This study started from a collaborative work developed with a group of educators, who work in an institution that welcomes children from 0 to 6 years. The educators, after participating in a seminar on documentation and evaluation in early childhood education, showed enthusiasm to learn how to document the children's voice and experiences. This…

UNESCO's Education for Sustainable Development Roadmap highlights the need to transform learning environments by integrating the 17 Sustainable Development Goals from United Nations Agenda 2030. This presents challenges for early childhood education in establishing a trajectory to transform the way young children see the world and themselves.…

This article (a) explores the experience of an early childhood teacher researcher as she intentionally uses interactive read-alouds to promote social justice and to encourage critical consciousness in her preschool classroom and (b) offers guidance for educators to embark on their own social justice journey. Over the course of a 2-year study, the…

The present research examined the effects of family-related factors on how parents perceive and choose physical activities that stimulate their children's physical fitness and motor development. Using the random sampling approach, a total of 284 4- to 5-year-old children (n = 147 boys; n = 137 girls) were included in the sample. These children's…

Despite the extensive international overview of in-service professional development in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), the majority of studies concentrate on short-term training programmes or workshops. The existing scientific literature suggests that these approaches have either minimal or no impact on effective ECEC transformation.…

The aim of the study was to explore the use of a rating scale as a tool for driving professional learning for pre-school ECEC staff. A rating scale was used as a measure of children's learning experiences in pre-school provision, which then guided the content of a professional learning programme. The programme was therefore targeted towards…

This professional development (PD) study examined the effect of feedback type on changing preschool teachers' use of language enhancement strategies and language outcomes for children. We included 21 Head Start teachers and 107 children. We randomized classrooms to PD feedback condition: (a) self-reported or (b) observed use of strategies. All…

In recent years, many policies have been formulated and strongly promoted to improve the quality of early childhood education. In 2012, the Taiwanese government enacted a new national curriculum framework for early childhood education to enhance the quality of early childhood education programs. This new framework is key competence-oriented,…

This article analyses the different guidelines that have allowed a school to transform its educational project and pedagogical organization in order to adapt to the needs and requirements of a society in constant evolution. To this end, document analysis, participant observation and four focus groups have been carried out with various social…

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a swift transition to remote learning, impacting Early Childhood Education (ECE), especially for refugee children in low- and middle-income countries such as Malaysia. This study, conducted from March 2021 to March 2022, examined the digital aspects of ECE, including resources, instructions, and home learning…

Until their conceptual, systemic and substantive reform in the 1990s, preschool institutions in Slovenia were recognised predominantly as care institutions, on the one hand, and as "preparatory institutions" for school or pre-primary school, on the other. This paper presents an analysis of preschool education in Slovenia based on…

Recognizing the inherent value in outdoor play and learning for young children, we focused upon the practices and perspectives of adults at an early childhood center as the outdoor play areas were transformed into outdoor classrooms. A salient finding emerging from the data exhibited a gap between constructivist child-led theories of play and…

We present a model that employs "cultural-historical activity theory" (CHAT) concepts to inform research with designated Educational Leaders in early years settings. We theorise practice change in early years mathematics education in terms of motive objects of activity and mediation by cultural tools. We show how CHAT can be used to lead…

In "Why Knowledge Matters," influential scholar E. D. Hirsch, Jr., addresses critical issues in contemporary education reform and shows how cherished truisms about education and child development have led to unintended and negative consequences. Hirsch, author of "The Knowledge Deficit," draws on recent findings in neuroscience…

This volume contains selected papers submitted to the 20th Jubilee Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES), conducted virtually in June 2022. The 20th BCES Conference theme is "Towards the Next Epoch of Education." The theme is focused on problems, discussions, changes, solutions, and…