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The Effects of COVID-19 on Early Childhood Education
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The COVID-19 pandemic has presented the field of early childhood education with several challenges, including the need to shift early childhood instruction online. The effect of COVID-19 and social distancing regulations were experienced differently by families, teachers, teacher educators, early interventionists, and program administrators. These differences were exacerbated by socio-economic status, cultural backgrounds, and diversity in children's developmental trajectories and disabilities. Theoretical assumptions guiding the early childhood education field propose that learning is an active process fostered by an environment that supports exploration, manipulation, social interactions, and play. These foundations lay at the core of the early childhood education field. These past years, covering education in the time of COVID-19, have represented a time for readjustment and learning for those attempting to meet the needs of young children in several capacities. This book integrates perspectives of early childhood educators, higher education early childhood preparation programs, families, administrators, and early interventionists while taking into account the district roles of socioeconomic status, differences in developmental trajectories, disabilities, and cultural backgrounds. This book synthesizes the many lessons learned during the first years of the COVID-19 pandemic and puts forward recommendations for the future of early childhood education in times of rapid and continuous change in the world and the field. This book should prove especially helpful for practitioners, educators, families, and policymakers looking for a source that integrates the knowledge gathered in past unprecedented years. The field of early childhood will never be the same, and this book attempts to capitalize on the experiences lived during these challenging times.
Educating for Social Justice in Early Childhood
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Bringing together scholarship and examples from practice, this book explores ways in which early childhood curriculum - including classroom practices and community contexts - can more actively engage with a range of social justice issues, democratic principles and anti-oppressive practices. Featuring a stellar list of expert contributors, the chapters in this volume present a cross-section of contemporary issues in childhood education. The text highlights the voices of children, teachers and families as they reflect on everyday experiences related to issues of social justice, inclusion and oppression, as well as ways young children and their teachersengage in activism. Chapters explore curriculum and programs that address justice issues, particularly educating for democracy, and culminate in a focus on the future, offering examples of resistance and visions of hope and possibility.　　　　 Designed for practitioners, graduate students and researchers in early childhood, this book challenges readers to explore the ways in which early childhood education is - and can be - engaging with social justice and democratic practices.
Contemporary Challenges in Teaching Young Children
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Contemporary Challenges in Teaching Young Children provides both veteran and aspiring early childhood educators with the information and tools they need to build on their understanding of developmentally appropriate practice. Teachers face many challenges, including family configuration, social and political stressors related to accountability requirements, funding shortages, and the resulting need to teach with fewer resources. This innovative book focuses exclusively on problem-solving at the classroom level and fosters creative methods of ensuring best practices are in place for all children, including those with limited experience in formal social settings and a lack of self-regulatory behaviors. Drawing on current research and their own wealth of experience, expert contributors cover topics from the critical importance of social-emotional learning to culturally responsive teaching to using technology to empower teachers and learners. Written in accessible, non-technical language, this book addresses complex factors affecting child development, guiding readers through the best strategies for tackling real problems in their practice.
African American Children in Early Childhood Education
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Approximately 45% of young black children in the United States (under the age of six) live in poverty. It is well documented that education and economic security are inextricably linked and that early learning and early reading are undisputed contributors to a successful education. This book presents both the challenges and opportunities that exist for addressing the critical needs of black children, who have been historically underserved in the U.S. education system. This book explores the language, cognitive, social-emotional, and health development of black children from birth to age 8. The chapters approach this in three ways; first, they tackle why it is problematic to only characterize Black children's accomplishment in terms of "academic achievement." Second, they discuss the importance of the home-school environment connection. Lastly, they discuss the changes that need to be in teacher preparation in order to ensure that the workforce can practice racial equity in the classroom. These issues are woven together by a call to close the education opportunity gap via 'equity adjustments' that can target educational and health disparities facing the black community.
Early Childhood Research for Educational Equity
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How can we close opportunity gaps for young children affected by poverty and systemic racism--and build hope and resilience for children and their families? Research points the way forward, and in this timely volume, 40] leading researchers identify new approaches, insights, and technologies that can promote educational equity and improve outcomes for children and families living in poverty. Building on the seminal work of researcher John Fantuzzo, this book focuses on identifying and expanding on child, family, and community strengths to address the urgent needs of the whole child and the whole family. The expert contributors examine the importance of 1) child-level strengths and social connections, 2) strengths-based intervention as an antidote to deficit framing, and 3) collaboration and data sharing across systems serving vulnerable children and families. Chapters cover research and recommendations for: implementing interventions that foster children's social-emotional learning skillsdeveloping culturally and linguistically valid tools for measuring social-emotional developmentcreating more culturally inclusive preschool classrooms and practicesenhancing young children's communication and language competence in home visiting programsusing partnership-based approaches to strengthen understanding between home and school settingsintegrating data across programs and agencies to inform early childhood policy and better address complex social issues In addition to reporting on current research projects, the contributors outline future priorities and explore how research can inform policy and practice to achieve positive, sustainable change. A foundational volume for current and future early childhood researchers, administrators, and policy makers, this forward-thinking book will light the path toward greater educational equity, reduced disparities, and better outcomes for children and families.
Critical Issues in Early Childhood Teacher Education
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In recent years there have been significant changes in education across the globe, largely as a result of changing demographics, technological developments, and increased globalization. Relatedly, the changing needs of societies and families, along with new research findings, provide new directions in early childhood education. Consequently, early childhood teachers today are faced with higher and more complex expectations to help ensure that their students achieve their full potential. Such expectations suggest that early childhood teachers should be professionals who are able to draw on a robust knowledge base in making educational decisions. It follows that teacher education programs should develop and implement innovative programs that can potentially enhance the quality of our future teachers. An awareness of pressing issues in the field of early childhood teacher education led the editors to develop this volume. The chapters in these two volumes bring together scholars from across the US and the globe who are interested in improving the quality of early childhood teacher education. The chapters present their experiences, perspectives, and lessons learned as they addressed some of the challenging issues concerning the education and preparation of future early childhood teachers. The various issues and perspectives from different states in the US or countries across the globe provide insights into current issues and dilemmas facing the field. The contributions of these scholars should inform the discourse on early childhood teacher education and help those who work with preservice teachers improve the quality of their work.
Ethics and Politics in Early Childhood Education
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The early childhood services of Reggio Emilia in Northern Italy has gained worldwide interest and admiration. Drawing on the 'Reggio approach', and others, this book explores the ethical and political dimensions of early childhood services and argues the importance of these dimensions at a time when they are often reduced to technical and managerial projects, without informed consideration for what is best for the child. Extending and developing the ideas raised in Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Care and Education the successful team of authors make a wide range of complex material accessible to readers who may have little knowledge of the various important and relevant areas within philosophy, ethics, or politics, covering subjects such as: post-structural thinkers and their perspectives the history and practice of early childhood work in Reggio Emilia globalization, technological change, poverty, and environmental degradation ethical and political perspectives relevant to early childhood services from Foucault and Deleuze, to Beck, Bauman and Rose. This book presents essential ideas, theories and debates to an international audience. Those who would find this particularly useful are practitioners, trainers, students, researchers, policymakers and anyone with an interest in early childhood education.
