Parental relationship is an important criterion for child growth. The substantial purpose of this study was to analyse the current parental relationship and involvement practices at Early Childhood Education (ECE) centres in Malaysia and consequently propose an ideal model for parental partnerships. Findings from the qualitative study steered three major themes for discussion-current trends on parent-child relationship, the intensity of parental relationship within ECE centres and ECE centres' initiatives for parental involvement. Based on these findings, a model for parental involvement grounded by Epstein's six types of parental involvement known as Parental Relationship and Iterative Involvement Model (PRII-M) was developed.

A sustainable and strategic curriculum is an important educational standard for a child's development. The substantial purpose of this study was to explore the various pedagogical principles and learning models preschool education are currently constructed on at the global perspective and subsequently propose an ideal conceptual framework for an integrated curriculum. Based on the comparative analysis done by researchers, this concept paper draws out the potential key areas of S.T.E.A.M, Finnish pedagogy and High Scope approach and explains in-depth the use of each model and the expected outcomes for teachers and on children's growth and development in the context of Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Malaysia.

Early Childhood Education is the foundation of every child's development and Inclusive Education also plays an important role in children with disabilities to progress. Teachers play a crucial role in an educational setting and ensure that inclusive education is implemented smoothly. The aim of this study is to examine what are the issues and challenges that teacher faced in an inclusive Early Childhood Education (ECE) classroom setting. For this study, a qualitative method was chosen with the use of an open-ended interview session. Interview sessions with a total of 14 participants, primarily teachers who work or have experience teaching in inclusive classrooms in Early Childhood Education setting from a variety of backgrounds and locations, were conducted to provide feedback for this study. The responses from the participants of this study based on the first objective have identified a few challenges that the teachers faced. The main factors such as time consumption, lack of manpower, lack of training and knowledge as well as limited resources were identified as the main themes that emerged from the respondents. This study also made some recommendations and suggestions to address the current issues and for further studies to be done.

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Play, a context identified by Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) as a human right, contributes significantly to a child's optimal growth and development. Although play-based learning (PBL) is known as the very core of the "Developmentally Appropriate Practice" (DAP) that is currently observed at the Malaysian preschool context, many preschools do not address play as a critical component for early childhood development. One of the major reasons cited by school administrators is that preschools are pressured by parents and stakeholders for producing high academic achievers and primary-level ready students. The purpose of this study hence was to explore preschool parents itself, to identify further their understanding of play-based learning and their view on the importance of PBL in the early childhood education context. Through the "maximum variation" sampling technique, eighteen parents were selected from seven different states in Malaysia to obtain their views on PBL. Findings from this qualitative study steered six major themes for discussion which include contextualizing the term 'play' and 'play-based learning', their awareness about PBL as a teaching method, preschool's initiatives on injecting awareness about play-based learning, their recognition that play-based learning can holistically develop children, their acceptance on PBL as a pedagogy for a child's development and their concerns of PBL on children's primary level school readiness.