The answers of scholars and leaders in the fields of early education and child development to four broad interview questions concerning sociopolitical factors influencing early childhood care and education have been organized topically in the chapters of this book. In chapter 1, technical and ethical problems in early identification of actual and potential handicapping conditions are discussed. The controversial topic of mainstreaming handicapped young children is the focus of chapter 2. In chapter 3 questions are raised about how people are "socialized" into parenthood, and the appropriate content and structure of parent education programs are considered. Chapter 4 deals with major issues in teacher education and certification, including identification of the requisite skills for effective teaching, certification of child care workers, and the problem of delivering inservice training. The contexts for research and ways research affects the lives of young children are considered in chapter 5. Chapter 6 focuses on problems of interpreting research findings and on challenges of investigating children's development in such interacting contexts as the home, school, and neighborhood. Discussion in chapter 7 centers on issues of public policy, such as public versus private delivery of preschool education, federal support of day care, and the justification of continued federal support for early childhood education. (RH)