Comparative Study of Early Childhood Education and Care in Selected High-Performing Countries

• In Event: Building Equitable, High-Quality Public Education Systems in the 21st Century: Lessons From Leading Countries

Abstract

This study is a comparative analysis of early childhood education and care systems to determine the nature, scope, and promising practices associated with their implementation in high-performing PISA countries. Rather than making causal claims or identifying a single “best” model of early childhood education, the study examines promising and innovative approaches to early childhood policy, practice, and service delivery that contribute to the quality, equitable distribution, and sustainability of services for young children.

The study uses a systems and systems change approach. Analytic frameworks include the Building Blocks developed by the National Center on Education and the Economy and the World Bank’s Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER), and its early childhood version SABER-ECE (Neuman & Devercelli, 2013). These and other helpful frameworks underscore the importance of systems thinking, including the importance of policy goals and levers, human variables, and accountability factors. Using these frameworks and data from such sources as large-scale surveys, policy documents, existing country reports, and interview protocols, the analysis addresses a series of research questions that describe, compare, and analyze early childhood education systems in the designated countries. Countries of focus include Australia, Finland, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.

Findings include recommendations for the United States based on successful practices in high-performing countries, with an emphasis on early childhood education as a system rather than a combination of individual programs and services.

Authors

• Sharon Lynn Kagan, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Rebecca Bull, National Institute of Education - Nanyang Technological University

• Kristiina P. Kumpulainen, University of Helsinki

• Kathy Sylva, University of Oxford

• Collette Tayler, Univeristy of Melbourne

• Nirmala Rao, The University of Hong Kong

• Mugyeong Moon, Ajou University