Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood Education in Germany


Book Description

The importance of early childhood education has been emphasized by a large body of research that has demonstrated that children’s cognitive and socio-emotional development is significantly influenced by the quality of the education and care received from their families and in preschool. Consequently, it is important to investigate factors that pertain to the provision of a high-quality education and high-quality care for young children. This book addresses several important issues that are currently under discussion with respect to this topic. In particular, the book focuses on three topics presently under debate: the professionalization of pedagogues working in the field of early childhood education; the quality of education and care provided by families and preschools; and the promotion of children from socio-economically disadvantaged families. Providing an excellent overview of current research in Germany, this book will be useful to readers who are interested in international perspectives on early childhood education and who want to gain insight into relevant topics discussed in other countries. This book was originally published as a special issue of Early Child Development and Care.




Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood Education in Germany


Book Description

The importance of early childhood education has been emphasized by a large body of research that has demonstrated that children’s cognitive and socio-emotional development is significantly influenced by the quality of the education and care received from their families and in preschool. Consequently, it is important to investigate factors that pertain to the provision of a high-quality education and high-quality care for young children. This book addresses several important issues that are currently under discussion with respect to this topic. In particular, the book focuses on three topics presently under debate: the professionalization of pedagogues working in the field of early childhood education; the quality of education and care provided by families and preschools; and the promotion of children from socio-economically disadvantaged families. Providing an excellent overview of current research in Germany, this book will be useful to readers who are interested in international perspectives on early childhood education and who want to gain insight into relevant topics discussed in other countries. This book was originally published as a special issue of Early Child Development and Care.




Early Childhood Education in Germany


Book Description

This book draws on the perspectives of leading German scholars to provide a systematic overview of early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Germany, furthering international understanding of the complexities involved in ECEC topics in Germany. The book provides a unique insight into parts of German ECEC rarely seen outside of the country. Offering in-depth insights into historical developments, theoretical approaches and empirical research, the volume discusses Germany's long tradition in ECEC against the backdrop of Froebel and other pedagogues and traditions. Chapters consider ECEC in Germany from the perspectives of theory, institutions and professionalization. The book draws on international literature and current debates to highlight the features and peculiarities of ECEC in Germany, contributing to dialogue on research into early childhood education and care. Providing a much-needed, internationally relevant insight into ECEC in Germany, this text will be essential reading for academics, researchers and post-graduate students involved in the field of early childhood education, international education, educational theory, and those researching educational policy and politics more widely.




Teachers' and Families' Perspectives in Early Childhood Education and Care


Book Description

The second volume in this Early Childhood Education in the 21st Century: International Teaching, Family and Policy Perspectives miniseries focuses on teacher and family perspectives of early childhood education and care from 19 different countries around the world. The aim of this volume is to articulate the key components of teacher education and family practices that impact young children’s education and care. Each country featured in this volume presents its own unique perspective in relation to the cultural and societal constraints around teacher training and/or family practices and the thinking around those practices that are important for early childhood development. Offering a unique insight into how teachers and families work together in different countries, the book is essential reading for early childhood educators, researchers, early childhood organisations, policy makers and those interested to know more about early childhood within an international perspective.




Student Learning in German Higher Education


Book Description

This book offers a comprehensive overview of current, innovative approaches to assessing domain-specific and generic student learning and learning outcomes in higher education. The presented work from all projects of the KoKoHs program, the most significant research initiative in German higher education since 2011, describes established tools and empirical results.




The First 1000 Days of Early Childhood


Book Description

This book provides a philosophical, socio-political and theoretical understanding of the notion of Becoming in the context of the related concepts, and in contemplation of the notion of Being. Deriving from different traditions from various countries, these concepts act as windows on contemporary early years settings and communities around the world where adults map out infant becomings. This book is a valuable resource for early childhood educators, students, professionals, researchers, and policy makers around the globe who seek to understand the locatedness of infant becomings in space and time.




Ethnocultural Diversity and the Home-to-School Link


Book Description

This book explores family-school partnerships and how they can be most effectively leveraged to ensure academic success for students from socioculturally diverse backgrounds. It presents an innovative framework for building collaborative learning partnerships with culturally diverse families, for improved student achievement and more meaningful ties between schools and their communities. It promotes understanding of familial and communal knowledge and recognizing families’ resilience in addressing academic, social, and linguistic barriers. Chapters reimagine family-school partnerships within a context of shared power and authority, examine a spectrum of interventions that support culture-based modes of learning, and emphasize the potential for transformative learning to occur when students’ out-of-school lives are understood and meaningfully leveraged in school. Chapters also discuss how to foster bridges between parents and teachers, provide teachers with access to the rich cognitive and cultural resources of families, and enable all parties to begin viewing families as truly equal partners in children’s education. The book concludes with a commentary chapter that identifies necessary areas for further research. Topics featured in this volume include: The contribution of racial and ethnic socialization to family-school partnerships during early childhood. Fathers and their role in family-school partnerships. The importance of Indigenous family engagement in systems of education. Home-school partnerships and mixed-status immigrant families in the United States. Family-school partnership research with the migrant and seasonal farm working community. The role of humility in working with families across international contexts. Interventions that promote home-to-school links. Ethnocultural Diversity and the Home-to-School Link is a must-have resource for researchers, professionals, and graduate students in education, child and school psychology, educational policy and politics, family studies, developmental psychology, sociology of education, and anthropology.




The Influence of Theorists and Pioneers on Early Childhood Education


Book Description

The chapters in this book reflect on the major shifts in the views of early childhood thinkers and educators, who have contributed to contemporary theoretical frameworks pertaining to early childhood learning. The book also revisits and critically analyses the influence of developmental theories on early childhood education, starting in the 1890s with the work of G. Stanley Hall that established the close association of early childhood education and child development. Several chapters comprise critical examinations of the fundamental influence of thinkers such as Piaget, Vygotsky, Kohlberg, Adler, Pestalozzi, Froebel, and so on, on early childhood learning. The book also contends that these theoretical conceptions of child development have heavily influenced modern views of early childhood education. This book is a significant new contribution to early childhood learning, and will be a great resource for academics, researchers, and advanced students of Education, Public Policy, History of Education, Psychology, and Sociology. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the Early Child Development and Care.




International Perspectives in the Early Years


Book Description

′This informative and wide-ranging book argues persuasively for the value of multiple perspectives, both international and disciplinary, in the study and practice of early childhood education, because they feed our imaginations and provoke us to think. And while illustrating the many differences that exist between countries, it highlights the shared issues confronting us, wherever we live.′ - Emeritus Professor Peter Moss, Institute of Education, University of London Stemming from original research in the field, a range of expert contributors explore the key themes and debates surrounding international perspectives on Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). Drawing on studies carried out in Norway, Mexico, France, Hungary and many more countries, the book covers a wide range of topics including: the relationship between early childhood and primary education gender and play in ECEC curriculum inclusion early interventions working with families place-based learning With case studies, detailed suggestions for further reading at different levels and discussion points, this is a key text for students of Early Years at all levels, from Foundation Degree to Masters, as well as current early years practitioners. Linda Miller is Professor Emeritus of Early Years, The Open University. Claire Cameron is Senior Reader in Education at the Thomas Coram Research Unit, Institute of Education, University of London.




Democratic Policies and Practices in Early Childhood Education


Book Description

This book uses case studies of Aotearoa New Zealand policy formulation and practice to explore early childhood education and care (ECEC) as a site for democratic citizenship and social justice. Addressing fundamental questions about the purpose of education, it argues for explicit values focusing on children and childhood as a basis for ECEC policy to replace discourses of economic investment and child vulnerability that are dominant within policy goals in many countries. A commitment to democracy and equity is a good place to start. Aotearoa New Zealand is of special interest because of its world-renowned ECE curriculum, Te Whāriki, which is based on principles of social justice, respect for rights and an aim to support children growing up in a democracy. The curriculum upholds Māori rights to tino rangatiratanga (absolute authority over their lives and resources). Yet, Aotearoa New Zealand’s extreme market policies and harsh labour laws during recent periods run contrary to ideals of democracy and are puzzlingly inconsistent with curriculum principles. The book starts with an analysis and critique of global trends in ECEC in countries that share capitalist mixed economies of welfare, and where competition and marketisation have become dominant principles. It then analyses ideas about children, childhood and ECEC within a framework of democracy, going back to the Athenean origins of democracy and including recent literature on meanings and traditions of democracy in education. The book uses vivid examples from researching curriculum, pedagogy and assessment practices within Aotearoa New Zealand ECEC settings and collective action to influence policy change in order to illustrate opportunities for democratic education. It concludes by examining what conditions might be needed for integrated and democratic ECEC provision in Aotearoa New Zealand, and what changes are necessary for the future. It offers a compass not a map; it points to promising directions and provides insights into issues in ECEC policy and practice that are of current global concern.