While the importance of early childhood education is well documented, a struggle continues around the world to adequately fund early childhood programs and provide access for all children, especially those living in precarious contexts. In this article, the author has constructed a posthumous interview with Katie-Jay Scott (1981-2021), a…

Strong oral language skills are foundational for literacy development and begin before a child enters formal schooling. Oral language development has been related to pretend play abilities in children. Children, particularly those from disadvantaged areas, who enter school with low pretend play levels and oral language abilities, are at risk for…

We estimated the effects of Norway's universal ECEC program - expanding access to 1- and 2-year-olds starting in the early 2000s - on standardized math and achievement tests in 5th grade (age 10) using a population-based survey sample (Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study, MoBa, n = 102,352), linked with national administrative records…

In Germany, there is still a great need for research on the quality of teacher-child interactions in ECEC institutions. Especially, because social interactions and relationships are crucial for (early) learning and development (Ulferts et al., 2019). However, there are hardly any results on factors influencing the interaction quality. This paper…

This study aims to assess the physical literacy environment in 30 early childhood classrooms servicing 4- to 6-year-old children. A high-quality literacy environment that includes a variety of materials and resources is an important part of children's emergent literacy, as research shows their use supports oral and written language development…

Caring relationships among families and providers are at the heart of high-quality early care and education (ECE). This study examines relationships between parents and providers in a nationally representative sample of infants and toddlers and their families (N = 527) enrolled in the two-generation Early Head Start (EHS) program in the U.S. EHS'…

Emerging research suggests English and Spanish proficiencies of young Latine dual language learners (DLLs) are heterogeneous, including subgroups characterized by varying levels of English and Spanish dominance and proficiencies. However, there is limited understanding of contextual factors associated with the formation of DLL profiles. This study…

Emerging research suggests English and Spanish proficiencies of young Latine dual language learners (DLLs) are heterogeneous, including subgroups characterized by varying levels of English and Spanish dominance and proficiencies. However, there is limited understanding of contextual factors associated with the formation of DLL profiles. This study…

The Abecedarian Approach was created in the early 1970s to serve as the 'educational treatment' in the Abecedarian Project, a rigorous randomized controlled trial for children of disadvantaged families. The elements of the Abecedarian Approach are Language Priority, Enriched Caregiving, Conversational Reading, and LearningGames®. The Approach…

Research Findings: The study examined the development of children's social-emotional problems between 2019 (T1) and winter 2021/22 (T2) during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the role of children's home and preschool learning environments. The sample included 228 German children ages 3-7 years at T1 (M[subscript Age] = 5.13, SD = 0.79, 46%…

This paper describes the research protocol for the Educational and Developmental Gains in Early Childhood (EDGE) Study, which will examine the implementation of two years of funded kindergarten prior to the first year of school in Victoria, Australia. EDGE will examine whether children's language, cognitive, social-emotional, and behavioural…

Quality Early Childhood Care and Education programs are beneficial to children in numerous ways. Consequently, from time immemorial, various stakeholders not only in Botswana, but the world over, has embarked on various efforts to try to provide such services. However, several challenges in the provision of Early Childhood Care and Education…

Children and families receive maximum benefits from early childhood programs when families are actively engaged. "Parental involvement" is an established feature of Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities (AHSUNC) in Canada, and there is interest in increasing the knowledge on how AHSUNC sites engage with parents and…

"Parent involvement", valued by the field of early childhood education, is shown to contribute to the growth and development of children. However, what has in fact, been "valued" are engagement practices based on normalized white middle class cultural patterns. The current understandings of and expectations for "parent…

In comparison with other industrialized nations, the United States is behind in early education. In addition, students from low-income families are less likely to enroll in preschool than their more privileged counterparts and more likely to attend low-quality programs. This situation harms American students and society. This essay documents the…