and content, but they are universally intended to change classroom processes in ways that in turn will facilitate the development of targeted skills. For this mediational hypothesis to hold, the targeted classroom processes must be associated with child outcomes. We examined the associations between the classroom processes and children's prekindergarten and kindergarten gains and found support for their importance in early childhood classrooms. These findings demonstrate the value of identifying strategies to enhance these classroom practices and interactions.We situate the findings of our study within the larger context of early childhood education expansion policies and practices, and we offer a set of lessons learned. The study we report is a single evaluation of a single curriculum, yet we hold that the lessons learned are general and shed light on understanding why evaluations of curriculum have yielded such mixed results.

Measuring Early Childhood Development Among 4-6 Year Olds: The Identification of Psychometrically Robust Items Across Diverse Contexts.

The last 15 years have seen an explosion of measurement tools for assessing the development of young children in low- and middle- income countries. This paper builds on and contributes to that literature by identifying a core set of caregiver-report items and a core set of direct assessment items that measure key developmental domains for children aged 4–6 (48–83 months) and that demonstrate adequate psychometric properties across diverse contexts, the first in this age group to the authors' knowledge. Data were harmonized from previous early childhood measurement efforts in 12 countries that all used the same base measurement tool. Data analyses yielded 20 caregiver report items and 84 child direct assessment items (grouped into 16 tasks) that show strong item-level statistics across countries and that cover the domains of early literacy, early numeracy, executive functioning, and social-emotional competencies. Next steps include adding data and items from other measurement tools to the same analytical framework and field testing across a number of contexts and early childhood measurement efforts. The vision is for the resulting core sets of items, along with guidance on data collection, management, and analysis, to serve as global public goods so that they can (i) present a starting point for linking across different early childhood measurement tools for children aged 4–6; (ii) increase quality across measurement efforts; and (iii) facilitate the scale up of early childhood measurement. When supplemented with items that capture local contexts and their measurement needs, these core sets of items should help to advance understanding of universal and context-specific factors that underlie child development and thus help policymakers make decisions that ensure children receive the quality early childhood care and education they need in order to reach their full potential.

Attracting, retaining and sustaining early childhood teachers: an ecological conceptualisation of workforce issues and future research directions

A well-qualified, well-paid, stable workforce with high psychological and emotional wellbeing is critical to the provision of quality early childhood education and care, yet workforce shortages and high turnover persist in Australia and internationally. This paper uses ecological theory to conceptualise and make sense of findings from research that has investigated the recruitment, retention and wellbeing of early childhood teachers in Australia. The theoretical framing of early childhood teacher workforce issues proffered in the paper highlights the utility of considering these issues from a holistic ecological perspective. Analysis of Australian early childhood workforce studies draws attention to the need for large-scale, longitudinal research that holistically investigates influences on the attracting, retaining and sustaining of early childhood teachers, and the impact of these influences on teacher quality.

Quality early childhood education for all and the Covid-19 crisis: A viewpoint.

The purpose of this viewpoint is to consider the impact of the current Covid-19 crisis on the educational prospects of young children attending early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. Studies show that health pandemics and environmental, political, and socio-economic crises jeopardize children’s development and education. It is likely that for the immediate future, young children will continue to experience emotional and psychological stress. A curriculum that does not take into consideration a pandemic of the scale we are witnessing today creates unnecessary pressure and anxiety not just on young children but also on the adults who care for and teach them. This article outlines actions to ensure quality education for all as suggested by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The response of ECEC curricula to the pandemic may potentially act as a catalyst for educational change.

The role of teaching and learning materials and interaction as a tool to quality early childhood education in Agona East District of the Central Region of Ghana

Early years experiences in quality thinking and socialization are critical to the optimal development of children, and Quality Early Childhood Education (QECE), is crucial in achieving these quality developments. However, several literatures suggest that there is a general lack of Teaching and Learning Materials (TLMs) in Sub-Saharan Africa, Ghana inclusive. Meanwhile, the constructivists’ theory and other researches indicate that to ensure QECE, TLMs should be available and accessible to learners to interact with in advance and during a lesson. Using case study design therefore, data in the form of interview and observation were collected from twelve ECE schools in the Agona East District of the Central Region of Ghana. Participants composed of twelve ECE teachers and twelve headteachers of the schools totalling twenty-four. The findings suggest that participants perceived TLMs as very important factor in ensuring QECE provision. Again, TLMs were not readily available and so the children could not interact with them. The study further revealed that the unavailable nature of the TLMs hindered children's accessibility and active interaction with them. The findings further revealed that interaction could not feature prominently in the provision of the ECE due to unavailability and inaccessibility of TLMs. Based on the findings, it is suggested that teachers and providers of ECE should ensure that TLMs are made available and accessible to learners to interact with. Teachers should also devise innovative ways of creating and developing TLMs from their locality. Moreover, they should encourage and promote children’s active interaction with the TLMs, as this is a sure way of achieving learning.

Predicting selection into ECEC of higher quality in a universal context: The role of parental education and income

There is consensus about the positive effects of high quality Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) on children’s development, particularly for children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. However, limited knowledge exists on the access to quality in ECEC in a universal context. This study investigates potential socioeconomic selection into ECEC of higher structural quality in the context of a universal, heavily subsidized, and regulated system in Norway, intended to provide equal access to high quality ECEC. Furthermore, we explore the impact of SES and structural quality in ECEC on student-teacher relationship quality. Our conceptual model takes into account how readily accessible information on different quality aspects is for parents. We use data from the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study linked with teacher-reported ECEC quality for children born in 2006–2009 (N 7,226), supplemented by registry data at ECEC and municipality level. We find that higher parental education, and to a lesser degree income, predict child attendance of ECEC with higher structural quality as rated by ECEC teachers. Further, higher parental SES and structural quality (i.e., developmental material, staff competence and stability) predict better student-teacher relationship quality in terms of higher level of closeness and less conflict. These findings suggest that ambitions of universal equal access to high quality ECEC are not entirely realized and more efforts are needed to ensure higher structural quality in ECEC and enhance relationship quality for children from less advantageous socioeconomic backgrounds.

School readiness assessment: Study of early childhood educator experience

The physical and psychological readiness of children will affect the transition phase of children entering more formal education. Increasing children's' school readiness is one the most important aims of quality early childhood education. This research aims to explore the experiences of early childhood educators in assessing the level of readiness of children entering primary education. This research is qualitative research using a phenomenological approach. Data was collected through focus group discussions (FGDs) involving 20 early childhood educators who covered kindergarten, RA, and PAUD in Cilacap, Central Java, Indonesia. The data analysis technique was carried out by applying the Miles and Huberman model. The results showed the concept of school readiness has been widely recognized by early childhood educators and colored the process of early childhood learning. Educators' perceptions of the dimensions of school readiness are based on the achievements of children's development, which include moral and religious values, physical-motor, cognitive, language, social-emotional, and art. The assessment of the child's developmental achievements is carried out formative with most using performance assessments. The plural assessment rubric is used as an observation instrument for the child's performance.

Análisis de los roles y responsabilidades de las técnicos en educación parvularia en el nivel sala cuna: una contribución a su formación inicial

Significant advances in psychology and neuroscience research has contributed to a deepened understanding that the first two years of life are a critical period for brain development. The lack of stimulating experiences produces deficits in physical, cognitive and especially emotional health of babies. For this reason, it is essential to provide intentional pedagogical experiences to children from birth to two years old, through quality early childhood education. This, however, requires competent and well-trained professionals and paraprofessionals, whose preparation and learning opportunities are aligned with the roles and responsibilities they must fulfill in their professional lives. The objective of this study was to explore, through interviews with paraprofessionals and literature reviews, the roles and responsibilities of Chilean practitioners who work with infants and toddlers, and compare these results with the initial training curriculum. Both convergences and discrepancies were found, which enabled the elaboration of recommendations for initial training and public policies in early childhood education.

PRÁTICAS PEDAGÓGICAS DE PROFISSIONAIS QUE ATUAM EM CRECHES

Este estudo teve como intuito compreender as concepções de prática pedagógica das profissionais que atuam em um Centro Municipal de Educação Infantil - CEMEI, num município do sudeste goiano. Consideramos os objetivos específicos: identificar as concepções de ensino das profissionais da Educação Infantil-creche quanto às atividades diárias e artefatos culturais na prática pedagógica; analisar as práticas pedagógicas das profissionais da creche quanto às atividades diárias; compreender as atividades diárias que permeiam as práticas pedagógicas das profissionais da creche. Tomamos como referencial teórico a abordagem Histórico-Cultural e a Pedagogia Histórico-Crítica. A investigação se deu em todas as turmas de Maternal I e II. Como instrumentos de produção de dados, trilhamos, primeiramente, os percursos do estudo bibliográfico, seguido das observações de práticas pedagógicas. Os dados observados foram transcritos e analisados de acordo com a abordagem teórica adotada. As práticas pedagógicas da instituição e das Profissionais de Ensino no CEMEI apresentaram contradições, pois em algumas verificamos aspectos da prática crítico emancipatória, em outras, aspectos da prática baseado racionalidade técnica científica da educação na creche. A partir das análises percebermos que as políticas públicas educacionais para a Educação Infantil que atravessam o CEMEI, e que sofrem influências das Pedagogias de cunho liberal, exercem influência maciça no desenvolvimento das práticas pedagógicas das profissionais da creche. Também concluímos que fatores da construção histórico-social da própria instituição e dos sujeitos que a compõe, constituem um desafio, o transpor dessas influências na busca por uma prática que contribua para uma Educação Infantil gratuita, laica e de qualidade.

Supporting teachers’ practice through professional learning and development: What’s happening in New Zealand early childhood education?

Early childhood teachers’ professional learning and development (PLD) is a significant factor in the provision of quality early childhood education (ECE), yet gaining a full picture of PLD in the New Zealand ECE context is problematic. Information about government-funded PLD programmes is available through evaluations, however, teachers access PLD from a range of providers, many of whom are not government-funded, nor subject to regular monitoring for quality. Teachers’ reports, therefore, represent important sources of insight into PLD. We surveyed New Zealand early childhood teachers about their experiences of PLD, including topics, delivery, and facilitation. We analysed 345 responses. Workshops were the most commonly experienced PLD model. Many respondents had also experienced job-embedded support, but may not have experienced the types of facilitation strategies likely to prompt shifts in teaching practice. This article reports the survey results, examines implications and discusses features of PLD that support shifts in teaching practice.

Choosing Quality Early Childhood Curricula

This article summarizes a study investigating the curricula and features of those curricula used by 497 early childhood educators across one Midwestern state. Curricula were identified and coded for quality features derived from the research, theory, and policy literatures. Results indicated that most educators utilized Creative Curriculum or High Scope (over 60%); however, these and many other curricula did not include all the key quality features. Importantly, most educators were utilizing curricula with no evidence of effectiveness for supporting children’s outcomes. Furthermore, limitations in the presence of key curricula features may indicate that curricula generally are not adequately supporting early childhood educators. We conclude with a series of questions for educators and programs to consider when selecting their curriculum.

A Teaching and Learning Tightrope: Navigating Accountability Mandates While Maintaining Sound Pedagogical Practices

This article describes the antecedents and the implications of the ‘accountability climate’ and associated ‘compliance climate’ in early childhood education through an 8-week case study of one Government-funded preschool in an under-resourced urban community. With attention to the macro- and micro-systems that situates the preschool, this study describes how the preschool achieved compliance with external mandates while maintaining pedagogically sound teaching practices. This article reaffirms that quality early childhood education opportunities are possible acrosseconomic disparities if appropriate supports are made available to teachers, students, and families. The qualitative case study, complemented by video-based fieldwork, examines local instructional practices and investigates the policies and protocols facilitating these practices. The join impact between macro- and microsystems contributed to the teachers’ successfully privileging student academic and social success within a compliance-driven ecological system. This study offers a concrete example of how supports and leadership can contribute to early childhood contexts upholding regulated compliance mandates while privileging children’s needs.

The ripple effect: Examining the impact on parents of an Abecedarian early child care intervention in an urban social housing development.

The Abecedarian Approach is an internationally recognised early childhood intervention program that has shown long-term positive outcomes for children living in low SES communities. However, there are few studies examining the broader influence of such interventions for young children on the lives of their parents. This article describes the findings of a qualitative study exploring the perceptions and experiences of parents whose children attend an Abecedarian early intervention program located in an urban social housing complex. Eighteen parents whose children had attended the program for a minimum of one year were interviewed. The main themes that emerged were: strengthened relationships between parents and program staff, as well as between parents themselves, particularly supported through the home visitor; increased awareness among parents about early development and of their role in supporting child development; and opportunities for parents’ personal growth. The findings suggest that high quality early child intervention programs, such as the Abecedarian Approach, can positively impact the lives of parents.

Educators reflecting on sleep and rest time dilemmas in ECEC: where is the “critical” in reflective practices?

An educator’s ability to engage in critical reflection is core to provision of high quality early childhood education and care (ECEC), and is a priority for quality improvement in Australia. This study explored the nature of critical reflection using the example of sleep-rest practices. These practices have been identified as a ‘barometer of ECEC quality’ because they present significant challenges for educators, requiring negotiation of a complex set of competing priorities. Responses of educators (n = 53) to a scenario presenting a typical sleep-rest issue were analysed. These encompassed different types of reflection used to negotiate information sources and situational demands, namely: Technical—Limited Negotiation involving adherence to standard procedure, Practical—Negotiation with reference to diverse others; and finally, Critical—Negotiations analysing multiple sources of evidence. Overall, the findings showed an over reliance on technical and practical reflective strategies to address the sleep-rest time issue. Only one educator responded in a way that suggested critical reflection in which multiple sources of information, including an evidence base, were applied. The findings direct us to two conclusions. First, researchers and policy makers should consider cognitions about knowledge and knowing, with respect to understanding critical reflection, as integral to the professional work of educators. Second, we identify the potential benefit of providing more structured opportunities in pre-service education and training educational leadership and ongoing professional learning to facilitate dialogical thinking.

Educators’ risk-taking in high quality early childhood education

ABSTRACT There is little research to show how early childhood educators perceive risk-taking and whether, in the pursuit of high quality early childhood education, educators might take risks in their professional practice. We conducted a qualitative case study to explore early childhood educators’ views on, and engagement with, risk-taking in professional practice. Through thematic analysis of interviews with 55 educators in three high quality early childhood education services, we show that, for the educators in the study, risk-taking was a valuable aspect of professional practice driven by three main motivations: professional growth and development; developing children as competent and empowered individuals; and advocacy and activism. We also show that educators’ risk-taking was enacted under five broad themes: providing opportunities for children to take risks; trusting children; doing things that are new; expressing ideas and beliefs; and including curriculum content that may be considered controversial, complex and inappropriate for children. We conclude that for educators in the study, risk-taking was enacted as courageous, ethically and morally driven praxis in pursuit of high quality ECE for the benefit of both individuals and society.

Educator identity in a neoliberal context: recognising and supporting early childhood education and care educators

ABSTRACT In most majority countries, early childhood educators’ work occurs in a context increasingly dominated by neoliberal logic. A large body of literature emphasises that neoliberalism flourishes in society by fuelling mutual distrust and competition among people to pursue individual performance and material gain. This system has crept into education systems which were set up with very different philosophies, becoming an intrinsic part of educators’ work, negatively affecting the educators and their image of themselves. Utilising a variety of qualitative methodologies, this paper reports on research projects undertaken in three countries that highlight some of the neoliberal barriers to quality early childhood education and care (ECEC). It also offers ways forward to support educators within this context.

The Practice Architectures that Enable and Constrain Educators’ Risk-Taking Practices in High Quality Early Childhood Education

Purposeful and considered risk-taking can be an important aspect of early childhood education professional practice. Educator risk-taking can contribute towards the quality of education programs. Recent research shows that educators in high quality early childhood education services take a range of risks in their professional practice; yet we do not fully understand the conditions that make early childhood educator’s risk-taking possible. This lack of knowledge potentially inhibits early childhood educators from taking the kinds of risks that support high quality early childhood education. This article examines a qualitative case study that investigated the conditions within three high quality early childhood education settings that enabled and constrained educators’ risk-taking. By using the theory of practice architectures, we identify a range of cultural-discursive, material-economic and social-political arrangements that worked together to create the conditions for educators in the study to take risks in their professional practice. Through analysis of observations, interviews and documents, arrangements found within, and brought to, the participating services included a service philosophy that recognises the value of risk-taking, particular types of professional development, and trusting relationships between educators, educators and leaders, and educators and families. Findings from this study have implications for the early childhood sector and individual services in reviewing the arrangements that enable and constrain educators in taking the kinds of risks that contribute towards high quality early childhood education.