In Lithuania early childhood education and care embraces children of the age from one to seven and is an integrated part of the education system. According to Lithuanian education classification, it belongs to the zero level of education. Though defined as pre-school education yet this stage is composed of two parts--pre-school education of…

In early childhood settings prior to school and in the early years of primary school, debate continues over the meaning of inclusion and its scope in terms of the groups under consideration. The genealogies of early childhood education and care, early primary school, special education and cultural education were examined to identify recurring and…

As part of Phase 3 of the Universal Preschool Child Outcomes Study (UPCOS-3), Mathematica Policy Research worked with the First 5 LA Children and Families Commission and Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP) to conduct a descriptive study of the characteristics of classrooms in LAUP programs during winter 2010. This study has a particular focus…

This article introduces the framework of Universal Design for Early Childhood Education (UDECE). The goal of the framework is to synthesize best practices within the field of early childhood education and special education, providing a template to support access and equity for all children. The UDECE framework includes examination of issues of…

Children are exploring elements of literacy and numeracy. Such explorations begin in the earliest days of life and are a natural outgrowth of children's curiosity and interest in how the world works. Based on experiences, children build a reservoir of knowledge about language, reading, and mathematics that they take with them to kindergarten,…

With the move towards achieving universal primary education, focus is increasingly shifting towards early childhood development. Within this, debates are apparent between those who view education at this stage holistically, with concern that it should not be directly linked with primary schooling, and those who view it more explicitly as…

Four myths that underlie persistent, but ineffective, practices in early literacy education are analyzed in this article. Such analysis is essential because literacy disadvantage ultimately is an issue of equity--a matter of social justice. Research shows that these practices can be refuted and that optimal early literacy outcomes are possible for…

Children enter elementary school with widely different skill levels in core subjects. Whether because of differences in aptitude or in preparedness, these initial skill differences often translate into systematic disparities in achievement over time. How can teachers reduce these disparities? Three possibilities are to offer basic skills training,…

The Closing the Gap Clearinghouse was established by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) to bring together evidence-based research on overcoming disadvantage for Indigenous Australians. The Clearinghouse provides access to a collection of information on what works to improve Indigenous people's lives across the building blocks identified…

"Research on Schools, Neighborhoods, and Communities: Toward Civic Responsibility" focuses on research and theoretical developments related to the role of geography in education, human development, and health. William F. Tate IV, the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in…

This report has been provided to the Legislature on an annual basis since 2000 when the legislature amended the language of G.L. c. 71B to align Massachusetts special education terminology with the federal "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act" ("IDEA"). The Department is required to submit an annual report on compliance…

This volume presents briefing papers presented at the 12th annual National Indian Education Association (NIEA) Summit. The following papers are included: (1) 2009 Budget and Past Funding Levels for Native Education; (2) NIEA Appropriations Priorities for FY 2009 and FY 2010; (3) American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; (4) National Indian…

Bangladesh has made great improvements in the scale and quality of access to education in recent years and gender equality has almost been achieved in primary education (World Bank, 2008). Evidence from CREATE's nationwide community and school survey (ComSS) confirms results from other research (such as Al-Samarrai, 2009) which suggests that…

The Finnish educational system and curricula lay emphasis on play, collaboration and equality. Modern educational practices allow the learning environment to be enlarged from indoor classrooms to outdoor playful learning environments (PLEs). PLEs have been constructed in schoolyards in Finland with the goal of increasing learning through play in…

This report describes district-level results from the Austin Independent School District (AISD) 2008-2009 Student Climate Survey. [Abstract modified to meet ERIC guidelines.]