Focuses on children's daily experiences as an important component of assessing the quality of child care programs. Discusses the importance of individual and group engagement to better understand the quality classroom environments and keep track of improvements over time. Presents the Engagement Check II as a measure of group engagement and…

Describes the process and benefits of accreditation of programs for young children through validation by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs, which is sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. (NH)

Recounts how a child care director's extended absence led to a gradual decline in program quality and how the self-study process for NAEYC program accreditation improved the quality of the program. Discusses the lessons learned and actions taken to achieve accreditation. Includes a list of pertinent books and articles for program directors. (KB)

Chronicles one school's attempt to create a school- wide portfolio as a tool for evaluating the growth and progress of children and as a means of professional growth for teachers and the director/principal. Discusses the staff meetings to discuss philosophy, focus group meetings to formulate the portfolios, and between-meeting activities. Notes…

Summarizes three recent studies which found relationships between the quality of day care centers and children's development. Also describes the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale and its effects when used by centers for self-evaluation. Discusses similar benefits of self-study resulting from the accreditation program of the National…

Describes use of accreditation facilitation projects (AFP) begun in the 1990s to provide varying levels and types of support to early childhood programs engaged in the self-study process for accreditation with the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Presents insights about the early childhood program/AFP relationship related…

Examined the impact of a two-year leadership training program that used a problem-centered and site-specific curriculum for program directors to improve the quality of 14 early childhood programs in the Chicago area and to increase the number of programs receiving accreditation from NAEYC. Found that administrators expanded their repertoire of…

Discusses the importance of the Reggio Emilia approach in relation to cultural and professional attitudes. Claims that the preschools of Reggio Emilia have evolved to their current preeminence because those involved in Italy have set themselves the task of overcoming the impediments to dialog. Encourages the development of communities of inquiry…

Having been involved in undergraduate and graduate student groups on four campuses, the author of this article has noticed certain characteristics commonly found in successful campus groups. These characteristics include: (1) initial and continual planning with community members; (2) active involvement by all stakeholders; and (3) evaluating the…