Knowledge Hub

Handbook with activities for work with students with disabilities for improving their literacy and numeracy skills contains 20 activities for lower grades of the primary school . Two special educators from a special primary school in Macedonia made an adaptation of ten activities from each of the two previously published handbooks (“Step by Step to Literacy” and “Learn Math through Play”).

All of the activities can be easily replicated in the classroom with affordable and easy-to-get materials. This handbook is a useful resource for teachers from the special schools, but also for teachers from all other inclusive classrooms.

Happy young learners: Psychosocial well-being of young children in Ethiopia report presents the findings and recommendations of a research and practice project about the psychosocial well-being of five year-old children. It took place between 2016 and 2018 in two regions in Ethiopia: Amhara and Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR). It consisted of: 1) a research study, 2) a programme to improve the quality of four preschools in the study areas, and 3) the making of a short documentary film called ‘Happy young learners in Ethiopia’.

All of these actions took place to inform Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) practice, teacher education and policy in Ethiopia. The project was a collaborative effort between Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), in Ethiopia and International Child Development Initiatives (ICDI), in the Netherlands.

The Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share in Education is a ground-breaking manual which uses a permacultural lens to inspire child-friendly approaches to embed education for a sustainable future into preschool, kindergarten and primary school programs.

The resource is designed to provide practical tools and guidelines to professionals and other practitioners dedicated to the vision of a better planet and on how to address ecological habits, values and attitudes with young children.  The manual ilustrates holistic pedagogy and contains ideas for activities, session plans, and inspiration for reflections.

This research study from Bulgaria documents how healthcare, social, and education systems in the country organize and encourage early childhood development. The study aimed to: provide an overview of the legislative and political context in which sectors related to early childhood development are currently functioning; insight in the extent to which the healthcare, social, and education systems interact with one another in terms of ECD, and how such interaction is reflected on the existing services and forms of support; estimate the extent to which institutions and professionals involved in childcare at an early age apply a family-oriented approach; present parental attitudes towards the state of the early childhood development systems. The study also addresses the extent to which the healthcare, social, and education systems are driven in their work by the principles of social inclusion in the organization of the provision of care for young children with special needs.

The study was conducted during the period from December 2016 to April 2017 using desk research, group discussions (focus groups), interviews, case studies and a quantitative study of parental attitudes. The combination of various methods and locations aimed to ensure a comprehensive and multifaceted study, which takes into consideration different points of view on the policies and practices related to early childhood care in Bulgaria including those of: politicians, decision-makers, experts at national and regional levels, professionals working with children at early ages, service providers, and parents.
The study makes a number of recommendations for reforms of the systems supporting ECD. It can be used by policy makers, practitioners and advocates in their work to advance ECD development in Bulgaria, as well as by researchers who are studying the functioning of different national ECD systems.

Video coaching 'imagination' professional development practice is about video coaching teaches and educators how to videotape themselves in order to be able to reflect on the quality of interactions they have with the children, the needs and strengths of the children, their initiatives,  and the growth opportunities that may present themselves. The purpose of the video coaching is to promote higher quality interactions with children and to grow as a professional. The video tapes can also be used to present interactions with children and to discuss and reflect on them with other staff members in early childhood education. 

TOY for Inclusion Toolkit: A step-by-step guide to creating inclusive Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Play Hubs for all generations provides all the necessary conceptual and practical information to enable trainers and practitioners from different sectors to set-up and run non-segregated multigenerational play spaces. The toolkit pays particular attention to social integration, intercultural and intergenerational dialogue, and social inclusion in the context of early childhood education and care (ECEC).

The following topics are addressed: Setting the vision for all the children in the local community; The importance of community-based ECEC and integration of services for inclusion, equity and respect for diversity; Play spaces as community resource hubs; All generations learning and playing together (intergenerational learning); The importance of desegregated ECEC for Roma and non-Roma children, and Anti-bias education and Quality in community-based ECEC projects.

The TOY for Inclusion partners are available to provide guidance and training, in case your organization is interested in setting up an ECEC Play Hub. The training materials (PowerPoints) mentioned in the Toolkit are available upon request.

The power of early childhood education and care (ECEC) interventions in transforming the lives of very young children is highly dependent on the quality of the services provided. More recently, evidence has increased the focus on the value of process quality as determinant of the outcomes.

This study documents ISSA’s work on process quality improvement to support member organisations in their efforts to contribute to systemic and professional changes in their respective countries. A concrete set of resources, tools and mechanisms – the ISSA’s Competent Educators of the 21^st Century: Principles of Quality Pedagogy and its Quality Resource Pack – supports the members to promote inclusive quality practices in early childhood education and care (ECEC) services for children aged 3 to 10.

This study was commissioned to learn how much the resources and the support provided to ISSA members managed to determine new approaches, new practices and influence new policies. Equally important was being able to share the learning journey of ISSA both as a learning community and as a reflexive network which deeply believes in the co-construction of knowledge, transnational networks of support, nurturing innovation and empowering agents of change.

The structure of this study consists of four parts. Parts I and II provide the conceptual framework and the contextual background for the development of the ISSA’s work on quality improvement in ECEC. Part III is the core of the study, presenting the main findings of ISSA members’ use of the QRP and its influence on ECEC practice and policy. Part IV summarizes the lessons learned.

This report from 2018, is the first in the Early Childhood Workforce Initiative's Landscape Analysis Series and it advances existing knowledge on the early childhood workforce by synthesizing for the first time data on the approaches to and challenges associated with training and professional development experiences from across sectors, regions, and roles. Ten key findings and recommendations from this study are yield from an extensive review of published and grey literature, and key informant interviews with ECD experts.

Children’s long term success at school is influenced as much by social, emotional and self-regulation skills as by academic skills and knowledge. The overall goal of SEED was to improve psychosocial well-being and healthy development of young children (2,5 to 6 years old), with an emphasis on those growing up in difficult circumstances such as children on the move, children with a low socio-economic status or children victims or witnesses of domestic violence. We did this by conducting a country level screening of psychosocial well-being of 5-year-old children in 5 countries in Europe.

The aim of this research study is firstly to assess the psychosocial well-being of 5-year-old children in ECEC settings infive countries in Europe (Croatia, Hungary, Latvia, the Netherlands and Norway) through interviews with ECEC practitioners and secondly to identify the factors in ECEC settings that promote and hinder children’s psychosocial well-being in each country.The study is part of European project titled: SEED (Social and Emotional Education and Development). The activities in SEED, including this research study, are designed to draw attention to the importance of psychosocial well-being for children’s learning and development, and support the continuing professional development of practitioners working with 2.5 to 6 year-olds in this area. The SEED Project is funded by the European Commission under the Erasmus+ Programme –Strategic partnerships for school education.

Contact person: Margaret Kernan, margaret@icdi.nl 

The SAGE Handbook of Early Childhood Policy draws critical attention to policy in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) its relationship to service provision and its impact on the lives of children and families all around the world.

ISSA's program staff contributed to this relevant publication with the Chapter 33, dedicated to introducing the ISSA’s Quality Framework for Early Childhood Practices in Services for Children under Three Years of Age, a policy document and a tool that invites policy makers and professionals working in various early childhood services across sectors to dialogue about quality, practices and policies for the benefit of the young child’s development and wellbeing.

Part 1: The Relationship Between Research, Policy And Practice: Country Case Studies
Part 2: Equitable Early Childhood Services: Intervention to Improve Children’s Life Chances
Part 3: Extending Practice: The Role of Early Childhood Services In Family Support
Part 4: Participation, Rights and Diversity
Part 5: Future Directions for Early Childhood Policy

This handbook is essential reading for practitioners, stakeholders and others committed to working within early years services to achieve an awareness of policy and its implications for services and practice.

Chapter 33 written by the ISSA program staff is dedicated to introducing the ISSA’s Quality Framework for Early Childhood Practices in Services for Children under Three Years Old. This is a policy document and a tool that invites policy makers and professionals working in various early childhood services across sectors to dialogue about quality, practices and policies for the benefit of the young child’s development and wellbeing.

The report Quality of Early Childhood Education Services - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro resulted from a consultancy carried out by Jan Peeters from VBJK (ISSA's member from Flanders) for the UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (UNICEF ECARO). The report was commissioned based on the findings and recommendations of the 2014 Multi-Country Evaluation (MCE) on Increasing Access and Equity in Early Childhood Education carried out by UNICEF ECARO.

The MCE covered all UNICEF activities related to advancing Early Learning and School Readiness (ELSR) efforts for children in the 3-6 year age group and covered the period from 2005 to 2012. The report addresses the possible risks to quality of practices and services arising from rapidly increasing access. 

Full Title: Integralno dićhipe sićimašće inkluzijako: ažutipe rane barjarimasko ande funkcija e prevencijako katar o inklistipe andar o sićimasko sistemo ke rromane čhavorra, Integrisani pristup obrazovnoj inkluziji: podrška ranom razvoju u funkciji prevencije napuštanja sistema obrazovanja kod dece romske nacionalnosti.

The manual was created within the framework of the "Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in Function of Preventing Dropout and Increase Of Education Attainment of Roma Children in Novi Sad" project, implemented by the Know How Center in partnership with the Center for Social Work of the city of Novi Sad and the City of Novi Sad Education Administration. The project was financially supported by the European Union under the IPA 2013 program - Development of effective community-based services in the field of education and social protection at the local level.

The manual “ECEC in function of dropout prevention of Roma children” promotes an integrated local approach to education inclusion of Roma children. The manual can be useful to different stakeholders in different ways: civil society organizations can use it to support similar approaches and professionals in primary and secondary schools can use it to facilitate the implementation of all legal obligations aiming to prevent pupils from dropping out, by the following concrete guidance and implementing inspirational activities at school level.

For representatives of social protection, the manual can serve as a guide for working and cooperating with relevant local actors. The manual contains 1) methodology of outreach work in informal Roma settlements, 2) methodology for establishing and working in school dropout prevention teams including action plans and providing psychosocial support to children, and 3) local intersectoral networking model as an example of the noteworthy practice at the local level.

To promote child's holistic development and prepare children for the competences needed in the XXI century, Bambi Kindergarten (Bucharest, Romania) implemented a programme to stimulate child's initiative and entrepreneurial abilities and independent skills - autonomy (age- appropriate) in the teaching and learning process. These competences are promoted in the children’s work in activity centres as well as through study visits in the community. For example, when children were studying the theme of Physical Activity and Health, they visited a fitness centre and a stadium which inspired them to organize a centre for renting bicycles/scooters in the kindergarten, including creating a business plan, decorating the rental facility, writing the schedule and rules, using money for renting, negotiating their roles, communicating and interacting with 'customers.'

With these types of activities, children are able to practice a wide range of skills. In these activities, teachers act as facilitators of learning by equipping the activity centers with the needed resources and scaffolding children's efforts. Techers play a key role in organzing the environment, proposing some of the activities, and empowering families to encourage their children to practice their new abilities. Another key role is played by families who become learning resources. By expanding the learning opportunities into the community, children make a closer connection between learning and real life, raising their motivation to learn. This practice can be scaled-up based on sharing this experience using direct approach (workshops for teachers), but also sharing resource (handbook with good practices examples, video, teachers’ and parents’ testimonials).

The book Child Protection in the Early Years provides information on what is child abuse and the its causes. It explores how to provide safe, nurturing environments for young children. It also explains the impact of trauma on young brains and explores how practice can be developed. It also addresses your responsibility to be safe practitioner. 

What is permaculture and why is it vital in the quest for ecological viability on planet earth? Why it should have a prominent role in education of the youngest? This short video offers a succinct glimpse of the vision that guided the “Children in Permaculture” project and effects it had on young children.

It is also introducing practical resources now available for free online. We recomendt the video to awaken awareness amongst kindergarten and primary school directors and educational staff and to motivate them to embed the ecological ethics and principles of education into early childhood and primary school curriculum. Thematic projects or subjects are not sufficient for forming  the lifelong attitudes, values and habits that are needed for creating a sustainable future.

The Macedonian handbook Step by Step to Literacy- 50 activities for improving student literacy skills is composed of 50 activities divided in six teaching and learning areas (Listening and talking; Reading and writing; Language; Literature; Verbal expression and creative writing and Media culture) as defined in the Macedonian national teaching curricula for the first three grades.

The handbook describes each activity, including the necessary materials, the preparation process and the method of conducting the activity. Additionally, each activity is supported with one or more photos presenting the preparation process. All of the activities can be easily replicated in the classroom with affordable and easy-to-get materials. This handbook is a useful resource for the primary grade teachers who want to expand their array of innovative and effective strategies for improving student literacy.