eBook downloads, eBook resources & eBook authors
There is a growing interest in understanding how early years care and education is organised and experienced internationally and many early years courses - from foundation degree and beyond - include an 'International Perspectives' module.
The second volume in this Early Childhood Education in the 21st Century: International Teaching, Family and Policy Perspectives miniseries focuses on teacher and family perspectives of early childhood education and care from 19 different countries around the world. The aim of this volume is to articulate the key components of teacher education and family practices that impact young children’s education and care. Each country featured in this volume presents its own unique perspective in relation to the cultural and societal constraints around teacher training and/or family practices and the thinking around those practices that are important for early childhood development. Offering a unique insight into how teachers and families work together in different countries, the book is essential reading for early childhood educators, researchers, early childhood organisations, policy makers and those interested to know more about early childhood within an international perspective.
The first volume in this Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century: International Teaching, Family and Policy Perspectives miniseries provides a snapshot of early childhood education and care from 19 different countries around the world. The intention is to provide a description for the policy and provision for young children and their families in each of the unique contemporary contexts. The selection of countries includes every continent in the world to provide variety across cultures, socio-economic status, location, population and other unique factors. Some chapters also share the development and history of early childhood in their country, including economic and political transitions that lead to changes in early childhood provision and policy. The book provides essential takeaways for early childhood educators, researchers, early childhood organisations, policy makers and those interested to know more about early childhood education within an international perspective.
By examining how young children develop and learn from conception through to the age of eight, this book explores ways to enhance professional practice in the early years. For further discussion and engagement with current issues and hot topics in Early Childhood subscribe to Sheila Nutkin's author blog.
The third volume in the Early Childhood Education in the 21st Century: International Teaching, Family and Policy Perspectives miniseries focuses on research highlights and policy aspects of early childhood education and care from 22 different countries around the world. This volume provides a platform for authors to discuss and debate the implications of research findings on current practices that reflect policies of each country. The research presented spans from challenges in teacher training to case studies of family practices around early child development to problematise the key components of teacher education and family practices that impact young children’s education and care. By problematising the key issues, chapter authors discuss the shifting paradigm of early childhood education and the importance of future research in informing these changes. Offering key policy and practice insights across 19 different countries, this book is a must-read for early childhood educators, researchers, early childhood organisations, policy makers and those interested to know more about early childhood within an international perspective.
Early childhood education and child care are now widely perceived to be among the central social needs of the nation. Used by more than 100 universities and colleges, the new second edition of this anthology is a collection of over 70 articles which together provide a comprehensive overview of the early childhood situation from a historical, theoretical and practical perspective. These articles enable the reader to understand human development in young children, identify their intellectual strengths and weaknesses, and develop the most effective teaching techniques. Also included is a review of events and conditions resulting in current educational practices. Classroom theory and techniques are examined not only within the U.S., but also run the gamut from the Israeli kibbutz program to current teaching practices in the Soviet Union and China. Contents: National and Historical Perspectives; Philosophical and Theoretical Issues; Critical Issues; Exceptional Children; Curri
Children’s learning, development and well-being are directly influenced by their daily interactions with other children, adults, their families and the environment. This interactive process is known as “process quality”, and leads to a key question – which policies set the best conditions for children to experience high-quality interactions in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings?
"This book focuses on early childhood education which spans the human life from birth to age 8. Infants and toddlers experience life more holistically than any other age group. Social, emotional, cognitive, language, and physical lessons are not learned separately by very young children. Adults who are most helpful to young children interact in ways that understand that the child is learning from the whole experience, not just that part of the experience to which the adult gives attention. Although early childhood education does not have to occur in the absence of the parent or primary caregiver, this term is sometimes used to denote education by someone other than these the parent or primary caregiver. Both research in the field and early childhood educators view the parents as an integral part of the early childhood education process. Early childhood education takes many forms depending on the theoretical and educational beliefs of the educator or parent. Other terms that is often used interchangeably with "early childhood education" are "early childhood learning", "early care" and "early education". Much of the first two years of life are spent in the creation of a child's first "sense of self" or the building of a first identity. Because this is a crucial part of children's makeup-how they first see themselves, how they think they should function, how they expect others to function in relation to them, early care must ensure that in addition to carefully selected and trained caregivers, links with family, home culture, and home language are a central part of program policy. If care becomes a substitute for, rather than a support of, family, children may develop a less-than-positive sense of who they are and where they come from because of their child care experience.
This book examines how quality and good practice in early childhood education and care (ECEC) is interpreted and implemented in a variety of settings and circumstances. Drawing on her experience of research and policy making in a wide variety of countries, the author considers the variety of rationales that inform services for early childhood education and care. Services are organized, financed and delivered in many different ways across the world. The policies that have been adopted by governments, and the resources which are made available for implementing them, have shaped practice. On the one hand there are complex ideas about what children should be learning and how they should be learning. These ideas about curriculum and the training of teachers and carers may differ radically between countries. On the other hand policies have been prompted by the need to reconcile family and work obligations and to provide childcare to support working mothers, irrespective of educational concerns. The notions of economic competition and parental choice have led to the growth of private for-profit childcare services which promote a particular view of quality and achievement. Above all, growing inequality within countries, and between rich and poor countries, have undermined attempts to provide good quality services. In an unfair world, the impact of any services is likely to be distorted. The book charts the many different approaches to understanding and measuring quality and gives an exceptionally well-informed overview.
