This booklet is based on a series of papers delivered at a conference of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), held in Paris in 1973. The conference was designed to assess current progress and future trends in international early childhood education. Chapters include: (1) a summary of the trends and issues which confront the researchers and policy makers of OECD member countries in the field of education, (2) a discussion of the educationally disadvantaged groups of industrialized countries and the role of early childhood education in compensating for and correcting the factors which cause disadvantagement, (3) a discussion of parental involvement in American early childhood education, (4) a description of current Canadian early childhood education programs, province-by-province, (5) a description of an approach to curriculum development which emphasizes the teaching of real-life skills in Germany, (6) a look at a children's center in France, based on the principle of continuity, and (7) an account of the work of the Australian Pre-schools Committee. (BRT)