DOCUMENT DETAILS
Expanding early childhood education and care programming: Highlights of a literature review, and public policy implications for British Columbia
2008
In the spring of 2008 the Early Childhood Learning Agency approached the Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP) to conduct a literature review of early childhood education and care (ECEC). In this report we share highlights of the literature review. We begin with a brief description of the approach used to generate the literature review and the public policy context that framed our work. We report on ECEC policies and programs in other jurisdictions, followed by findings from BC. We then examine the following five key issues in more detail: “school readiness” and child development outcomes in ECEC programs; parental preferences regarding ECEC programs; the inclusion of children from diverse cultural groups and with differing abilities; program expansion and integration of education and care; and issues related to the development of a comprehensive ECEC strategy. Finally we identify what we see as the major public policy implications of the literature review.
