Assessment and the documentation of learning is an international issue in early childhood education (ECE) and has increasingly become a way for governments to exercise direct control over the practitioners working with young children. This paper details recent statutory guidance about assessment and documentation for English ECE settings and…

For the past 10 years, there has been ongoing research at the University of Ghent on professionalism in childcare (the 0-3 age group) in the Flemish Community of Belgium. This research has been inspired by the "Contesting Early Childhood" movement, which is based on the premise that pedagogic research can lead to social change. The first…

This paper reports on an Australian initiative "Developing and Sustaining Pedagogical Leadership in Early Childhood Education and Care Professionals," where academics and professionals shared knowledge, experience and research about transdisciplinary practice. The project aimed to develop an understanding of the strategies and skills…

Despite a wealth of evidence showing the benefits of early childhood education and care (ECEC), in Turkey participation remains low and inequitably distributed, even though access to services is soaring. Drawing from previous findings, this paper will focus on different stakeholders' views on a more integrated system of ECEC governance in…

This article explores the influences on and nature of continuing professional development in the New Zealand early childhood education sector. In addition to discussing the nature of professional development and providing an explanation of the policy context that informs the delivery of professional development, the paper draws on evaluations of…

This grounded theory study explores beliefs about disability and inclusion from the perspectives of educators of young children in their respective roles as elementary school teachers and early childhood educators, in Ontario, Canada. The social relational model described by Reindal is used as a theoretical framework for interviews with four…

This paper considers young children's (aged 3-5 years) relations with objects, and in particular objects that are brought from home to school. We begin by considering the place of objects within early years classrooms and their relationship to children's education before considering why some objects are often separated from their owners on entry…

Although frameworks now exist for quality provision for under-threes, discourses underpinning policy remain conflicted. The split between care and education is still firmly entrenched in provision and a gap remains between rhetoric and practice. This paper explores how Early Years Professional Status, which requires practitioners to engage…

This qualitative case study approaches early childhood education and care practices from a socio-spatial point of view. One Finnish daycare group for one- to three-year-olds participated in the study. The ethnographic observations from the practices are analyzed together with the ECE practitioners' audio-recorded team meetings and video-elicited…

This article explores the practice narratives of a group of 25 caregivers who work with babies in daycare settings in England and seeks to illustrate awareness of, resistance to and compliance with powerful discourses. It is argued that multiple voices exert an influence over baby room practice, disempowering the caregivers and reducing their…

The Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum and the independent Cambridge Primary Review both highlight the need to re-think children's educational experiences in English classrooms between the ages of five and seven. Recent government initiatives have led to experiences in these early primary years being adult-directed and often in…

Considerable interest has emerged in policy frameworks to sustain and encourage democratic participation and responsive pedagogy in early childhood education. Using findings from an evaluation of New Zealand's strategic plan for early childhood education, this article highlights ways in which policy initiatives interacted to support such…

In Wales, concerns about the perceived over-formalisation of young children's educational experiences led to the introduction of a Foundation Phase Framework for children aged three to seven years that advocates a more holistic, play-based approach. Following the staging of the Reggio Emilia travelling exhibition, funding was secured for a project…

Thirty years or more of striving for a coherent theme in the educational system from preschool to gymnasium might now be at an end. Millions of Swedish kronor have been spent on projects concerning cooperation between pre- and primary school. The curricula for preschool and the gymnasium are similar in structure, and they are connected with each…

This paper discusses trends in contemporary Danish early childhood education and care (ECEC). Data are sourced from various policy documents, along with material from ongoing research projects in which the authors are involved. It is claimed that contemporary policy on Danish day care services has a tendency to emphasize narrow curriculum…