Early Childhood Care & Education: International Perspectives

Throughout the world the number of working mothers with young children has continued to grow. This has important consequences for social policy decisions, particularly in the fields of parental leave, childcare and pre-school services provision. Some countries are far more successful at combining high quality early childhood services with high percentages of mothers in employment, whereas others continue to struggle. This edited volume examines the ways in which different countries across the world are tackling early childhood services and how these services affect young children’s experiences and development, for better and worse. Some of the recurring questions of childcare provision are tackled, including:

• Is pre-school childcare detrimental to children?
• Does the quality of childcare matter?
• Why are some countries succeeding in providing quality childcare services, and others are not?
• How can we best organise parental leave, employment regulations and childcare provision?

Table of Contents

1. Introducing International Perspectives on Early Childhood Care & Education 2. Childcare in the United States: Characteristics and Consequences 3. Policy and Research on Early Childcare and Education in Greece 4. Policy and Research on Preschool Care and Education in the UK 5. Children’s and parents’ Needs and Early Education and Care in Italy 6. Policy and Research on Childcare in Sweden 7. Early Childhood Care and Education in Aotearoa – New Zealand 8. Early Childhood Care and Education in Israel 9. Early Childhood Care and Education: An Indian Perspective 10. Development of Kindergarten Care and Education in the People’s Republic of China since the 1990s 11. An International Overview of Early Childhood Care and Education