Landscape analysis

Understanding the best ways to support the well-being of the child care and early education (CCEE) workforce is important for states and CCEE programs. CCEE teachers and caregivers have demanding jobs and receive low compensation for their work—a combination that often negatively affects their well-being. Research has linked CCEE workforce well-being to several important outcomes, including staff turnover, responsiveness to children’s needs, and collaborations with families. CCEE teachers and caregivers also have roles outside of their profession, and deserve to be well for themselves and their families. Research on CCEE teacher and caregiver well-being points to the effects they can experience personally, including high levels of stress, low access to food, unstable housing, and putting off medical care because of cost.

Historically, research on CCEE workforce well-being has primarily focused on poor mental health (specifically depressive symptoms) and its link to responsive caregiving. This research has focused on disparities in well-being among different types of teachers and caregivers, as well as disparities between the CCEE workforce and other sectors. Only in the past decade have researchers focused on a more holistic definition of well-being, on ways to improve well-being, and on tailored strategies that may be needed to improve CCEE workforce well-being across different types of settings.

Mallory Warner and Annie Davis Schoch

Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation - U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

2024

Building a strong, reliable, and high-quality ECEC workforce yields positive results that significantly impact the well-being of young children and enable their rounded and healthy development. Therefore, investing in continuous professional development (CPD) and growth of the ECEC workforce must stay high on the agenda of relevant stakeholders, enabling and promoting high-quality programs.

In this analysis, the PIQET consortium delves deeper into the context of CPD and sheds light on professionals delivering in-service continuous professional development opportunities. Why PIQET emphasizes the professionals delivering in-service continuous professional development opportunities and their professional growth and development? Because their professional development does not get enough attention in research and professional discourse, consequently, does not get the recognition when addressing the complexity of quality in ECEC and primary school education.

This analysis provides a comprehensive view of the CPD landscape for CPD Educators, pinpointing challenges and proposing actionable solutions. Committed to shedding light on this often-neglected aspect, PIQET's goal is to heighten the discussion around it, through quality principles that will guide both CPD educators and CPD-providing organizations in ensuring high-quality CPD opportunities and nurturing the professional development of CPD Educators.

Access the analysis and country reports here.

Educational Research Institute Slovenia, Open Academy Step by Step in Croatia, and the International Step by Step Association

2023

The SEEPRO-3 study presented here is the fourth in a series of research projects based at the State Institute of Early Childhood Research and Media Literacy (IFP) in Munich and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Family and Youth Affairs (Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend). The new SEEPRO-3 study¹ focuses on the 27 member states of the European Union and six non-EU countries - a total of 33 countries. Reports on the early childhood workforce and the early childhood education and care (ECEC) systems in Norway, Switzerland and Serbia are presented for the first time in this context.

Learn more about the history of the SEEPRO project.

Throughout Europe, early childhood education and care (ECEC) systems are continuously evolving through expansion and consolidation, with reforms and innovations shaping many countries. ECEC staff are essential for quality interactions, stimulating environments, and supporting children's wellbeing and learning. However, nearly all countries report staff shortages, highlighting the need to update data on the qualifications and competencies of early childhood leaders, pedagogues, and assistants.

This homepage presents results from the fourth SEEPRO-3 project, with documents for 33 countries. Each country's profile includes:

1. ECEC Workforce Profile (Country Report): Details on qualification requirements, workforce composition, professional education systems, reform initiatives, research projects, and working conditions. These reports, provided by long-term partners, were compiled based on a research specification and reflect extensive collaboration.
2. Key Contextual Data Synopsis (Country-Specific Background Information): Overview of the ECEC system and demographic data, compiled by the project team and reviewed with supplementary data from partners.

Documents are available in English and German, serving a wide audience including educators, government officials, employers, researchers, early years staff, and other stakeholders across Europe and beyond.

Access the country profiles here.

SEEPRO-3

2024

This 2024 study highlights the importance of maintaining a stable early childhood education and care (ECEC) workforce, essential for enabling family employment and positive child outcomes. Globally, retaining qualified early childhood educators remains a challenge. This research explores the factors influencing educators' and center directors' intentions to leave the profession, using survey responses from 713 professionals and detailed feedback from 97 participants.

Key findings include:

• One in three professionals intend to leave the sector, with over half planning to do so within five years.
• Emotional exhaustion is a significant predictor of this intention.
• For center directors, higher personal accomplishment and older age increase the likelihood of intending to leave.
• For educators, lower satisfaction with pay, benefits, and lower qualification levels are critical factors.

Qualitative data reveal that feeling undervalued, increased demands with inadequate support, and workforce issues drive the intention to leave. Addressing these factors through targeted interventions could improve workforce stability. This study is particularly relevant in Australia, where supporting the ECEC workforce is a current political focus, presenting an opportunity for meaningful changes.

Early Childhood Research Quarterly

2024

The Council of the European Union approved the European Child Guarantee (ECG) with the objective of addressing and combating child poverty and exclusion (Council of the European Union, 2021). The ECG aims to provide access to essential services and support to children (defined as persons under 18 years old) in the following key areas: early childhood education and care (ECEC), education (including school-based activities and at least one healthy meal each school day), healthcare, nutrition, and housing. The workforce in these areas plays a vital role in delivering accessible and high-quality services.

The aim of this project is to provide categories and definitions of workforce related to ECG and to map relevant data sources across EU. 

This working paper is organised in three main sections. The first section, "Defining and categorising the workforce relevant to ECG” is further divided into subsections for ECEC, education, healthcare, nutrition (with a subsection for "At least one healthy meal each school day"), and housing. Each of these subsections includes definitions of the specific field, national differences found when doing a country-level mapping of the workforce and a general discussion. There is also a subsection related to those jobs that span across all the key areas described above and/or that cannot be directly classified within one of them. The second section includes mapping of the data sources at the international level relevant to the workforce categories identified in the first section. The document concludes with a third section summarising the main finds and classifications.

Kadri Arrak and Kaupo Koppel (Civitta)

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound),

2024

The work of early childhood education and care (ECEC) professionals is the major driver of the quality of an ECEC system. As evidence accumulates on the strong benefits of investing in early education, countries need effective policies to attract, maintain and retain a highly skilled workforce in the sector. This report looks at the makeup of the early childhood education and care workforce across countries, assessing how initial preparation programs compare across different systems, what types of in-service training and informal learning activities help staff to upgrade their skills, and what staff say about their working conditions, as well as identifying policies that can reduce staff stress levels and increase well-being at work. The report also looks at which leadership and managerial practices in ECEC centers contribute to improving the skills, working conditions and working methods of staff. The OECD Starting Strong Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS Starting Strong) is the first international survey that focuses on the early childhood education and care workforce. It offers an opportunity to learn about the characteristics of ECEC staff and center leaders, their practices at work, and their views on the profession and the sector.

This second volume of findings, Building a High-Quality Early Childhood Education and Care Workforce, examines factors that influence the skills development of ECEC professionals, their working conditions and well-being at work, and leadership in ECEC centers.

OECD

2020

The experience of children under age three with early childhood education and care (ECEC) is crucial for their learning, development and well-being and for parents’ return to work. Despite increasing recognition of the importance of ECEC for the youngest children, little is known about this sector. The OECD Starting Strong Teaching and Learning International Survey  (TALIS Starting Strong) is the first international survey that focuses on the ECEC workforce. It asks staff and leaders about themselves and their settings, including the practices they use with children and their views on the sector.

This thematic report focusses on ECEC for children under age three, an option of the Survey in which four countries (Denmark, Germany, Israel and Norway) participated. The report answers many questions that are important for parents, actors in the field, and policymakers.

OECD

2020

For most children, early childhood education and care (ECEC) provides the first experience of life in a group away from their families. This experience plays a crucial role in children’s learning, development and well-being. The benefits of high-quality ECEC are not restricted to children’s first years of life. However, little is known about this first experience. What do children learn and do in ECEC settings? With which staff do children interact at their centers? Do all children face the same opportunities to enroll in high-quality settings? What are the main spending priorities to raise the quality of ECEC? These are key questions for parents, staff and policy makers. The OECD Starting Strong Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS Starting Strong) is the first international survey that focuses on the ECEC workforce. It offers an opportunity to learn about the characteristics of the workforce, the practices they use with children, their beliefs about children’s development and their views on the profession and on the sector.

This first volume of findings, Providing Quality Early Childhood Education and Care, examines multiple factors that can affect the quality of ECEC and thereby can influence children’s learning, development and well-being.

OECD

2020

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) services for children under six years of age play a fundamental role in laying strong foundations for lifelong learning and wellbeing, especially in the first three years of life. Quality ECEC services can make an extraordinary difference in children’s lives, especially for the most disadvantaged. Research indicates that children from vulnerable groups derive even greater benefit from high-quality ECEC than their peers from more advantaged families.

Our Recommendations:

• Promote the societal value of ECEC services and ECEC profession
• Establish a minimum standard of qualification accompanied by opportunities for career development for ECEC staff working with children under three years of age
• Track data on ECEC staff qualifications and define targets for the levels of qualification of ECEC staff working in ECEC services, especially those working with children under three years of age
• Define aligned competence profiles across different categories of ECEC staff to ensure high-quality service provision
• Implement policies and mechanisms that bring more diversity in the ECEC workforce (gender, cultural background, etc.)
• Increase investments for improving the ECEC staff working conditions (child-adult ratio, child-free time, renumeration, working environment)

Early childhood development (ECD) services have a strong, positive impact on children’s development. Research from diverse contexts shows that interventions that promote nurturing care in early learning environments significantly improve childhood development and later adult outcomes. Despite increasing knowledge on the benefits of ECD, however, much remains unknown about the early childhood workforce, the range of individuals across paid and unpaid roles who provide services to young children and their caregivers across the health, nutrition, education, and social and child protection sectors. Research supports that the workforce is one of the most important factors influencing the quality of ECD services. However, key questions remain unanswered, including:

• What does the early childhood workforce need to know and be able to do in order to carry out their roles? 
• What types of training opportunities are most effective for building the knowledge and skills that the workforce needs? 
• What types of feedback does the workforce receive on their work on a daily basis? 
• What financial and non-financial incentives impact the job satisfaction of personnel?

In an effort to address these questions, the Early Childhood Workforce Initiative (ECWI), a multi-stakeholder global initiative co-led by Results for Development (R4D) and the International Step by Step Association (ISSA) that works to support and empower those who work directly with young children, is carrying out a series of global landscape analyses to illustrate the size and scope of the challenges faced by the early childhood workforce, while also highlighting promising practices countries have adopted in response to these challenges. Spanning a range of roles including professionals and paraprofessionals, paid and unpaid workers, and frontline workers, supervisors, and managers, from the education, health and nutrition, social protection and child protection sectors, these analyses aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status of the workforce worldwide.

Vidya Putcha, Denise Bonsu, and Michelle Neuman

2020