Early Childhood Education and Care

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Early childhood education and care encompass many different programs and types of care, from day care centers and home-based care to nursery schools and preschools. Most children receive at least some nonparental care before attending kindergarten; however, the quality and costs of these programs differ across various geographic and sociodemographic groups. Effective early education has been shown to help reduce poverty, and consequences for disadvantaged children who receive low-quality care are serious and long-lasting.

Early childhood education and care is an emerging and important domain for the social work profession. Social workers, with their commitment to social justice, are well positioned to address these issues and inequalities. Early Childhood Education and Care, written by Joy P. Greenberg and Jessica M. Kahn, highlights the important roles that social workers can play in direct practice, public policy, research, advocacy, and social work education associated with early childhood education and care. The book explores the evolution of day nurseries and nursery schools, detailing the origins of the current fragmented early childhood education and care system. Use patterns related to income, race and ethnicity, immigration status, and parental education are identified. The authors describe model programs and the effects of various care arrangements, demonstrating how different types of settings can influence outcomes and benefit certain groups of children. International approaches are analyzed, providing more insight into potential areas for domestic reform. In the final chapter, recent early childhood education and care debates are discussed through a social work lens.