National science reform documents recommend several nature of science (NOS) elements to introduce to children early in the science curriculum. A researcher developed questionnaire was used to gather information from a random, national sample about early elementary teachers' perceptions of the developmental appropriateness of 12 NOS aspects for the…

We investigated the extent to which practices considered developmentally appropriate and inappropriate varied by preschool program auspice (private, public school, and Head Start). Survey data from a 2010 national sample of 2,664 teachers of 4-year-olds provided teacher reports on the frequency of seven practices (e.g., offering children choices…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore preschool teachers' beliefs and practices on developmentally appropriate practices. The study sites are a mix of public and private preschools that are located in Gondar City, Ethiopia. From these study sites, six participants were purposively selected. Date data were collected through in-depth…

The study examined conceptualisation and implementation of play-based curriculum and pedagogy in early childhood education in preschools in Oromia Regional State. The study employed mixed research method with concurrent triangulation design. A researcher selected the samples of the study by using purposive, availability, stratified and simple…

The most recent iteration of NAEYC's key Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP) texts (the 2020 Position Statement and the fourth edition of the DAP book) reflect a more robust stance on family educator-relationships and attention to issues of equity as reflected in linguistic shifts. This article analyses NAEYC's rhetorical moves between the…

The current study examined laypeople's perceptions of sexuality education with young children in Greece. This exploratory qualitative web research used data from a convenience and snowball sample where respondents answered the question, "What do you think about sexuality education in early childhood (children aged 2-5)?" This study's…

A developmentally appropriate learning environment provides learning experiences that support whole child development as young children are provided with opportunities to engage in meaningful experiences that promote inquiry, exploration, problem solving, and discovery. The intent of developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) is shifting the K-12…

Preschool through third grade (P-3) alignment is regularly named as a key aspect of early childhood education and the transition to formal schooling. However, little is known about P-3 alignment in practice. Using data from 265 observations of math instruction in preschool, kindergarten, first-, and third-grade classrooms in New York City public…

Transversal skills describe a broad spectrum of skills that are considered to be essential for thriving in today's society and tackling the challenges of the twenty-first century. Therefore, a high demand is placed on educators to teach these skills to their students. Unfortunately, the conceptualization of transversal skills remains vague with…

Practice guidelines for early childhood education (ECE) and clinical autism interventions (Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Intervention, NDBI) have emerged separately in history, represent different disciplines, and operate within different service systems in the United States. This article identifies priorities, principles, and practices…

Many within early childhood and early childhood teacher education are concerned about the changed kindergarten. At the same time, students entering early childhood teacher education programs were educated in these changed schooling systems that emphasize standards and accountability, which can impact the ways in which they make sense of teaching…

Two years after the State of Illinois enacted an extensive non-exclusionary discipline reform in schools, 322 key discipline gatekeepers in schools were surveyed about the extent and impact of its implementation. The results showed that a number of core provisions of the reform had not been fully implemented or addressed through professional…

The purpose of this study was to describe to what extent four preschool teachers in Turkey have developmentally appropriate beliefs and practices related to two dimensions of classroom management. The participants of the study were four female teachers working in Ankara. The data of this study were collected through a demographic information…

Background/Context: Early childhood education joined the standards movement in 2002 with the Good Start, Grow Smart initiative (Brown, 2007), with advocates arguing that standards were a tool for creating more continuity and coherence in PreK systems (Bowman, 2006; Kagan 2012). Critics posed concerns about a perceived poor fit between…

A model-based approach for matching language learners to texts of appropriate difficulty is described. Results are communicated to test takers via a targeted reading range expressed on the reporting scale of an automated text complexity measurement tool (ATCMT). Test takers can use this feedback to select reading materials that are well matched to…