“It takes a whole village...” - shaping early childhood education and care in Serbia through the approaches of international organisations

Abstract

Early childhood education and care (ECEC), as part of educational system, is embedded in complex social, cultural and political systems. In this regard, international policy, as well as the way of exchanging information and promoting solutions through documents of international organizations (EU, OECD, World Bank, UNICEF, UNESCO and the T20/G20), shape beliefs and construct an understanding of the purpose and function of early childhood education and care. Guided by the question What are the values and What is the purpose of early childhood education and care? the paper analyzes the approaches of international organizations? current documents that are related to the ECEC. Starting from the narrative (educational) policy analysis approach, we will present "scissors of paradigms" in strategic documents of education policy in Serbia, using the example of the educational policy approach to inclusivity and public-private partnership in early childhood education and care.