The history of education is, and can be, many things. In this article, I argue that the history of education in the Nordic countries is marked by three phases, based on its institutional setting. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the history of education was written by schoolmen for schoolmen. In the post-war era, the…

The Reggio Emilia approach is identified as a resource and inspiration in the field of early childhood education. The term 'Reggio Inspired' refers to all Reggio Emilia approach-based practices outside of Reggio Emilia, Italy. This paper presents a comprehensive study of Reggio Inspired empirical research. Results from an integrative review of the…

The aim of this study was to review the national steering documents on early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, with the focus on children up to the age of three, posing the question: What do these documents tell us about ECEC for younger children in the Nordic early childhood settings?…

Each year, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) releases a list of scientific advances that represent significant progress in the field of autism research. The "2021 Summary of Advances" provides short, plain language summaries of the top research breakthroughs selected by the IACC from a pool of research articles…

This paper, based on interviews conducted for the "Early Childhood Oral History Project," draws on oral life-history interviews with 14 prominent early childhood researchers who have been active since the 1970s within diverse European countries. A common theme across the interviews is the key role that collaborative research between…

This article reports and discusses findings from an ethnographic case study, aiming to gain a deeper understanding of how different children perceive their learning environment in the first grade of primary school, with regard to social as well as academic aspects. The theoretical framework is based on an interactional perspective, where…

The aim is to investigate Swedish preschool teachers' accounts of children's learning in relation to the goals in the Swedish preschool curriculum. The research question is: "What do preschool teachers see as fundamental aspects of learning in preschool practice?" The study is based on interactionist perspectives founded in Urie…

Seeing identity as work produced in interaction is a starting point in this current study, were analyzing interviews with children living in economic hardship, and how everyday life in economic hardship in one way or another becomes significant for their identity work, is the main empirical material. This article is intended to illustrate how to…

Most deaf children are born to hearing families. During the last twenty years deaf children, in increasing numbers and at an early age, receive a cochlear implant, a highly technological hearing device. The aim of this qualitative, longitudinal, single-case study was to explore and describe critical changes in naturalistic, video-observed…

The purpose of this study is to contribute knowledge on and gain an understanding of elementary school teachers' perspectives on the function of play in children's learning processes. The study is qualitative with a hermeneutical approach and has George Herbert Mead as a theoretical frame of reference. Interviews have been carried out with seven…

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) is a topic of increased policy interest in the Slovak Republic where improving quality in the ECEC sector is a subject of growing importance. The OECD has identified five effective policy levers to encourage quality in the sector: 1) quality goals and regulations; 2) curriculum and guidelines; 3)…

Theory-driven and practice-driven research are often separated, but in this article we shall argue for a research approach that is theory-driven but practice-oriented and shares features with the specific kind of early childhood education pedagogy this research approach has generated, what we refer to as developmental pedagogy (Pramling Samuelsson…

Action research can be understood as a complex interplay between local circumstances and local research traditions, embedded in their turn in local intellectual-philosophical traditions, national as well as international. Because of this interplay it is questionable whether it would be particularly fruitful to look for 'typical local forms of…

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) has become a policy priority in many countries. A growing body of research recognises that it provides a wide range of benefits, including social and economic benefits, better child well-being and learning outcomes as a foundation for lifelong learning, more equitable outcomes and reduction of poverty, and…

Illustrates problems facing researchers trying to demonstrate causal relationships between types of nonparental care and differences between groups of Swedish children. Argues that efforts must be made to validate and interpret differences that are found. Indicates ways to avoid misinterpretation of differences that are attributable to…