Encyclopedia of early childhood education

Early Childhood
Education: An
International
Encyclopedia, Volumes 1-4

Edited by
Rebecca S. New
Moncrieff Cochran

PRAEGER


EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION



EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
An International Encyclopedia
Volume 1
A–D
Edited by
Rebecca S. New and Moncrieff Cochran


Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Early childhood education [four volumes] : an international encyclopedia / edited by Rebecca
S. New and Moncrieff Cochran.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0–313–33100–6 (set : alk. paper)—ISBN 0–313–33101–4 (vol 1 : alk. paper)—
ISBN 0–313–33102–2 (vol 2 : alk. paper)—ISBN 0–313–33103–0 (vol 3 : alk. paper)—

ISBN 0–313–34143–5 (vol 4 : alk. paper)
1. Early childhood education—Encyclopedias. I. New, Rebecca Staples. II. Cochran,
Moncrieff.
LB1139.23.E272 2007
372.2103—dc22
2006035011
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available.
Copyright © 2007 by Rebecca S. New and Moncrieff Cochran
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be
reproduced, by any process or technique, without the
express written consent of the publisher.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2006035011
ISBN: 0–313–33100–6 (set)
0–313–33101–4 (vol. 1)
0–313–33102–2 (vol. 2)
0–313–33103–0 (vol. 3)
0–313–34143–5 (vol. 4)
First published in 2007
Praeger Publishers, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881
An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc.
www.praeger.com
Printed in the United States of America

The paper used in this book complies with the
Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National
Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1


Contents

Alphabetical List of Entries

vii

Guide to Related Topics

xi

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

xix
xxiii
xxv

The Handbook, Volume 1, A–D

1

The Handbook, Volume 2, E–N

307

The Handbook, Volume 3, O–Z

567

The Countries, Volume 4

Introduction to Volume 4
Australia
Brazil
China
The Czech Republic
France
Italy
Japan
South Africa
Sweden
United Kingdom

861
861
867
914
971
1017
1063
1110
1155
1194
1240
1281

Bibliography

1319

Index

1323

Editorial Advisory Board and International Coordinators

1365

List of Editors and Contributors

1367



Alphabetical List of Entries

VOLUME 1
Abecedarian Program
Academics
Accreditation of
Early Childhood Programs
Act for Better Child Care
(ABC)
Action Research
Addams, Jane
Adoption
Advocacy and Leadership in
Early Childhood Education
Almy, Millie
American Associate Degree
Early Childhood Educators

(ACCESS)
Antibias/Multicultural
Education
Ashton-Warner, Sylvia
Assessment in Early
Childhood
Assessment, Visual Art
Association for Childhood
Education International
(ACEI)
Association for Constructivist
Teaching (ACT)
Atelier
Attachment
Attention Deficit
Disorder/Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADD/ADHD)

Augmentative and Alternative
Communication (AAC)
Autism
Bandura, Albert
Bank Street
Behaviorism
Behavior Management and
Guidance
Biculturalism
Bilingual Education
Binet, Alfred

Black Caucus (NAEYC)
Blow, Susan Elizabeth
Bowlby, John
Bronfenbrenner, Urie
Bruner, Jerome
Bullying
Center for the Child Care
Workforce (CCW)
Cerebral Palsy (CP)
Child Abuse and Neglect
Child Abuse and Neglect,
Prevention of
Child Art
Child Care
Child Care and Development
Fund (CCDF)
Child Care and Early
Education Research
Connections
Child Care Development
Block Grant (CCDBG)

Child Care Subsidies and Tax
Provisions
Child Development Associate
(CDA) National
Credentialing Program
Child Development Group of
Mississippi (CDGM)
Children’s Defense Fund

(CDF)
Children’s Media
Children’s Museums
Child Study Movement
Classroom Discourse
Classroom Environments
Comenius, John Amos
Computer and Video Game
Play in Early Childhood
Constructionism
Constructivism
Contemporary Issues in
Early Childhood
Convention on the Rights of
the Child (CRC)
Corporal Punishment
Council for Exceptional
Children (CEC)
The Creative Curriculum for
Preschool
Creativity
Culture
Curriculum
Curriculum, Emergent


viii ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ENTRIES

Curriculum, Emotional
Development

Curriculum, Literacy
Curriculum, Mathematics
Curriculum, Music
Curriculum, Physical
Development
Curriculum, Science
Curriculum, Social
Curriculum, Social
Studies
Curriculum, Technology
Curriculum, Visual Art
Day Nurseries
Deaf Children

Department of Defense
(DoD) Child Development
System
Development, Brain
Development, Cognitive
Development, Emotional
Development, Language
Development, Moral
Development, Social
Developmental Delay
Developmental Disorders of
Infancy and Early
Childhood, A Taxonomy of
Developmental-Interaction
Approach

Developmentally
Appropriate Practice(s)
(DAP)
Developmental Systems
Theories
Dewey, John
Direct Instruction
Model
Disabilities, Young Children
with
Division for Early Childhood
(DEC)
Documentation
Domestic Violence
Down Syndrome

VOLUME 2
Early Care and
Education Programs,
Administration
of
Early Child Development
and Care
Early Childhood
Connections Journal of
Music- and
Movement-based
Learning
Early Childhood Education
Journal (ECEJ)

Early Childhood Environment
Rating Scales (ERS)
Early Childhood Music
Education Commission
(ECME)
Early Childhood
Research & Practice
(ECRP)
Early Childhood Research
Quarterly (ECRQ)
Early Childhood Special
Education (ECSE)
Early Head Start
Early Intervention
Early Years: An
International Journal of
Research and
Development
Ecology of Human
Development

Education 3-13
Eliot, Abigail Adams
Environmental Assessments
in Early Childhood
Education
Environmental Health
Erikson, Erik H.
European Early Childhood
Education Research

Journal (EECERJ)
Even Start
Exchange
Families
Family Child Care
Family Literacy
Family Systems Theory (FST)
Fathers
Feminism in Early Childhood
Education
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Frank, Lawrence Kelso
Freud, Anna
Freud, Sigmund
Froebel, Friedrich
Gay or Lesbian Parents,
Children with
Gender and Gender
Stereotyping
Gesell, Arnold
Gifted and Talented Children
Good Start, Grow Smart
Gordon, Ira J.
Grade Retention

Grouping
Hailmann, Eudora Lucas
Hailmann, William
Nicholas
Hall, G(ranville) Stanley

Hawkins, David and
Hawkins, Frances
Pockman
Head Start
High/Scope
High/Scope Perry Preschool
Study
Hill, Patty Smith
History of U.S. Early
Childhood Care and
Education
Hunt, Joseph McVicker
Hymes, James L., Jr.
IEA Preprimary Project
Immigration
Incarcerated Parents,
Children of
Inclusion
Individualized Education Plan
(IEP)
Individualized Family Service
Plan (IFSP)
Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA)
Infant Care
Intelligence
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
Intelligence Testing

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ENTRIES ix

Interagency Education
Research Initiative (IERI)
International Journal of
Early Childhood (IJEC)
International Journal of
Early Years Education
International Journal of
Special Education
International Kindergarten
Union (IKU)
International Reading
Association (IRA)
Isaacs, Susan
Journal of Children and
Media
Journal of Early Childhood
Research
Journal of Early Childhood
Teacher Education
(JECTE)
Journal of Early
Intervention (JEI)
The Journal of Special
Education Leadership
Jumpstart
Kindergarten
Kohlberg, Lawrence
Laboratory Schools

Language Diversity
Learning Disabilities (LD)
Literacy
Literacy and Disabilities
Lowenfeld, Viktor
Luria, A. R.
Malaguzzi, Loris

Mann, Horace
Maslow, Abraham
Mathematics
Maturationism
McCormick Tribune Center
for Early Childhood
Leadership
McMillan, Margaret
McMillan, Rachel
Mental Health
Mitchell, Lucy
Sprague
Mixed-Age Grouping in Early
Childhood Education
Montessori, Maria
Montessori Education
Mothers
Multiple Intelligences,
Theory of
Narrative
National Association for
Regulatory Administration

(NARA)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
Academy for Early
Childhood Program
Accreditation
National Association of Childcare Resource and Referral
Agencies (NACCRRA)

National Association of Early
Childhood Teacher
Educators (NAECTE)
National Black Child
Development Institute
(NBCDI)
National Center
for Children in Poverty
(NCCP)
National Coalition
for Campus
Children’s Centers
(NCCCC)
National Committee on
Nursery Schools
National Council for
Accreditation of Teacher

Education (NCATE)
National Education Goals
Panel (NEGP)
National Even Start
Association (NESA)
National Head
Start Association (NHSA)
National Institute for Early
Childhood Professional
Development
Naumburg, Margaret
NHSA Dialog
No Child Left Behind Act
(NCLBA)
North American Reggio
Emilia Alliance (NAREA)
Nutrition and Early
Childhood Education

VOLUME 3
Obesity
Open Education
Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and
Development
(OECD)
Osborn, D. Keith
Owen, Grace
Owen, Robert
Parental Substance Abuse

Parenting Education
Parents and Parent
Involvement

Parker, Francis W.
Parten, Mildred
Pavlov, Ivan Petrovich
Peabody, Elizabeth Palmer
Pedagogy
Pedagogy, Activity-Based/
Experiential
Pedagogy, Child-Centered
Pedagogy, Play-Based
Pedagogy, Social
Justice/Equity
Peer Culture
Peers and Friends

Pestalozzi, Johann
Philanthropy and Young
Children
Piaget, Jean
Play
Play and Gender
Play as Storytelling
Play and the Teacher’s Role
Playgrounds
Play Therapy
Portage Project
Poverty, Family, and

Child


x ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ENTRIES

Pratt, Caroline
Preschool Curriculum
Evaluation Research
Program (PCER)
Preschool/Prekindergarten
Programs
Professional Development
Professional Ethics
Program for Infant Toddler
Caregivers (PITC)
Progressive Education
The Project Approach
Project Zero (PZ)
Psychosocial Theory
Qualitative Research
Quantitative
Analyses/Experimental
Designs
Race and Ethnicity in Early
Childhood Education
Read, Katherine
Read-Alouds and Vocabulary
Development
Readiness
Reconceptualists

Reggio Emilia Approach to
Early Childhood Education
Reggio-Inspired Teacher
Education (RITE)
Rogers, Carl
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
Ruggles Street Nursery
School and Training
Center (Boston,
Massachusetts)
School-Age Care
School Culture
Second-Language Acquisition
in Early Childhood
Self-Esteem and Self-Concept

Sensory Processing Disorder
(SPD)
Sex and Sexuality in Young
Children
Sexual Abuse
Skinner, Burrhus Frederic
Social Cognitive Theory
Social Competence
Social Constructionism
Social Constructivism
Socio-cultural Theory
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
Southern Early Childhood
Association (SECA)

Spiritual Development
Standardized Tests and Early
Childhood Education
Standards
State Licensing Standards
State Prekindergarten
Programs
Steiner, Rudolf
Symbolic Languages
Teacher
Certification/Licensure
Teacher Education and
Compensation Helps
(TEACH)
Teacher Education, Early
Childhood
Teacher Research
Teaching Exceptional
Children (TEC)
Technology and Early
Childhood Education
Television
Temperament
Temple, Alice
Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF)

Thorndike, Edward L.
Topics in Early Childhood
Special Education

(TECSE)
Touchpoints
Transitions/Continuity
United Nations Children’s
Fund (UNICEF)
United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural
Organisation
(UNESCO)
Violence and Young
Children
Visual Impairment
Vygotsky, Lev Semenovich
Waldorf Education
War Play
Watson, John B.
Wheelock, Lucy
White, Edna Noble
Whiting, Beatrice
Whiting, John W. M.
Wiggin, Kate Douglas
Wollstonecraft, Mary
Women, Infants and Children
(WIC)
The World Forum on Early
Care and Education
World Health Organisation
(WHO)
World Organisation for Early
Childhood Education

(OMEP)
Worthy Wage
Campaign
Yale University Child Study
Center
Young Children
Zero to Three


Guide to Related Topics

Act for Better Child Care
(ABC)
Advocacy and Leadership
Child-care Subsidies and Tax
Provisions
Children’s Defense Fund
(CDF)
Child Development
Group of Mississippi
(CDGM)
Convention on the Rights of
the Child (CRC)
Early Head Start
Even Start
Good Start, Grow Smart
Head Start
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)

National Black Child
Development Institute
(NBCDI)
National Center for Children
in Poverty (NCCP)
National Education Goals
Panel (NEGP)
National Head Start
Association (NHSA)
No Child Left Behind Act
((NCLBA)
Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and
Development (OECD)
Philanthropy and Young
Children
Poverty, Family and Child
Race and Ethnicity in Early
Childhood Education

Socioeconomic Status (SES)
State Prekindergarten
Programs
Teacher Education
and Compensation Helps
(TEACH)
United Nations Children’s
Fund (UNICEF)
United Nations Educational,

Scientific and Cultural
Organisation (UNESCO)
The World Forum on Early
Care and Education
World Health Organization
(WHO)
World Organisation
for Early Childhood
Education (OMEP)
Worthy Wage Campaign

Child Care
Accreditation of Early
Childhood Programs
Act for Better Child Care
(ABC)
Attachment
Black Caucus (NAEYC)

Center for the Child Care
Workforce (CCW)
Child Care
Child Care and
Development Fund
(CCDF)

Child Care Subsidies, Tax
Provisions
Day Nurseries
Early Care and Education

Programs,
Administration of


xii GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS

Families
Infant Care
National Association
for the Education of
Young Children
(NAEYC)
National Association
for the Education of
Young Children

(NAEYC)
Academy for Early
Childhood Program
Accreditation
National Association
of Child-care
Resource and
Referral Agencies
(NACRRA)

National Committee on
Nursery Schools
Program for Infant Toddler
Caregivers (PITC)

School-Age Care
Worthy Wage
Campaign
Yale University Child Study
Center

Child Development Domains, Theories, and Research
Attachment
Behaviorism
Biculturalism
Bilingual Education
Binet, Alfred
Bowlby, John
Bronfenbrenner, Urie
Bruner, Jerome
Bullying
Child Abuse and
Neglect
Child Study Movement
Constructionism
Constructivism
Culture
Development, Brain
Development, Cognitive
Development, Emotional
Development, Language
Development, Moral
Development, Social
Developmental Delay
Developmental Systems

Theories
Disabilities, Young Children
with
Ecology of Human
Development

Erikson, Erik H.
Freud, Anna
Freud, Sigmund
Gender and Gender
Stereotyping
Gesell, Arnold
Hall, G(ranville)
Stanley
Intelligence
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
Kohlberg, Lawrence
Language Diversity
Luria, A. R.
Maslow, Abraham
Mathematics
Maturationism
Multiple Intelligences,
Theory of
Narrative
National Black Child
Development Institute
(NBCDI)
Parents and Parent
Involvement

Pavlov, Ivan Petrovich
Peer Culture
Peers and Friends
Piaget, Jean

Play
Play and Gender
Poverty, Family and Child
Psychosocial Theory
Race and Ethnicity in Early
Childhood Education
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
Second-Language Acquisition
in Early Childhood
Self-Esteem and Self-Concept
Sex and Sexuality in Young
Children
Sexual Abuse
Social Cognitive Theory
Social Competence
Social Constructionism
Social Constructivism
Socio-cultural Theory
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
Spiritual Development
Temperament
Vygotsky, Lev Semenovich
War Play
Watson, John B.
Whiting, Beatrice

Whiting, John W. M.
Yale University Child Study
Center

Early Childhood Education Curriculum and Pedagogy
Academics
Bank Street
Behavior Management and
Guidance
Bilingual Education
The Creative Curriculum for
Preschool

Curriculum
Curriculum, Emotional
Development
Curriculum, Mathematics
Curriculum, Music
Curriculum, Physical
Development

Curriculum, Science
Curriculum, Social
Curriculum, Social Studies
Curriculum, Technology
Curriculum, Visual Art
Developmental-Interaction
Approach

GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS xiii

Developmentally
Appropriate Practice(s)
Direct Instruction
Model
Documentation
Early Childhood Environment
Rating Scales (ERS)
Family Literacy
High/Scope
Jumpstart
Literacy
Literacy and Disabilities

Mathematics
Montessori Education
Multicultural and Anti-Bias
Education
Open Education
Parenting Education
Pedagogy
Pedagogy,
Activity-Based/Experiential
Pedagogy, Child-Centered
Pedagogy, Social
Justice/Equity

Play
Play and Pedagogy

Play as Storytelling
Program for Infant-Toddler
Caregivers
Progressive Education
Project Zero
The Project Approach
Reggio Emilia Approach to
Early Childhood Education
Symbolic Languages
Waldorf Education

Family and Society
Adoption
Biculturalism
Child Abuse and Neglect
Children’s Media
Computer and Video
Game Play
Convention on the Rights of
the Child (CRC)
Culture
Domestic Violence
Families
Family Literacy
Fathers
Feminism in Early Childhood
Education

Gay or Lesbian Parents,
Children with

Incarcerated Parents,
Children of
Immigration
Individualized Family Service
Plan (IFSP)
Mothers
Parental Substance
Abuse
Parenting Education
Parents and Parent
Involvement
Peer Culture
Peers and Friends

Philanthropy and Young
Children
Poverty, Family and Child
Race and Ethnicity in Early
Childhood Education
Sexual Abuse
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
Spirituality Development
Technology Curriculum
Television
Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF)
Violence and Young Children
Women, Infants and Children
(WIC)

Health and Special Needs
Attention Deficit
Disorder/Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADD)/(ADHD)
Augmentative and Alternative
Communication (AAC)
Autism
Cerebral Palsy (CP)
Child Abuse and Neglect
Child Abuse and Neglect,
Prevention of
Council for Exceptional
Children (CEC)
Deaf Children
Development Cognitive
Developmental Delay

Developmental Disorders of
Infancy and Early
childhood, A Taxonomy of
Disabilities, Young Children
with
Division for Early Childhood
(DEC)
Domestic Violence
Down Syndrome
Early Childhood Environment
Rating Scales (ERS)
Early Childhood Special

Education (ECSE)
Early Intervention
Environmental Assessments
ECRS only of Safty

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Gifted and Talented Children
in the United States
Individualized Education Plan
(IEP)
Individualized Family Service
Plan (IFSP)
Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA)
Journal of Early
Intervention (JEI)
Jumpstart
Learning Disabilities (LD)
Literacy and Disabilities
Mental Health
Montessori, Maria


xiv GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS

Nutrition
Obesity
Parental Substance Abuse

Play Therapy

Sensory Processing Disorder
(SPD)

Sexual Abuse
Visual Impairment
Young Children

Historic Figures in Child Development/Early Childhood Education
Addams, Jane
Almy, Millie
Ashton-Warner, Sylvia
Bandura, Albert
Binet, Alfred
Blow, Susan Elizabeth
Bowlby, John
Bronfenbrenner, Urie
Bruner, Jerome
Comenius, John Amos
Dewey, John
Eliot, Abigail Adams
Erikson, Erik H.
Frank, Lawrence Kelso
Freud, Anna
Freud, Sigmund
Froebel, Fredrich
Gesell, Arnold
Gordon, Ira J.
Hailmann, Eudora Lucas
Hailmann, William Nicholas

Hall, G(ranville) Stanley
Hawkins, David and
Hawkins, Frances
Pockman
Hill, Patty Smith
Hunt, Joseph McVicker
Hymes, James L., Jr.
Isaacs, Susan
Kohlberg, Lawrence
Lowenfeld, Viktor
Luria, A. R.
Malaguzzi, Loris
Maslow, Abraham
McMillan, Margaret
McMillan, Rachel
Mitchell, Lucy Sprague
Montessori, Maria
Naumburg, Margaret
Osborn, D. Keith
Owen, Grace
Owen, Robert

Parker, Francis W.
Parten, Mildred
Pavlov, Ivan Petrovich
Peabody, Elizabeth Palmer
Pestalozzi, Johann
Piaget, Jean
Pratt, Caroline
Read, Katherine

Rogers, Carl
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
Steiner, Rudolf
Temple, Alice
Thorndike, Edward L.
Vygotsky, Lev Semenovich
Watson, John B.
Wheelock, Lucy
White, Edna Noble
Whiting, Beatrice
Whiting, John
Wiggin, Kate Douglas
Wollstonecraft, Mary

Professional Journals
Child Care and Early
Education Research
Connections
Contemporary Issues in
Early Childhood
Early Child Development
and Care
Early Childhood Education
Journal (ECEJ)
Early Childhood Research &
Practice (ECRP)
Early Childhood Research
Quarterly (ECRQ)
Early Years: An
International

Journal of
Research and
Development
Education 3-13
European Early Childhood
Education Research
Journal (EECERJ)
Exchange
International Journal of
Early Childhood (IJEC)
International Journal
of Early Years
Education
International Journal of
Special Education

Journal of Early Childhood
Research
Journal of Early Childhood
Teacher Education
(JECTE)
Journal of Early
Intervention
(JEI)
The Journal of Special
Education Leadership
NHSA Dialog
Topics in Early Childhood
Special Education

(TECSE)
Young Children


GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS xv

Professional Groups, Programs, and Organizations
American Associate Degree
Early Childhood Educators
(ACCESS)
Association for Childhood
Education International
(ACEI)
Association for Constructivist
Teaching (ACT)
Black Caucus (NAEYC)
Center for the Child Care
Workforce (CCW)
Child Development Associate
(CDA) National
Credentialing Program
Child Development
Group of Mississippi
(CDGM)
Children’s Defense Fund
(CDF)
Council for
Exceptional
Children (CEC)
Division for Early childhood

(DEC)
Early Childhood Music
Education Commission
(ECMC)
International Kindergarten
Union (IKU)
International Reading
Association (IRA)

McCormick Tribune Center
for Early Childhood
Leadership
National Association for
Regulatory Administration
(NARA)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
Academy for Early
Childhood Program
Accreditation
National Association of Childcare Resource and Referral
Agencies (NACRRA)
National Assoc of Early
Childhood Teacher
Educators (NAECTE)
National Black Child

Development Institute
(NBCDI)
National Center for Children
in Poverty (NCCP)
National Committee on
Nursery Schools
National Council for
Accreditation of Teacher
Education (NCATE)

National Education Goals
Panel (NEGP)
National Head Start
Association (NHSA)
National Institute for Early
Childhood Professional
Development
North American Reggio
Emilia Alliance (NAREA)
Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and
Development (OECD)
Reggio-Inspired Teacher
Education (RITE)
Southern Early Childhood
Association (SECA)
United Nations Children’s
Fund (UNICEF)
United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural

Organisation
(UNESCO)
The World Forum on Early
Care and Education
World Health Organization
(WHO)
World Organisation for Early
Childhood Education
(OMEP)
Worthy Wage Campaign
ZERO TO THREE

Research and Early Childhood Education
Action Research
Brain Development
Child Care and Early
Education Research
Connections
Child Study Movement
Documentation
Early Childhood
Environment Rating Scales
(ERS)
Early Child Development
and Care

Early Childhood Research &
Practice (ECRP)
Early Childhood Research
Quarterly (ECRQ)

Early Years: An International Journal of Research
and Development
European Early
Childhood Education
Research Journal
High/Scope Perry Preschool
Study

IEA Preprimary Project
International Journal of
Early Childhood
(IJEC)
Journal of Early Childhood
Research
Laboratory Schools
Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and
Development
(OECD)
Portage Project


xvi GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS

Preschool Curriculum
Evaluation Research
Program (PCER)

Qualitative Research
Quantitative Analyses/

Experimental Designs

Teacher Research
Young Children

Schools and Schooling, Educational Settings, and Contemporary Issues
Academics
Accreditation of Early
Childhood Programs
Assessment in Early
Childhood
Assessment, Visual
Art
Bank Street
Behavior Management and
Guidance
Bilingual Education
Bullying
Child Abuse and Neglect,
Prevention of
Child Art
Child Care
Children’s Media
Children’s Museums
Classroom Discourse
Classroom Environments
Contemporary Issues in
Early Childhood
Curriculum
Curriculum, Emotional

Development
Curriculum,
Mathematics
Curriculum, Music
Curriculum, Physical
Development
Curriculum, Science
Curriculum, Science
Start
Curriculum, Social
Curriculum, Social
Studies
Developmental-Interaction
Approach
Developmentally
Appropriate Practice(s)
Dewey, John
Direct Instruction Model
Division for Early Childhood
(DEC)
Documentation

Early Childhood Environment
Rating Scales (ERS)
Early Head Start
Ecology of Human
Development
Eliot, Abigail Adams
Emergent Curriculum
Environmental Assessment in

Early Childhood Education
Even Start
Families
Family Literacy
Gifted and Talented Children
in the United States
Grade Retention
Grouping
Head Start
High/Scope
History of U.S. Early
Childhood Care and
Education
Infant Care
Inclusion
Jumpstart
Kindergarten
Laboratory Schools
Literacy
Literacy and Disabilities
Literacy Curriculum
Mathematics
Mixed-Age Grouping in
Early Childhood
Education
Montessori Education
Multicultural and Anti-Bias
Education
Narrative
No Child Left Behind Act

(NCLBA)
Open Education
Parenting Education
Pedagogy
Pedagogy, Activity-Based/
Experiential
Pedagogy, Child-Centered

Pedagogy, Social
Justice/Equity
Peer Culture
Peers and Friends
Play
Play and Gender
Play and Pedagogy
Play as Storytelling
Play and the Teacher’s Role
Playgrounds
Preschool/
Prekindergarten Programs
Professional Development
Professional Ethics
The Project Approach
Race and Ethnicity in Early
Childhood Education
Read-Alouds and Vocabulary
Development
Readiness
Reconceptualists
Reggio Emilia Approach to

Early Childhood Education
Reggio-Inspired Teacher
Education (RITE)
Ruggles Street Nursery
School and Training Center
(Boston, Massachusetts)
School-Age Care
Second-Language Acquisition
in Early Childhood
Self-Esteem and Self-Concept
Social Curriculum
Standardized Tests and Early
Childhood Education
State Prekindergarten
Programs
Symbolic Languages
Teacher
Certification/Licensure
Teacher Education,
Early Childhood
Technology Curriculum
Waldorf Education
War Play


GUIDE TO RELATED TOPICS xvii

Social Policies
Act for Better Child Care
(ABC)

Child Abuse and Neglect,
Prevention of
Child Care and Development
Fund (CCDF)
Developmentally
Appropriate Practice(s)
(DAP)
Early Head Start
Early Intervention
Even Start
Head Start
Individualized Education Plan
(IEP)
Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA)

Interagency Education
Research Initiative (IERI)
Jumpstart
National Association for
Regulatory Administration
(NARA)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
National Association for the
Education of Young
Children (NAEYC)
Academy for Early

Childhood Program
Accreditation
National Association of Childcare Resource and Referral
Agencies (NACCRRA)

National Center for Children
in Poverty (NCCP)
National Education Goals
Panel (NEGP)
No Child Left Behind Act
(NCLBA)
State Prekindergarten
Programs
Teacher Education and
Compensation Helps
(TEACH)
Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families
(TANF)
Women, Infants and Children
(WIC)
World Health Organisation
(WHO)



Preface

Early Childhood Education: An International Encyclopedia is unique in form
and contents, providing in four volumes a compilation of understandings, controversies, theories, policies, and practices in early childhood education as currently

found in the United States and 10 other nations around the world. Admittedly
biased in the attention we pay to U.S. early childhood education and our reliance
on English-language professional literature, the Encyclopedia acknowledges prevailing controversies in the field and presents multiple perspectives on early
childhood education as understood and practiced in representative nations of
Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America. The Encyclopedia has been prepared
with a large and diverse audience in mind, including undergraduate and graduate students of education, child development, social policy, and cross-cultural
studies; parents and teachers of young children in the United States and abroad;
scholars—national and international; program administrators; policy makers and
analysts; and the general public.
The purpose of this four-volume work is to serve as a useful reference source on
the period of early childhood and the field of early childhood education. Its principal aim is to provide the curious reader—student, parent, teacher, policy maker,
citizen—with information on key historical and contemporary issues, including
research, theoretical perspectives, policies and practices, in select nations around
the world. Given the rapid rate of change and contemporary pace of knowledge
generation, the Encyclopedia shares the same limitations as do other published
works—it represents a particular period of time in the history of a field as interpreted by particular groups of people and as written by individuals with their
own sense of priorities. The meaning of “contemporary” as reflected in the pages
of these four volumes is associated with events and understandings of the first
decade of the twenty-first century. The definition of “historical,” as the reader will
see when reviewing entries on the history of early childhood education in the
various nations included in Volume 4, ranges widely from one cultural context
to another. The Encyclopedia’s usefulness is not limited, however, to its representation of the past and the present. The second aim is to present the status


xx PREFACE

quo of early childhood education, as interpreted by the contributors, as a catalyst
for continued debate about and engagement in future actions and advocacy on
behalf of young children’s early learning and development.

Process
This innovative project represents a rich and diverse array of scholarship and
opinions about the early care and education of young children. The topics themselves were originally identified by established scholars, teachers, and students of
child development and early childhood in the United States. This list was revised
several times over the course of production, first in response to international
contributors who identified topics essential to their respective national contexts.
As the word list circulated, contributors proposed unanticipated or emerging
topics of interest and importance. An Editorial Advisory Board consisting of 12
leading scholars in the field was indispensable to the identification of appropriate authors and the editing of entries to insure an accessible reading style for a
broad audience. An International Advisory Group insured the selection of qualified
authors and relevant topics in each country; each International Advisor also authored the country profile describing contemporary early childhood policies and
practices.

Special Features
The scope of this four-volume encyclopedia has both breadth and depth. Volumes 1, 2, and 3 include over 300 entries that reference one hundred years of early
childhood education in the United States; Volume 4 includes another hundredplus entries describing past and present interpretations of early childhood in ten
other nations: Australia, Brazil, the Czech Republic, China, France, Italy, Japan,
South Africa, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The total number of national and
international contributors to this encyclopedia is over 300.
Topics covered in this four-volume encyclopedia include those associated with
the period and study of child development—for example, parenting, cognitive
development, and friendships and peer relations; child care—for example, infant and toddler care, family child care, and after-school care; early childhood
education—for example, academics, assessment, curriculum, pedagogy, and
teacher training; professional organizations in the field—for example, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE), and the Southern Early
Childhood Association (SECA); and English-language professional journals—for
example, the U.S.-based Early Childhood Research Quarterly (ECRQ), International Early Childhood Education from the United Kingdom, and Australia’s
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood. Entries on key historic figures in the
field of U.S. early childhood education—for example, John Dewey and Abigail
Eliot—are joined by those whose work has influenced early childhood education around the world—for example, Frederich Froebel and two Italians, Maria
Montessori and Loris Malaguzzi.

PREFACE xxi

This encyclopedia does more than serve as a resource to traditional features
of the field. In addition to entries on children’s social development, early literacy, and various means of assessment, Volumes 1, 2, and 3 include entries on
contemporary concerns and controversies—for example, the No Child Left Behind Act, corporal punishment, domestic violence, obesity, and poverty. The
changing nature of family structures is reflected by entries on adoption, children
of gay and lesbian parents, and second language acquisition. Multiple perspectives on an early childhood curriculum and pedagogy are found in entries on a
child-centered pedagogy, pedagogy for social justice, progressive education, and
the Reggio Emilia Approach. In addition to entries on contemporary theories of
teaching and learning, alternative and post-modern perspectives on the field are
represented by entries on the reconceptualist movement, feminist theory, and
children’s sexuality. The work also includes extensive discussions of the particular needs and potentials of diverse populations of children, including children
with disabilities, children of incarcerated parents, and children who are bilingual.
The inclusion of multiple entries on complex topics—such as the education of
young children with special needs—provides both breadth as well as alternative
perspectives on topics of critical importance.
The provision of multiple perspectives goes global in Volume 4 (see the separate introduction to Volume 4). The countries included were selected because
their early care and education systems are interesting and dynamic reflections
of the cultures they serve. They represent each of the five inhabited continents
other than North America, and include societies experiencing rapid political or
economic change over the past quarter century (e.g., Brazil, China, the Czech
Republic, and South Africa) as well as those characterized by relative continuity
over that same period (Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Sweden, and the United
Kingdom). Another macro-level variation of interest was in economic systems,
ranging from the largely free-market capitalist systems of Australia, Japan, and the
United Kingdom (more similar to the United States) to systems in Sweden and
France with larger public sectors and greater public investment in social welfare.
Volume 4 includes national profiles of current early childhood educational policies and practices in these ten countries. Those seeking to understand how early

childhood education serves the goals and needs of nations in Europe, Asia, Africa,
South America, and Oceania will find rich descriptions and deep insights from
authors in these 10 countries beyond North America.
These profiles also create contexts for invited essays from many authors outside the United States on key topics—for example, literacy, parent education,
technology—selected by international consultants as they correspond to contemporary scholarship and concern in their respective cultural contexts. For that
reason, the number of entries per topic varies considerably, with curriculum
as the sole topic selected by each country. Entries on family involvement and
teacher preparation describe current practices in eight of the ten international
settings. Other topics, such as health, violence, and assessment, were less frequently selected topics and are addressed by authors in only two or three international settings. Early childhood educators wishing to expand their understanding
of curriculum, play, literacy, and creativity will be stimulated by the international
perspectives these experts provide. Researchers interested in topics ranging from


xxii PREFACE

teacher preparation to early childhood pedagogy and the ecology of childhood
can mine these data for useful insights from a variety of cultural contexts. For
parents wishing to understand the singular experience their child is having in the
local child care center or family child care setting as it corresponds to children’s
experiences in settings around the world will find much to ponder. Thus, for
example, the reader can review international perspectives on early literacy in six
nations outside the United States.

Organization
Topics are arranged alphabetically in Volumes 1, 2, and 3; and countries are
presented in alphabetical order in Volume 4. In addition to a table of contents in
the front pages of each volume, topics are cross-referenced, with boldfaced items
in text and “See also” lines at the ends of entry text. All entries conclude with
lists of cited works and additional resources, including books, journal articles, and
Web sites. A detailed subject index provides further access to the information in

the entries, while a Guide to Related Topics allows readers to trace broad themes
and concepts across the entries of the first three volumes. Thus, readers interested
in a topic such as “literacy” will find references to multiple entries associated with
that topic in Volumes 1, 2, and 3; as well as discussions of literacy in six different
national contexts in Volume 4. A detailed introduction places the field of early
childhood education into current context.
These unique features insure that this encyclopedia will provide useful information based on current understandings of early childhood policies, theories, and
practices. They have also been designed to provoke further debate on the role of
early childhood education in the lives of young children and their families, and
on the priorities and policies of diverse nations around the world with respect
to their youngest citizens. As such, this set serves as both a resource and a catalyst for reflection and global conversation on the broad field of early childhood
education.


Acknowledgments

The preparation of this encyclopedia was a joint effort. The two of us conceived
and organized its contents together. The coordination of entries, communications
with authors, and editing for Volumes One, Two, and Three were carried out
primarily by Rebecca New. Mon Cochran assumed primary responsibility for
Volume Four, including international correspondence, topic coordination, text
editing and assistance with translations.
Supporting us in this work has been a strong social support network of old and
new friends and colleagues. Indeed, a project the size of this undertaking could
not succeed without the assistance, encouragement, and patience of numerous
others. Of course, any future usefulness of this encyclopedia is dependent upon
the knowledge and writing skills of its more than 300 contributors. Many of these
contributors are also our friends and colleagues; some are our students; still others
are new acquaintances. We thank them each for their hard work, their patience
with the editing process, and their willingness to persist with requested revisions.

There were also many others, behind the scenes as well as working closely with
the editors and contributors, whose confidence in our vision was instrumental to
its attainment. Although the total number of well-wishers is surely too large to
itemize, some who made direct contributions must be acknowledged.
Thanks to Marie Ellen Larcada for the original invitation to do a project on
early childhood, and for believing in and advocating for its expansion to include
international contributions from around the world. Without this initial support,
the project would have remained nothing more than an idea. Once begun, Joanna
Krablin (now Joanna Krablin Nelson) became indispensable to the day-to-day operations and, especially, to the ongoing communication with each of the contributors. Her meticulous record-keeping and soothing demeanor kept both editors
and contributors on an even keel, even through the roughest of weather. John
Wagner of Greenwood played his long-distance role with grace and a sense of
humor appointed, providing sage advise, practical editorial assistance, and gentle pressure about looming deadlines—each critical to the completion of this
project.


xxiv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As word lists were generated and authors identified, members of the Editorial
Advisory Board reminded us of why we had invited them in the first place.
Individually and collectively, Board members joined in email-hosted debates on
the merits of topics to include and to leave out, about whom to invite to write
essential but unclaimed topics, and how best to organize the entries. All Board
members wrote one or more entries, and a majority of them helped with the
editing, with an eye to accessible language and comprehensive coverage tempered
by respect for each author’s writing style and position on the subject. Group
discussions with several Board members—Carolyn Edwards, Stacie Goffin, and
Sharon Ryan—about U.S. interpretations of curriculum and pedagogy not only
resolved critical issues in the production and organization of the manuscript; they
were also stimulating in their own right and one of the unanticipated highlights
of this project.

Another boon for the editors as well as future readers of this encyclopedia is
the International Advisory Group, most of whom were known to one or both
of us previously, each of whom became a source of support and inspiration to
each other. Their willingness to serve as representatives, collectors, and editors
of the material from their own countries was matched by their willingness to
share their ideas and questions about various topics in an open forum with other
Group members so as to generate a framework for the national discussions. The
sort of cross-cultural discussion that went on between Group members is just the
sort of dialogue that we hope the encyclopedia will generate.
And last but not least, we wish to acknowledge and thank our families and
friends for their patience, indulgence, and support for our work on this project.
Far too many late dinners—some missed entirely—were explained by “I was
working on the encyclopedia.” It is with a sense of relief as well as gratitude that
we can say, by way of a final “thank you,” it’s done—and we couldn’t have done
it without you.
Rebecca S. New
Moncrieff Cochran