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Contemporary discourses regarding children’s spirituality in ECEC professional publication streams (academic and practitioner readership) were analysed, with consideration of impacts of these discourses on practice in the early years sector. Many established theoretical concepts regarding children’s spirituality were not evident in the early years texts analysed, suggesting that those theories are either not relevant, not accepted or simply not on the radar of early years specialists. Tacit acceptance of a young child’s spirituality was evident, alongside a focus on ensuring spiritual rights and wellbeing, rather than efforts to nurture or enhance a child’s spirituality. Whilst discourse analysis revealed that spirituality is viewed positively and as a valued component of a young child’s development and wellbeing, inclusion of spirituality in ECEC internet sources and academic literature is minimal, suggesting that in practice, spirituality is pushed aside in contemporary early years practice. More research is needed to understand how these discourses may impact upon early years practice, and to investigate the perspectives of practitioners and parents about spirituality in contemporary early childhood education and care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An early start to good-quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) is considered beneficial, especially for disadvantaged children's development and educational outcomes. This assumption was tested using the latest two waves (2015 and 2018) of data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in five countries using the Nordic model of early education and care: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. The article finds evidence of the overall positive association between the age of entry in ECEC and literacy at age 15 in all Nordic countries. However, the relationship is non-linear, and the highest benefits seem to occur following entry into ECEC from ages two to three. The link between family background and ECEC enrollment largely explains this association. We did not find that ECEC would generally compensate for low socioeconomic status (SES) in children's achievement. However, the Matthew effect was observed in Norway, where an early ECEC start is more strongly associated with literacy scores for affluent children than disadvantaged children. These findings have limitations due to their correlational nature. Still, this article indicates that even in high-quality universal ECEC systems, early preschool education is not a panacea for lowering achievement gaps due to parental background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) has been found to be beneficial for the development of children below three years. However, many children do not attend ECEC facilities. Frequently, structural family characteristics (SFC), such as migration background, educational attainment and income, are used to explain differing probabilities of attendance, while parental attitudes are mostly not considered. Thus, assuming that SFC influence attitudes, this paper investigates whether the attitudes and views of parents towards ECEC explain why one- and two-year-old children from disadvantaged families attend day care less often, although they would strongly benefit from high-quality ECEC. The underlying data are from the German DJI Child Care Study (KiBS). The results show that parental attitudes substantially contribute to explaining diverging attendance probabilities. The more positive parents evaluate day care, the higher the probability of their child attending. However, SFC maintain most of their explanatory power. Besides, SFC and parental attitudes interact. The probability of ECEC attendance increases differently depending on the (varying degree of positivity of) attitudes by SFC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• With modifications, the Mini Markers can be used to efficiently assess the personality of educators. • Structural quality indicators were associated with educator personality. • Educator personality was also associated with the responsivity provided to children. • Majority of educators were identified as having a resilient personality profile, with some having ordinary personality profiles. Given the significant time that children aged zero to six spend in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings, it is imperative that we understand the drivers of ECEC quality. The role of educator personality in the quality of ECEC settings has received little attention from researchers. Using a sample of 595 educators from 240 infant and toddler classrooms, the present study examined (1) the role that educator personality plays on key quality indicators in Canadian ECEC settings, (2) the factor validity of the Mini Markers, a commonly used measure of personality, and (3) whether there are subgroups of educators based on personality characteristics, using a latent profile analysis (LPA). Results showed an acceptable factor structure of the Mini Markers measure of personality with early childhood educators. Furthermore, personality was positively related to both structural and process quality indicators. Specifically, the structural indicators of income and years in the classroom were positively and significantly related to Agreeableness and Extraversion (small and medium effects, respectively). In terms of process quality, educators' level of Extraversion had a positive and significant relationship with the quality of responsive interactions they provide to children (small effect). Finally, the LPA revealed diverse educator personality types with no significant variation at the classroom level. This study highlights the need for ongoing research to explore the connection between educators' personalities and quality in ECEC, with implications discussed for practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents the Italian practitioners' perspective on the inclusion of children with disabilities in ECEC. Historically, Italy had a split system (0–3 and 3–6 divisions); only recently was the ZeroSix Integrated System established. Seven 0–3-division educators and seven 3–6-division teachers were interviewed. Their responses were analysed through a deductive content analysis, based on the eight dimensions of inclusion proposed by the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education (2017). The themes which were mainly mentioned as crucial for promoting inclusion were a child-centred approach; inclusive teaching and learning environment; inclusive social environment; and family-friendly environment. These same dimensions were also said to be challenging, together with the implementation of materials for all children. The strengths and weaknesses in inclusive processes partly differed between the two divisions. This study enriches the literature investigating how practitioners implement inclusive practices in ECEC, also analysing the differences between the 0–3 and the 3–6 divisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This quantitative study examines the connection between the years that children spent in early childhood education and care (ECEC) and their social orientations and main objects of attention. The data were collected within the Progressive Feedback project by observing children: 20,457 observations of 972 six-year-olds from 360 child groups in Finland. According to the results, the years children spent in ECEC have a connection to their social orientations and main objects of attention, and differences between genders were discovered. The longer the children had attended ECEC, the less adaptive orientation was observed. The children that had attended ECEC for under a year were observed to be the least participative. Dominant orientation increased the longer the children had attended ECEC. Those that had been in ECEC for more than four years rarely paid attention to non-social objects and adults and often paid attention to several children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies have linked quality in early childhood education and care [ECEC] to school performance, but the mechanisms of how ECEC process quality affects children in ways that lead to improved school performance is unclear. In this study on 7431 children in Norway, we test the hypothesis that the relation between process quality in ECEC and later school performance is mediated by early social skills. Process quality was measured at age 5 years along two dimensions: 'pedagogical practices' and 'structured activities', and school performance was measured at age 11 years (5th grade) using mandatory national tests in math, reading, and English. The results show that the indirect effect of pedagogical practices on school outcomes through social skills was small but statistically significant. In contrast, there was no statistically significant indirect effect of structured activities on school performance through social skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The notion of "professional" is built on a concept of traditionally male professions and patriarchal social orders. ECEC (early childhood education and care), however, is a female-dominated field characterised by its unique caring practice. This study investigated how a group of Australian early childhood preservice teachers presented themselves professionally on social media, in relation to respective infant (0-2) and kindergarten (3-5) practica. Data were drawn from focus group discussions about how the participants shared their practicum experiences on Instagram. The paper is guided by Foucault's concepts of self writing. Findings are organised around four themes of selfwriting processes: collecting, selecting, annotating, and managing time and tasks. Two narratives are revealed. In the context of the kindergarten placement, the posts constituted a journey of continuous improvement against all odds. In contrast, the infant placement experiences evoked a sense of struggle and renunciation. The paper concludes with implications for further study beyond the Australian context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we envision a holistic approach to the education of children within a participatory paradigm, which integrates inner and outer worlds in a new understanding of consciousness. The inspiration for our reimagining arose from a research study undertaken in partnership with Kids Planet Day Nurseries which included inquiring into the impact of Covid-19 on children in early childhood education and care. It was discovered that, although parents and practitioners identified Covid as a traumatic event, there was little awareness of the potential effects on children's inner worlds. Similarly, the government in its post-lockdown policymaking focused on catch-up with learning, rather than addressing wider psychological issues. In this reimagining of the education system, the neoliberal principle of 'profit as primary' has been eradicated, along with its long-term positivist partner 'scientism', which proclaims all valid knowledge is quantifiable. Instead, the focus is on the intra-active dimensions of learning, grounded in the idea of a 'triangle of trust' developed in the early years and continued into a relational pedagogy in primary schools. The challenges involved in replacing a positivist Newtonian worldview with a participatory paradigm, where inner and outer worlds are entangled and equally important, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The professionalization of preschool teachers is considered an important factor for ensuring and improving the quality of interactions and relationships. Findings on associations between teachers’ professional competencies and the quality of interactions and relationships in preschools are not only inconsistent in general but also rare for early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Austria. Therefore, the aim of this study is to address this research gap by considering interaction quality at the child level (measured with the inCLASS) and preschool teachers’ perceptions of the teacher– child relationship (measured with the STRS). A sample of 287 children from 89 Austrian preschools was examined. After including control variables, the results of regression analyses revealed that preschool teachers’ beliefs on co-construction were negatively related to task orientation, whereas their beliefs on instruction were positively related to task orientation. Furthermore, preschool teachers’ work engagement was positively related to conflict interactions. Regarding teacher–child closeness, a positive association with preschool teachers’ work engagement was found. Results on teacher–child conflict showed a positive effect of preschool teachers’ beliefs on instruction and negative effects of teachers’ beliefs on co-construction and their self-efficacy. The findings are discussed in regard to the professionalization of preschool teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a multilevel random-coefficient approach, we examined the longitudinal association between toddlers' early shyness and their well-being during their first year in Norwegian early childhood education and care (ECEC) centres. We used data from two measurement points (preintervention and postintervention) from a larger cluster randomized controlled trial study, Thrive by 3. We followed 567 children (answered by 415 mothers and 152 fathers) who were younger than 19 months and had just started in ECEC at preintervention. Our findings indicate that toddlers' early shyness during their starting period in ECEC is associated with their well-being by the end of their first year in ECEC. Our findings highlight the importance of paying extra attention to shy toddlers, as they seem to show less well-being during their early period in ECEC. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03879733. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the tensions arising in the integration process of refugee children in Norwegian early childhood education and care (ECEC) centers. ECEC centers have become important arenas for integrating refugees, particularly in light of the refugees’ obligation to participate in Norway’s introduction program. For many refugee children, ECEC centers are the first public institutions they encounter, where they learn about norms and values outside of their homes. Using institutional ethnography as the inquiry method, data were gathered using semi-structured interviews with ECEC professionals, focusing on how they interact with refugee children and carry out everyday integration work. The article adopts Elias’ “civilizing process” as the overarching analytical concept. The findings reveal that the integration of refugee children involves tensions in negotiating language, civilizing children in relation to Norwegian ideals of childhood, and civilizing parents in relation to the Norwegian cultural ideal of parenting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents play a vital role in identifying children's needs for support and Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) features that support children's well-being. This study examined parental perspectives on features of ECEC that foster young children's well-being under and above the age of 3 years by interviewing 359 parents across nine European countries (England, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Portugal). Results revealed that parental perspectives largely converged with quality features discussed in ECEC research. Process quality features were mentioned more frequently than structural features for all children 0- to 6-years-old in almost all countries. However, care-oriented features were mentioned more frequently for under 3 years, and educational-oriented features were mentioned more frequently for the older group. Regarding structural features, patterns of responses across the two age groups were similar in most countries. Age differences were not more pronounced in countries with a split governance system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is increasing concern about the ways in which neoliberalism is impacting Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), particularly in relation to infants and toddlers. The neoliberal agenda positions the outdoors as risky and a place to be physically active, potentially excluding the youngest children from these spaces. Drawing upon case study data from a larger project exploring outdoor provision for infants and toddlers in England, we demonstrate the critical leadership role owner/managers can play. They do this by creating different kinds of pedagogic spaces (cultural, physical and reflective) for practitioners to develop their outdoor practices. We argue that the creation of such spaces requires explicit acts of resistance and disruption to neoliberal understandings about the place of infants and toddlers outdoors. Our research demonstrates the potential for owner/managers to act as critical pedagogues creating spaces called hope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the regulation of publicly organized early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Denmark and Sweden, through the regulatory welfare state (RWS) framework. The analysis focuses on how alterations in funding and quality of care are shaped by governmental and nongovernmental actors at national and local levels of government. Through focused structured analysis, we examine how various actors have shaped the funding and quality of childcare in Denmark and Sweden, from the early 2000s to 2020, with special attention to the period during and after the 2008 financial crisis. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, concerns about quality in care were raised on the political agenda by various actors in both countries, leading to decisions to improve the quality of care. Yet, the regulatory dynamics differ: In Denmark, the debate led to a decision in 2019, to implement a minimum statutory requirement of regulatory quality standards. From an RWS perspective, this outcome can be qualified as "double expansion," because regulatory quality standards, and public funding for childcare increased. In Sweden, the debates about quality of ECEC led, in 2016, to political guidelines about quality standard, but with no additional national funds, and no mandatory regulatory quality requirements. Analytically, this can be qualified as "regulatory‐led expansion," that is requirements for quality standards, although the lack of additional national funds suggests that it will be difficult to improve ECEC quality substantially. The RWS perspective, which focuses on national and municipal levels of governance, also gives insights into hidden inequalities between municipalities regarding funding and quality of ECEC, which are more pronounced in Sweden than in Denmark. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the dynamic and situated nature of language education policy in an Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) centre through the lens of researcher-child relationality. Drawing on data from 4.5 months of linguistic ethnographic fieldwork in a pre-school in the Netherlands, one extended play situation that emerged between me as a researcher and a multilingual child is discussed in-depth. During our play, we interrelate with the pre-school's dominantly monolingual language education policy in multiple ways, ranging from manifesting it to challenging it, while we also constantly relate to the ECEC environment, and each other. Relationality is suggested as a fruitful pathway to understanding processual and dynamic language education policy processes, taking both child agency and researcher agency into account as it constantly emerges and intra-acts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers and practitioners nowadays are convinced that social and emotional skills (SES) are a crucial element in human development. Numerous scientific research studies and international and national reports show the significance of attaining SES in the early years. Supporting the development and improvement of social and emotional skills in children from an early age increases to a great extent their chances of success in school, work, and life. This will influence on one-hand side children's level of development as a whole, not only in the field of the social and emotional domain, but also has an influence on their families, kindergarten and school community, and the overall society. The EU-SELF project presents an innovative approach that integrates scientific knowledge and proficiency in the realm of SES with its applied implementation into educational practices. Within the framework of the project, a Europe-wide webbased platform was developed. It provides reliable, professional and user-friendly information on SES states regarding several key areas like skills development, their assessment, and approaches to interventions for early childhood education and care (ECEC) (i.e., children aged 0 to 7 years old). Some of the project outputs are (1) country-specific SES descriptions for all the European countries, (2) a program SES compendium for Europe, (3) SES assessment measure compendium, and (4) a systematic review. The EU-Self platform functions as both a repository of information and a means of communication and exchange for early childhood education and care providers, teachers, researchers, stakeholders, and experts in Europe and worldwide. It supports the achievement of EU key priorities, raises awareness and promotes SES development in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing consensus in early childhood education and care (ECEC) that intentional teaching is pivotal for deep level learning, especially when teaching scientific concepts. However, intentional teaching alone does not always account for how educators communicate their intentions with children. To bridge this gap, we explore the possibilities of integrating the concepts of learning intentions and success criteria in play-based learning. Learning intentions and success criteria are practised in schools and are considered effective in enhancing learning outcomes and assessment. In ECEC, an emergent body of literature has started to examine how formative assessments could be incorporated into teaching to support children's self-regulation through play. To extend this research area, we investigate Australian early childhood educators' perspectives on implementing learning intentions and success criteria as a practice of intentional teaching focusing on mathematics. Based on the initial findings from a Design-based research project, we propose an integrated pedagogical framework for play-based environments. Implications for practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines different rationalities for parental involvement in their children's early childhood education and care (ECEC). Starting from Foucault's governmentality and the context of the transforming and diversifying Czech preschool system, it analyzes parents' rationalities for their involvement in ECEC and discusses how they relate to the neoliberal ideal of the responsible autonomous family. Analyzing data from interviews with parents in six ECEC facilities with different characteristics, it identifies five rationalities for parental involvement and shows how the neoliberal processes of responsibilization and autonomization play a central role in the (de)legitimization of these parental rationalities. Reflecting on how the rationalities of parental involvement gain or lose legitimacy in relation to dominant norms and ideals helps ECEC students and practitioners to understand how social inequalities are potentially exacerbated through the promotion/expectation of certain forms of parental involvement in parent – ECEC facility relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The creating healthy eating and active environments survey (CHEERS) is an audit tool used to assess the nutrition and physical activity environment in early childhood education and care (ECEC) centres. Availability of the tool has been limited to paper-based versions. Digital health initiatives offer improved reach and immediacy of support for community-based clients through novel technology products. In order to provide increased access to the CHEERS tool, an online version was developed. The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of an online version of CHEERS. Methods Utilizing a randomized crossover design, ECEC educators completed either a paper-based or online-based survey and then the opposite mode with a two to three-week interval. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC, with 95% confidence interval) was used to determine the reliability between test and retest. Absolute index of reliability in the original measurement was assessed through the standard error of measurement (SEM = SD × √1-ICC). The smallest amount of change not due to inherent variation was assessed by determining minimal detectable change at the 95% confidence level (MDC95 = SEM × 1.96 ×√2; MDC95% = MDC95/mean ×100). Results Test–retest reliability was good to excellent for the online-based CHEERS total score (ICC = 0.86) and for each of the four subscales: food served (ICC = 0.82), healthy eating environment (ICC = 0.76), program planning (ICC = 0.76), and physical activity environment (ICC = 0.79). The SEM, MDC95, and MDC95% for the CHEERS overall score were 0.79, 2.19, and 9.6%, respectively. Conclusions The results of this study demonstrate that the online-based and paper-based versions of the CHEERS audit tool share comparable accuracy. The CHEERS tool can be reliably implemented in an online environment and this provides users an alternative means to complete the centre-based health assessment. The advantage of the online-based version includes user accessibility and the potential to develop a feedback response for participants using digitally collected data.

Our aim is to investigate how Sámi early childhood education and care institutions (ECECs) contextualise their work to support psychosocial well-being among children aged 4–6. We have conducted seven qualitative interviews among ECEC educators. Using Stepwise Deductive Induction (SDI) analysis we found that Sámi ECECs contextualise their work to support psychosocial well-being among children by constantly balancing between dealing with the possible consequences of Norwegianisation and the assimilation process from the past and highlighting Sámi culture in a positive way. In practice the staff try to support the children’s positive sense of self, recognition and feeling a sense of belonging to the Sámi culture. They also strive to contextualise Sámi practices in terms of today’s society and adjust to the present group of staff, children, and parents to ensure the children’s well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early learning agendas are currently being introduced in early childhood education and care (ECEC) by transnational organizations such as the EU and OECD. In this paper, we focus on Denmark, where such agendas interweave with a pedagogical tradition emphasizing a child-centered approach and children's play. Based on ethnographic research, we explore learning agendas as part of practice in ECEC centers, pursuing the situated meanings of a learning program as part of everyday practice in ECEC centers from three different perspectives: of children, professionals and managers. Informed by psychological and anthropological traditions, this design employs an agentic stance and conceptualizes children, professionals and managers as subjects actively contributing to the co-creation, transformation and translation of policies in everyday contexts. Key findings suggest that the appropriation of national and international learning agendas in ECEC settings characterized by local traditions is an ambiguous process. On the one hand, the learning program's structure can support existing professional practices and traditions. On the other hand, the program's focus on learning goals and evaluation practices reduces the focus on pedagogy and supports administrative and political logics, which in turn marginalizes important knowledge about children and their engagements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The creating healthy eating and active environments survey (CHEERS) is an audit tool used to assess the nutrition and physical activity environment in early childhood education and care (ECEC) centres. Availability of the tool has been limited to paper-based versions. Digital health initiatives offer improved reach and immediacy of support for community-based clients through novel technology products. In order to provide increased access to the CHEERS tool, an online version was developed. The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of an online version of CHEERS. Methods: Utilizing a randomized crossover design, ECEC educators completed either a paper-based or online-based survey and then the opposite mode with a two to three-week interval. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC, with 95% confidence interval) was used to determine the reliability between test and retest. Absolute index of reliability in the original measurement was assessed through the standard error of measurement (SEM = SD × √1-ICC). The smallest amount of change not due to inherent variation was assessed by determining minimal detectable change at the 95% confidence level (MDC95 = SEM × 1.96 ×√2; MDC95% = MDC95/mean ×100). Results: Test–retest reliability was good to excellent for the online-based CHEERS total score (ICC = 0.86) and for each of the four subscales: food served (ICC = 0.82), healthy eating environment (ICC = 0.76), program planning (ICC = 0.76), and physical activity environment (ICC = 0.79). The SEM, MDC95, and MDC95% for the CHEERS overall score were 0.79, 2.19, and 9.6%, respectively. Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrate that the online-based and paper-based versions of the CHEERS audit tool share comparable accuracy. The CHEERS tool can be reliably implemented in an online environment and this provides users an alternative means to complete the centre-based health assessment. The advantage of the online-based version includes user accessibility and the potential to develop a feedback response for participants using digitally collected data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is near consensus that early childhood education and care (ECEC) is essential to children's early development. A common corollary is that early learning will be pivotal to helping redress inequities in educational outcomes. We examine whether this is true among rural communities in the Indian states of Assam, Rajasthan, and Telangana. Specifically, we assess whether learning gains for the most disadvantaged are retained in comparison to more advantaged children who had lower initial learning levels. We find that lower-achieving, more advantaged children (as measured by mother's education) soon overtake higher-achieving but less advantaged children. In contrast, higher-achieving girls remain ahead of lower-achieving boys in Assam and Telangana, although they are caught up in Rajasthan. Given the differing patterns across the states, we explore the extent to which these may be shaped by their respective social and policy contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we analyze activities in which early childhood education and care (ECEC) teachers, together with pairs of children, engage in digital storytelling activities with a tablet application. The participating teachers and children speak more than one national language, and the activity has been pursued with the intention of supporting children’s full use of their various semiotic repertoires. Theoretically informed by a sociocultural perspective, the notion of semiotic repertoires here refers to not only national languages, such as English and Swedish, but also other semiotic means for communication such as sign language, gestures, and drawings. With the purpose of addressing how ECEC can be responsive to children’s repertoires of semiotic means of communication, the research question asked is: How are various semiotic repertoires introduced and responded to in the storytelling activities? The results consist of a differentiation and specification of the meaning of responsivity in the context of semiotic repertoires. The implications for children’s participation in developmental activities and the ambition of creating socially just ECEC institutions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social innovation and empowerment are complex concepts that, from an analytical point of view, are not necessarily related. One explicit goal of social innovation is to empower communities, as well as the individuals that are involved in activities within those communities, but this does not necessarily always occur. Here we address the question 'Does social innovation in early childhood education and care (ECEC) empower women?' First, we explore whether the projects we examine can be defined as social innovations. Second, we analyse to what extent arrangements that are identified as innovative in ECEC empower the mothers who choose them. We argue that if the characteristics of a particular social innovation project enhance or reinforce the capabilities of the women who participate in it, that experience will most probably empower them; if not, this is unlikely to occur. Our empirical material includes 37 interviews with key informants, educators, and mothers involved in these non-institutionalized projects, collected in Barcelona. Our results reveal the socioeconomic bias in these projects, as well as the costs derived for both sets of participants (mothers and educators). They also show the wider social impact that stems from these projects being under-regulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interpretation in cross-language qualitative research presents a range of methodological and ethical challenges. Among these are the interpreters' influence on data generation and interview power dynamics. Having translators review and/or produce an independent translation of recorded interview material for comparative purposes is regarded as one of the ways researchers can control for these challenges. However, there are other reasons why translations of interpreted materials are valuable. This paper explores these issues by reporting an interview focused on investigating the experiences of a non-Icelandic family as their child made the transition to an Icelandic preschool. In this case, the interpreter influenced data generation in a semi-structured interview; a situation that was only fully revealed in follow-up translation. The findings suggest that while the follow-up translation demonstrates discrepancies and the interpreter's tendency to modify both questions and responses during the interview, comparative analysis of the oral interpretation and translation of the interview text opens up new dimensions in the data that would otherwise have gone unnoticed by the researcher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This thematic section editorial gives an overview of the three related articles introducing the programs Papilio-3to6, Papilio-U3, and Papilio-6to9. The essential, connecting elements are presented (developmentally appropriate prevention, social-emotional learning [SEL], and developmentally appropriate practice) and the relation between the three programs is explained in the context of an overarching educational approach from 0 to 9 to early childhood education and care (ECEC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the SAGA project is to support children's social-emotional development and teacher mentalizing by promoting regular shared story-book reading with mentalizing dialogs in early childhood education and care (ECEC) centers. The theoretical phase, the modeling phase (Phase I), and the exploratory phase (Phase II) of the SAGA intervention, as well as the research protocol for the final trial (Phase III), are described in the present article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review examines the extant Australian literature on process quality in ECEC, which is understood as children’s actual experience within a childcare setting such as interactions between educators and children. A thematic analysis of empirical evidence from the 21 qualified articles reveals key characteristics of ECEC process quality studies, the benefits of process quality to child outcomes, and some factors influencing process quality. The review highlights the increasing interest in ECEC process quality in Australia and that process quality can be linked to children’s outcomes in the early years. It also underscores that outdoor environments and educators’ attributes such as personal experiences and qualifications stood out as the key supporting factors of process quality. More importantly, the review found that most of the process quality studies in Australia were conducted in metropolitan areas, and there were only two studies focused on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. The paper calls for more actions to combine process quality with equity across types of ECEC services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study's purpose was to elucidate the experiences of educators raising and responding to child-related concerns within Early Childhood Education and Care settings. Parent satisfaction with interactions, educators' ratings of how well interactions went, and educator confidence related to raising or responding to concerns, were examined. Participants were 302 parents and 118 educators from 19 long day care and/or kindergarten services in Victoria, Australia. Results revealed child behaviour, toilet training and social development concerns were most often discussed, and most parents felt satisfied with interactions they had with their child's educator about those concerns. Overall, educators reported favourably about their own interactions. Some negative experiences reported by parents, and educators' comments about successful components of raising and responding to concerns, provide key insights into effective communication and relationship-building strategies. This study addresses the importance of active skills-based training for early childhood educators in communicating effectively with parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 16 Flying Start early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings within a Local Authority in Wales, observations of adult-child interactions, using the Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Wellbeing Scale (SSTEW), highlighted that interactions that support children's problem solving, curiosity, concept development, and higher-order thinking were the least well developed aspects of practice. A two-day professional learning intervention 'Talking Science', underpinned by a socio-cultural understanding of science learning in ECEC was designed. The intervention was delivered via a collaborative, socio constructive model of delivery en masse to all 64 practitioners in the 16 Flying Start settings. This qualitative mixed method research project adopted an interpretivist paradigm; the aim was to better understand ECEC practitioners' perceptions of science and how these perceptions both shaped provision and supported children's concept development in their settings. Data collection took the form of scribed notes from group discussions, feedback from practitioners during discussions and evaluation feedback about 'Talking Science'. The experiential professional learning programme with a focus on science in everyday practice appeared to be supportive of practitioners' developing confidence and subsequent engagement with science provision for young children. 'Talking Science' also provides a model which may have wider implications when designing ECEC professional learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What does it mean to be a Froebelian in the 21st century? It is not a new question but one that is more urgent than ever. Not only since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic but for years, young children and their well-being have been thrust aside, and Early Childhood Education and Care worldwide has been treated as subordinate. The Global Education Reform Movement (GERM) has negatively impacted early childhood education over the last decades, and these tendencies have only exacerbated during the pandemic. This essay centers around what it means to be a Froebelian and what role Froebelian thinking can play in the 21st century. The focus is on the questions and not the answers. The essay asks what it does and what it does not mean to be a Froebelian in the 21st century. It finishes by reflecting on the role that Froebelian thinking can play today to advocate for young children's well-being in a post-pandemic world by resisting current GERM thinking and developing alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The holistic relationship between children and nature is at the heart of Froebel's philosophy and practice: he took for granted that young children would grow up "in" and "with" nature. This paper explores the contemporary relevance of this thinking to babies and toddlers in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. It is based on a research project funded by the Froebel Trust which explores outdoor provision in English settings. Our findings suggest that whilst the pedagogic potential of the outdoors for babies and toddlers appears to be generally recognized, there is little emphasis on supporting them to engage with the natural characteristics of the outdoor environment. Concerns about safety and an emphasis on physical activity mean that natural elements may be discouraged in favor of manufactured alternatives such as artificial grass or commercially produced resources. We argue that Froebelian philosophy offers a much-needed theoretical lens that can illuminate the limitations of such practices for both the human and non-human world. Importantly, we highlight the interconnectedness of human and environmental health and suggest the need to develop nature engaging and nature enhancing pedagogies from birth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risky play is defined as thrilling and challenging forms of play that have the potential for physical injury and has been linked to development and health benefits for children in the early years. These benefits include risk-assessment skills, increased physical activity and well-being, and promoting social competencies and resilience. Currently, in a Western context, children's opportunities for risky play are decreasing and at the same time, childhood inactivity and coinciding health concerns are on the rise. Risky play may help ameliorate some current health problems for children. This research aimed to increase understanding of how children use affordances (environmental factors that intersect with and influence human behaviours) for risky play. Physical environmental factors have been found to influence children's affordances for all play, including risky play. The study employed a deductive analysis of participant-observer field notes and focused-video observations in order to identify how children utilize indoor and outdoor environmental features for risky play. Data was interpreted through Gibson's theory of affordances and was then fit to established taxonomies of environments for children's risky play. Research was conducted with children, ages 3–4 years, at a kindergarten in Norway. Findings identified environmental affordances for risky play that were actualized by children in this study. We propose that findings from this study may be useful in considering the physical design of early childhood education play spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The promotion of children's development and well-being is a core concept in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) quality frameworks. Yet, few validated instruments measuring young children's well-being exist. This study examined the validity of The Leiden Inventory for the Child's Well-being in Daycare (LICW-D) (De Schipper et al., 2004b) in a sample of toddlers (n = 1,472) attending ECEC centers in Norway, using confirmatory factor analysis. Factorial invariance across gender and concurrent validity were also investigated. Indicators of concurrent validity were problem behaviors and difficult temperament, as rated by professional caregivers. Results showed a marginally acceptable fit for the hypothesized one-factor model, when allowing the measurement error of four item pairs to be correlated. This slightly modified model showed satisfactory concurrent validity, and factorial invariance across gender was confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ECEC refers to formal education and care provided in settings registered with a regulator, such as Ofsted in England, for example nurseries, childminders, playgroups and children's centres. Regulated ECEC settings include private and public providers. Further information about ECEC in England can be found in the POSTnote on Early Childhood Education and Care and the Commons Library briefing on Early years funding (England). This article provides an overview of the impact of COVID-19 on ECEC provided in regulated settings from birth to the start of primary school. It does not cover informal care provided by relatives or friends, or school reception year. Education is devolved and this rapid response applies to England only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language development in early childhood education and care (ECEC) has received increased policy attention in the past 20 years. Yet, few empirical studies have explored language assessment from the standpoint of ECEC teachers. Transnational organizations, such as the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), have increased their influence over national ECEC curriculums, stressing early intervention/readiness-for-school approaches to assist vulnerable groups in society. In contrast, the Nordic social pedagogy field perceives early intervention policies a threat to child-centered, playful approaches to learning. Based on interviews with 11 Danish and 11 Norwegian ECEC teachers in Copenhagen and Oslo municipalities, three main forms of ambivalence are identified: (1) ambivalence toward the 'ready-for-school' discourse, (2) ambivalence toward professional autonomy and discretion, and (3) ambivalence toward integration policy and the ideological code of 'the standard child.' The study recommends a more inclusive understanding of the implications of 'adequate language proficiency' and 'school readiness.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines participation in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in Kosovo based on a recent survey and administrative data. Kosovo’s ECEC policy aims to provide education and care for children aged 0 to 6 through an approach consisting of highly targeted public services for more vulnerable social groups, while expecting the rest to rely on the market or the family. It also provides a universal, public (2.5 hours a day) school preparatory programme for children aged 5-6 years. Availability of ECEC services has been rising, but remains well below the levels of the countries in the region. New services are increasingly coming through a market-based provision which leaves large social groups such as low-income families, rural families, parents with lower educational status and other socio-economically disadvantaged parents worse off. Since ECEC is considered highly relevant for children’s personal development and success in school, as well as for female participation in the labour market, the findings suggest that the current policy contributes towards cementing and furthering social and gender inequalities in the long run. In the absence of more comprehensive public services and other supportive family policy measures, Kosovo maintains a strong implicit familialistic policy with a weak potential to contribute to women’s employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the article is to explore norms about care and masculinity in early childhood education and care settings in Indonesia and Sweden. Building on long-term ethnographic fieldwork, it is shown how care in the two nations was produced as ambivalent for men, causing a risk of being accused of working with children for the wrong reasons. Two different strategies were employed by the men to handle this: to avoid caring practices and to renegotiate care, making it part of hegemonic masculinity. In the study, ethnographic methodology building on long-term relations, situated knowledge and trust, was key to gain the two different perspectives. The methodology produced nuanced understandings of how care and masculinity came to be enacted in different social and religious contexts. The extended field work enabled trustful relations to develop, which in turn facilitated shared learning about gendered bodies, fear and shame in relation to care [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on ethnographic data from two Romanian and two Danish nurseries, we explore the agency of children aged 9 months to 2.5 years. Considering action, time, and place, the article reflects on crying as one of the children's agentic practices. We identified five predominant types of crying and analysed peers' and caregivers' perceptions and reactions. The ethnographic approach uncovers the generational order and social logic of nurseries, making it possible to compare the ways in which children use crying in their communication with caregivers and peers in Romania and Denmark. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The CHEERS is a self-administered tool to measure gaps, weaknesses, and strengths of an early childhood education and care (ECEC) centre-based nutrition and physical activity environment. ECEC settings have the potential to profoundly influence early dietary and physical activity behaviours. Content validation of the CHEERS tool has been previously reported. The purpose of this study was to develop reliability and validity evidence for the CHEERS audit tool and the proposed subscales of food served, healthy eating environment, program planning, and physical activity environment in ECEC centre-based programs. Methods This cross-sectional study consisted of 2 phases: Phase 1 included inter-, intra-rater and Cronbach’s α. A subset of this sample was invited to participate in a second survey (Trial 2) for intra-rater assessment within 3 weeks of completing the first survey (Trial 1). Phase 2 included concurrent validity assessment between a nutrition expert and the ECEC director using within a one-week period. Results One hundred two directors and 85 educators (total of 187) returned the survey. Of these, there were 75 matched pairs for inter-rater reliability analysis providing a CHEERS ICC score of 0.59 and ICC scores ranging from 0.40 to 0.58 for the subscales. The ICC for intra-rater reliability of the CHEERS score was 0.81 for 40 participants completing the survey a second time and a range of 0.72 to 0.79 for the subscales. The CHEERS tool demonstrated very good internal consistency (α = 0.91) and α scores ranging from 0.73 to 0.79 for the subscales. In phase 2, concurrent validation was ICC = 0.65 (n = 30) CHEERS scores with a range of 0.42 to 0.69 for the subscales. Conclusions This study provides evidence of inter-, intra-rater reliability, internal consistency, and concurrent validity of an environmental assessment audit tool to assess the nutrition and physical activity environment of ECEC centre-based programs. The results demonstrate that the self-administered CHEERS instrument is stable overtime and between evaluators at the same ECEC centre. The scores obtained with CHEERS self-administered audit tool are reasonably accurate compared to an expert rater (dietitian) assessment. This study adds additional support to establishing the psychometric soundness of the CHEERS tool.

Due to the emergence of new forms of preschools and parents' increased freedom of choice regarding early childhood education, more research on parental preschool preferences is needed. Although preschool offers a seedbed for the development of knowledge and competencies, this development matures through interaction with parents. Therefore, parental expectations and wishes are very likely to affect children's learning. The mobile preschool is a new form of educational practice in Sweden where children travel by bus to different places for play and learning. This form of preschool can potentially lay a foundation for social and ecological sustainability because children learn to meet diverse people, explore different places, and spend time in nature. We interviewed 15 parents of children in a mobile preschool, most from a middle-class background. The main aim was to explore how these parents explain their choice of this type of preschool. Another aim was to identify desirable competencies that the parents think their children will achieve through the mobile preschool. Six themes related to preschool choice were identified; of these themes, "being out in nature" and "enlarging the children's reality" were the most prominent. Two clusters of competencies were distinguished: care- and cooperation-oriented competencies, and freedom- and independence-oriented competencies. After analyzing these results in relation to two current educational discourses—education for sustainable development and entrepreneurship in a neoliberal society—we show how parents participate in reproducing these discourses. These findings add novel and important knowledge to the field of early childhood educational practices concerning parental choice and preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early transitions are on the rise across global and national contexts. However, resources informing teachers and families about best practices concerning infants, especially infant transitions from home to early childhood settings, are almost non-existent. In this article, the authors share the outcomes of an experiment that translated research from an International Study of the Social and Emotional Experiences of Early Transitions (isseet) project into a range of visual resources for this audience. They created a suite of video, infographic and meme visual resources that outlined 'what works' for quality early transitions and sought end-user feedback around their utility. While the feedback was positive overall concerning infographics and videos, end-users expressed strong negative responses to the use of memes. In the article that follows, the authors explore why it might be so. They draw on the Bakhtinian concept of genre. With its form, content and strategic orientation, they translate and interpret the meaning ascribed to the memes. They argue that the complex humour and cultural memory that sit behind memes grants them unique translation status. Reflecting on the responses, the authors consider pathways for memes as impactful research translation for end-users -- in this case, early years teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the concept of change in education through an examination of the entangled processes of destruction and creation made visible during a Norwegian kindergarten's tradition of participating in a cow-slaughter in its local community. The article offers a methodological exploration, activating the theoretical perspectives of relational ontology, plasticity and critical animal studies. We present the event as a narrative and analyze it through these three perspectives, with special attention paid to unintentional change and change as an ontological concept. The discussion illuminates how children grasped destruction as change through creativity and play, and how ethical complexities are entangled with education, animal-based food production, traditions, play, and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to contribute to knowledge about children's opportunities to participate in early childhood education and care (ECEC) communities. The study focuses on the communication between educators and children in ECEC settings and how the communication forms condition children's opportunities to participate in the community. The research questions are: What kind of communication patterns occur in educator and child interactions and how do these influence children's opportunities to participate in the ECEC community? How can the communication patterns and the opportunities for participation in a community be understood from a lifeworld and a system perspective? Theoretically, the study is based on Habermas's (1995) social philosophical perspective and the way he views the world from both a lifeworld and a system perspective. His concepts of communicative and strategic action guide the study in the purpose to identify and interpret communication patterns. The data consist of video observations of educators and children in everyday interactions in three Norwegian ECEC institutions. The analysis generated three main categories representing different communication patterns and participation opportunities in the community: (a) controlling communication – limited participation, (b) supportive communication – passive participation, and (c) co-operative communication – mutual participation. The findings show a priority in early childhood education on the individual child and a goal-oriented practice where the educator controls the communication and, by that, the children's lifeworlds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This comparative study investigated how early childhood education and care practitioners in South Korea and Norway perceive the concept of children's well-being and their own roles in supporting and facilitating children's well-being. Data were collected through online questionnaires from 198 practitioners and analysed utilising chi-square analyses. The results showed that South Korean practitioners perceived the cognitive and economic domains as more important than Norwegian practitioners. Meanwhile, the practitioners from Norway perceived the social domain as more important than South Korean practitioners. Norwegian practitioners perceived physical needs, need for affection, and enjoyment as more important than Korean practitioners. Norwegian practitioners also monitored every child's well-being and more actively encouraged positive interactions and child-initiated activities. Meanwhile, Korean practitioners perceived the need for safety as important and believed that environments were not safe enough for children's health and well-being. These findings suggest that the educational approaches and sociocultural contexts of the two countries influence children's well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Playful interactions with peers have a significant role in children's lives, and experiencing belongingness and acceptance through interpersonal relationships is a fundamental presupposition for children's health and well-being. Peer rejections appear to be an inevitable component of peer interactions. Sometimes, rejection involves relational devaluation and deprivation of a sense of belonging. This article highlights the voice of the children and intends to contribute more knowledge about how peer rejections are experienced by the children in early childhood education and care (ECEC) institutions. The data were collected through video-recorded interviews with children between 3.5 and 6 years old and analysed within a phenomenological hermeneutical approach to examine the structures of their experiences. The findings reveal that the peer rejections are experienced as stressful and emotionally painful events, which affect the children's emotional state and impact their social self-perception. This study emphasizes the children as relationally dependent subjects, and the findings highlight the importance of creating within ECECs an inclusive and nurturing social environment that prevents peer rejections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young children are in danger of becoming collateral damage in the COVID- 19 pandemic. Institutions of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) are closed and so are playgrounds, libraries and museums. Even play dates are out. Thus, young children are deprived of necessary social interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]