Seven Crucial Conversations in Early Childhood Education
Where Have We Been and Why Does It Matter?

Nancy File (Edited by), Nancy E. Barbour (Edited by), Andrew J. Stremmel (Edited by)

9780807769317

Hardback, published 26 April 2024

208 pages
23.5 x 16.2 x 1.5 cm, 0.272 kg

Designed to spark an interchange of ideas, this book presents early childhood education as a nuanced, shifting, and complex field. Readers will bear witness to several decades of the lived experiences of influential leaders engaged in conversation about seven major topics: systems of early care and education, diversity and children's rights, developmentally appropriate practice, perspectives on play, curriculum and pedagogy, the care of infants and toddlers, and families and family engagement. Each chapter is accompanied by a "Reflections on the Dialogue" essay from one of the volume editors who include important source material and theoretical and research perspectives. Readers are invited to reflect thoughtfully on each topic to construct their own understanding of where the field has been and why it matters. Contributors reveal how they have been shaped by societal values and events, as well as how they have helped to shape the field as we know it. These reflective dialogues help readers develop greater understanding of the past and its influence on the present, while preparing readers to make decisions throughout their careers about what matters and why it is important to young children and their families.

• Contents (Tentative)
• Foreword
• Introduction Nancy File, Nancy E. Barbour, and Andrew J. Stremmel
• 1.  
  Systems of Early Care and Education W. Steven Barnett and Jacqueline Jones
• Reflections on the Systems of Early Care and Education Conversation Nancy E. Barbour
• 2.  
  Diversity, Equity, and Children'
  s Rights in Early Childhood Education Gloria Swindler Boutte and Dina C. Castro
• Reflections on the Diversity, Equity, and Children'
  s Rights in Early Childhood Education Conversation Nancy File
• 3.  
  Developmentally Appropriate Practice: The Position Statement of the National
• Association for the Education of Young Children Sue Bredekamp and Marilou Hyson
• Reflections on the Developmentally Appropriate Practice, Position Statement of the National Association for the Education of Young Children Conversation Nancy E. Barbour
• 4.  
  The Place of Play in Early Childhood Education Jaipaul L. Roopnarine and Jeffrey Trawick-Smith
• Reflections on the Place of Play in Early Childhood Education Conversation Nancy File
• 5.  
  Curriculum and Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education J. Amos Hatch and Marjorie Kostelnik
• Reflections on the Curriculum and Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education Andrew J. Stremmel
• 6.  
  The Place of Infants and Toddlers in Early Childhood Education Mary Benson McMullen and Susan L. Recchia
• Reflections on the Place of Infants and Toddlers Conversation Nancy File
• 7.  
  Families and Family Engagement in Early Childhood Education Douglas R. Powell and Mari Riojas-Cortez
• Reflections on the Families and Family Engagement in Early Childhood Education Conversation Andrew J. Stremmel
• 8.  
  Closing Thoughts: Reflection and (Re)Claiming Katherine K. Delaney
• Afterword: A Final Word on Conversations Andrew J. Stremmel
• Index
• About the Editors