Recognition of the profession

This Early Years Workforce Strategy from the United Kingdom details how the department for Women, Equalities and the Early Years plans to support the early years sector and remove barriers to attracting, retaining and developing the early years workforce. 

Chapter one of this document focuses on attracting staff to the sector, while the second chapter takes a look at retaining and developing staff. Several commitments are also addressed in this strategy, including: 

• Enabling staff with Early Years Educator qualification who also hold level 2 English and mathematics qualifications, including Functional Skills, to count in the level 3 staff:child ratios.
• Consulting on allowing those with Early Years Teachers Status (EYPS), and its predecessor Early Years Professional Status (EYPS), to lead nursery and reception classes in maintained schools. 
• Working with the sector to develop level 2 childcare qualfication criteria.
• Improving the quality of early years training and providing access to continous professonal development (CPD).
• Providing funding to support the sector to develop quality improvement support in partnership with schools and local authorities.

This document further addresses challenges faced by the early years workforce and actions to be taken to address these.

This online magazine, from the Journal of the National Association of State Boards, shares the following articles: 

Looking Back, Looking Forward: Tracing the Arc of Early Childhood Policy

A 30-year-old NASBE task force on early education still holds water, even as the context and concerns of the field have shifted. Lori Connors-

Tadros and Madelyn Gardner

Transforming the Early Care and Education Workforce

It’s time to improve care for the youngest learners by improving preparation and support for those who teach them. Sara Vecchiotti

States Pave the Way for Smoother Transitions to Kindergarten

Four states back statewide initiatives to make sure children are ready for kindergarten. Aaron Loewenberg

Fully Funding Pre-K through K-12 Funding Formulas

While just 11 states have tried it, inclusion of state-funded pre-K in the school funding formula may well be the best option for extending access to

more children. W. Steven Barnett and Richard Kasmin

Serving Young Dual Language Learners in Illinois

Illinois puts the accent on interagency collaboration to achieve linguistically and culturally appropriate instruction. Luisiana Meléndez and Patricia Chamberlain

Leveraging Early Childhood Data for Better Decision Making

Most states now have the tools they need to make good decisions for early learners. Now they need to learn how to use them. Philip Sirinides and Missy Coffey

Below you may download one of the 30 Workforce Profiles (country reports) on the current status quo regarding the qualification requirements for early childhood education and care professionals (pedagogues, teachers, educators), the composition of the workforce, the systems of initial professional education and continuing professional development, current reform initiatives and research projects and selected aspects of the working conditions of staff in each of the 30 participating countries.The initial Workforce Profiles in Systems of Early Childhood Education and Care in Europe were provided by mostly long-standing cooperation partners according to a research specification which they received for comment before compilation of the data. The final versions are based on a long period of close collaboration between the editors and the authors. The reports vary in length between approximately 25 pages and 80 pages.SEEPRO-R takes a look at many of the new fundamental reforms including, qualification and competence requirements for early childhood workforce and the structures of professional studies and continuing education. More on the SEEPRO-R project here.

Quality is key in Early Childhood Education in Australia highlights several key policy priorities for limiting quality across the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) system. These priorities address gaps in access by focusing on: 

• Pre-service teacher education, especially for Early Childhood Teachers (ECTs) and Diploma-qualified staff
• Pathways to grow pedagogical leaders
• Ongoing embedded and evidence -informed professional learning
• The use of data to track children's developmental, and design appropriate, personalized learning opportunities

This report also takes a look at the many elements of quality in ECEC and their importance.

2017 Home Visiting Yearbook is one of the first publications from the National Home Visiting Resource Center. It was developed with the recognition that, as many communities have implemented home visiting models aimed at improving outcomes for children and families, there has not been a comprehensive overview of how home visiting is across the country. This resource aims to inform readers as they make decisions in policy and practice. The following critical questions are addressed: 

Where do home visiting programs operate? 
How many families and children are being served by home visiting, and how many more could benefit? 
Who develops and administers home visiting? 
Who funds home visiting?

This first edition presents the most complete data available on home visiting in the United States.

6 Policies to Support the Early Childhood Workforce shares six policies that the federal government should include as part of significant federal financing reform for early care and education. The following policies will be implemented in partnership with communities: 

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive professional development system with stable funding and measures for quality assurance. 
• Develop or revise statewide career pathways that provide a road map for early childhood professionals to advance in their careers through increasing levels of education, experience, demonstrated competencies, and compensation. 
• Make progress toward compensation and benefit standards at parity with kindergarten teachers. 
• Promote data-driven policies and programs for the workforce with a statewide workforce registry.
• Bolster scholarship programs for early educators.
• Reward degree completion with wage supplements or tax credits.

These coordinated, integrated policies aim to promote a diverse early childhood workforce that is skilled, supported, and adequately compensated.

Standards for ECD Parenting Programmes takes a deeper looking into the interventions or services which aim to support parenting interactions, behaviors, knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and practices. The document guides practitioners through a set of standards for parenting programs. Nine standards are presented including:  

• Supporting nurturing care because it contributes to holistic child development;
• Build on a theory of change that leads to the desired results;
• Tailor content to the child's developmental stage;
• Serve vulnerable children and their families;
• Involve all parents and key caregivers engaged in the function of parenting;
• Adapt to context and culture and build upon positive parenting practices;
• Engage trained workforce and service providers;
• Reflect continuous improvements through systematic monitoring and evaluation.

This resource is particularly targeted to low and middle income count ires.

The relationship between teacher qualification and the quality of early childhood care and learning environment attempts to synthesize the empirical evidence on the relationship of teacher qualifications on the quality of early childhood learning environments. The study aims to answer one question:Is there a relationship between the level and type of education of the lead teacher, and the quality of the early childhood learning environment, as measured by the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale, the Infant Toddler Environment Rating Scale and their revised versions?The authors review 48 studies with 82 independent samples from 1980 to 2014, examining the relationship between teacher qualification and the quality of ECEC environment. The results draw upon information from quantitative research data from a number of countries, showing that higher qualifications of teachers are significantly correlated with higher quality ECEC. 

Through Rethinking Credential Requirements in Early Education, New America takes a look into a recent policy change in the District of Columbia, which will require all lead teachers in licensed early childhood centers to hold an associate degree.Emphasizing the importance of ensuring young children have access to competent early educators, the report discusses several options for credentialing this workforce. Discussions of credentialing through a bachelor’s degree, as well as apprenticeship are included in the report.