Research Findings: This small-scale study features the 1st comparative exploration of the pedagogical quality of parent-led child care and regular child care in The Netherlands. The quality of the interaction skills and the affective relationships between adults and children was evaluated and compared with those of regular child care centers. On…

There is a growing body of evidence that early engagement in active music-making impacts beneficially on children's wider development. Recent research indicates that individual and shared music-making in family settings contributes to positive parenting practices and identity development in young children. Children who participate in shared…

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…

The early years before compulsory schooling are crucial for children's identities, including their cultural identities. This article reports on a community-collaborative educational program that aimed to promote children's positive Samoan identities in a culturally safe environment. Data were collected through ethnographic methods, including…

Half of all infants and toddlers receive care in nonparental settings, such as centers and family child care (FCC) homes. On average, infants and toddlers spend more hours per week in care than preschoolers do. Yet infant-toddler care has been identified as lower quality than care for older children, suggesting that professional development (PD)…

With growing emphasis on the development and use of competencies (knowledge, dispositions, skills) for training and evaluating the early childhood workforce, this study aimed to identify sources of variation in undergraduate students' beliefs and knowledge related to competencies identified by the Collaborative for Understanding Pedagogy for…

The Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) grants program, sponsored by the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, aimed to improve children's access to high quality early care and education. RTT-ELC awarded more than $1 billion over three rounds of grants to help states develop and implement systems that rate…

This article draws on a small survey of Auckland-area early childhood services to explore "tree climbing as curriculum". As well as considering how health and safety issues are understood and managed, it also considers the role/s of early childhood teachers during children's tree climbing, alongside the relevance of folk wisdom about…

Structural quality in childcare centers is considered a precondition for process quality, which in turn is related to children's outcomes. However, the evidence on relations between structural and process quality is mixed. Moreover, despite strong theoretical claims, empirical evidence supporting the indirect relation of structural features…

College students with young children are dependent upon childcare for their academic success. Fortunately for students attending a tribal college or university (TCU), early learning centers (ELCs) provide more than just childcare. They offer an education centered on Indigenous values and knowledge, which not only helps the parent succeed…

The benefits of early childhood education are well known, but access to quality programs is a challenge for children living in marginalized communities. Mobile Creches (MC), a non-profit nongovernmental organization based in Delhi, India, pursues the mission to ensure all young children, especially the most vulnerable children, have access to the…

The South African National Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy was approved by the South African Cabinet in 2015. Given capacity and financial constraints, all services outlined cannot be implemented in a single step. Priorities must be set. We examine the budget implications (total cost and cost per child) and benefits of the four…

Over the past 200 years, early childhood provision in Germany has primarily been oriented towards the goal of work-care reconciliation. Even though there is a long tradition in Germany of education-oriented approaches, the primary goal has always been care. The extensive development of early childhood centres for children under three years of age…

The term family-centred practices refer to a particular set of beliefs, principles, values, and practices for supporting and strengthening family capacity to enhance and promote child development and learning. Family-centred services in early childhood and early childhood special education programmes (EC/ECSE) can affect a wide range of outcomes.…

The affordability of licensed early childhood education and care (ECCE) remains a perennial policy issue in Oklahoma as well as in other states. Stakeholders in the public and private sectors aim for an adequate supply of quality ECCE providers that is accessible to the families who need care. At the same time, these stakeholders recognize that…