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This chapter examines early childhood pedagogy in Germany. It developed in the wake of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) education debate, and the expansion of higher education led to new types of application-oriented courses. For a long time, child day care in Germany was not seen as a subject of theoretical worth. Vocational training for kindergarten teachers, overwhelmingly employed in day care centers, has not yet been academized. The academic study of childhood pedagogy is a thereof separate project, taught especially at universities of applied science. Nevertheless, constructions of new disciplines are directed toward professional fields, for which they claim relevance with their academic training. With its focus on “Bildung” childhood pedagogy in Germany claims to offer a scientifically based solution to the practical problems of action in child day care. This chapter discusses the specific content of the curricula statistical figures of graduates at universities and in the fields of practice. It provides first empirical clarification on observable phenomena of a scientific “penetration” of cognitive rationality in kindergartens. It fosters an academic habitus that induces a distancing from direct interaction with children, leads to a diversification of tasks in day care centers, and promotes hierarchical processes of professional role differentiation in the field of childcare.

Often overlooked in discussions related to how to ensure accessible and affordable high-quality early childhood education is the heavy burden that has been carried by the early childhood workforce; the data reveal a level of exploitation of this workforce that must be considered and addressed. This chapter will focus attention on the economic realities of the early childhood workforce as a key element to achieve equitable access to affordable high-quality early childhood services.

In recent decades, childhood in Japan has undergone significant transformations. Government policies geared at boosting women's labor force participation, a declining fertility rate, rising costs of having children on the one hand, and increased spending on public childcare and support measures for families, on the other hand, contribute to these ongoing changes. Having only one child is becoming the norm while mothers' role in society is shifting. The traditional family structure is moving from the previously predominant male breadwinner model to more dual-earner families. Children now spend significant amounts of time in care and education institutions.

In this chapter, we analyze current configurations of early childhood in institutions and the family from a policy perspective and regarding children's predominant education and care arrangements. Drawing on various survey data sets and evidence from demographic statistics to pedagogical ethnographies, we look at how childcare policies and families reshape the organization of children's lives and outline how institutions and educators create learning experiences aligned with the values of a collectivist society. However, despite being deeply rooted in traditional child-rearing goals, many parents also subscribe to rigorous educational arrangements from early childhood onwards to prepare children for success in a competitive education system. The chapter finishes with an outlook on future directions of how policymakers and the ongoing institutionalization of childhood continue to change children's lives.

This article presents a description of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) as a basis for guaranteeing fundamental human rights from birth. ECCE is the first stage and a solid base – considering the relevance of development processes from birth to six years. Active early education, committed to the reality of a community, facilitates the training of young citizens as rights’ agents. In this sense, the education and care in early childhood is indispensable. This article communicates a descriptive synthesis of the current state of the ECCE in various regions and countries, especially in Latin America – Argentina – and in Europe – Sweden.

In the analysis, theoretical sustenance about childhood and new perspectives that discuss classical conceptions are presented. The educational process is fundamental and is described as Early Education (EE), presenting a synthesis of the ECCE from its normative conformation that arises from the statements of Jomtien (1990). The concept of Educare is presented, as a holistic approach to education and care within early childhood. This aspect is linked to highlight the inequality gaps for children, describing ‘fragmented territories’, in terms of guaranteeing rights. The final reflection summarizes the importance of Early Education, recovering the current studies on Educare, which project the guarantee of rights from birth.

On the basis of the data collected from 144 practitioners, we studied impact of the Palm Beach County Quality Improvement System (QIS) on practitioners. We found that (a) the duration of early learning coaching, (b) the intensity of career advisors, (c) quality workshops and conferences, (d) college courses, and (e) scholarship for books and supplies in relation to taking college courses are related to improving practitioners' job skills and level of certification and degree in early childhood care and education. We found that additional income to practitioners through the WAGE$ program is effective in retaining them. We also found that the professional development program has differential impact on practitioners of various racial and ethnic groups and that more encouragement and support should be given to African-American and Hispanic practitioners to engage in professional development and pursue advancement in the level of certificate and degree. All these findings have implications for the policy of early care and education in general and for other quality improvement initiatives for early care and education in particular.

The nature of early care and education (ECE) programs in the United States, serving children from birth through age eight, has shifted dramatically in the last 20 years. With his 2013 State of the Union address, President Obama positioned ECE at the top of his educational reform agenda. His acknowledgment of the importance of the early years in providing a foundation for children’s lifelong learning and the critical need for national reform is welcoming to those of us in the field; yet, we meet it with some trepidation. ECE has a history of fragmented services for children and families, relying primarily on inconsistent state funds. Additionally, the pressure to be more competitive with our global counterparts has led to an academic push down at all levels of education, including ECE, rather than an increase in support for schools to meet the diverse needs of young children. The President’s proposed initiative further contributes to this pressure on our youngest children, their families, and their ECE caregivers.

In this chapter, we examine the current state of the ECE field, with an emphasis on the years prior to kindergarten.

We analyze two federal ECE initiatives, and argue for a return to the original purposes of ECE that best serve young children and families.

This chapter examines the context for the implementation of the global commitment to early childhood education (ECE) within the framing of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) under SDG 4.2. We first define the concept of ECE as broadly understood in the field of education and in practice related to a focus on education of children. The essay adopts chronological age of children served outside of the formal school system, which has traditionally been recognized as basic education, to represent the population captured under ECE in both pre-school and pre-primary settings. UNICEF identifies those ages 3–6 to fall into this category. We present an exploration of the challenges and opportunities presented by multiplicity in multilateral agencies and other agencies driving the international initiatives around advancing ECE and the means by which they promote education opportunities for children. We offer a comparative perspective on the delivery, types, and funding mechanisms of ECE services in both developing and developed country contexts, which informs the possibilities for the realization of the SDG goal of inclusive quality education for all. An examination of the socio-cultural and economic context of accessibility to inclusive and equitable quality ECE is also presented. An overview of settings within which ECE is provided is interrogated within differing national contexts. We conclude with challenges and opportunities for sustained accountability, monitoring and evaluation of SDG 4.2 interventions from a comparative perspective.

This chapter highlights the importance of providing all children, and particularly those at risk, vulnerable children and children with disabilities, with opportunities for a quality inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). It first sets out the evidence that quality inclusive ECEC provision is essential for all children to develop their potential and lifelong learning competencies that will ensure their successful participation in school and adult life. It then describes the main international and European policies for inclusive ECEC. A more detailed account is given of the five key principles for action towards improving the quality of ECEC provision developed by the thematic working group of the European Commission (2014) ‘Quality Framework for Early Education and Care’ that are also very similar to those proposed by the OECD (2015) ‘Starting Strong IV’. The concluding section underlines the need to address more strongly the provision of enabling opportunities for accessibility to ECEC of children at risk of exclusion. More importantly, it highlights the need to research and improve not only these children’s presence in ECEC but also their level and quality of active participation and engagement in the social and learning activities of early childhood inclusive provision. The chapter reflects the research and policy development work being undertaken by the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education in its (2015–2017) project on Inclusive Early Childhood Education (IECE) led by the present authors.

In this article, we discuss the issue of the right to education of young children, focusing on the Institution of Early Childhood Education (EIC in Portuguese), of views with legal markers and educational indicators of a Brazilian State. From a research that approached Early Childhood Education (EI in Portuguese) in settlements of the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST in Portuguese) and making use of the Bakhtinian framework we highlight the processes of inequality that devastate childhood in the rural settings. The data reiterate the need to not only combat the logics of precariousness that affect the service given but also to guide the specificity of Children’s education field, within a framework of the effectiveness of primary school attendance. Hence, we call one’s attention to the debate of the ways of setting up institutions, with a view to serving children, urging the regulations related to the right to education, particularly, the right to Early Childhood Education in the peasant’s context, particularly in settlements.

Schooling expansion is typically operationalized as the proportion of the population attending and the number of years attained; however, expansion can also be examined through new fields of study. Early childhood education entered the university as occupational training and has grown into a legitimate field of study. For example, an analysis of the expansion of early childhood papers and topics in scientific journal articles shows a slow steady rise before a dramatic increase in the 1956–2021 time period. The expansion of early childhood education as a field has been synergistic with the process of academization. Training in the occupation of early childhood education started first in its country of origin and then moved to independent training programs and normal schools in the United States before landing in four-year institutions that include everything from small colleges to large universities.