Quality in early education and care: What do we mean?∗

Farquhar, Sarah-Eve

doi:10.1080/0300443900640108

Cited by 15 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…These ndings, as well as those of Broberg et al (1997), Dragonas et al (1995), and Pierrehumbert et al (1997), raise some doubts regarding the adequacy of assessment of quality tools such as the ECERS, for use in cultures other than the Anglo-American one. Attempts to implement these scales elsewhere have con rmed that there is no consensus on what constitutes high quality care, and invariably, the scales require modi cation (Brophy & Statham, 1994;Calder, 1995;Farquhar, 1990). For example, a cultural community may have goals which the ECERS does not address.…”

Section: Goals and Child Carementioning

confidence: 99%

Out-of-home Child Care Research: A Cultural Perspective

Rosenthal

1999

International Journal of Behavioral Development

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This paper analyses the cultural context of inquiry and research into the effects of out-of-home child care on children’s development. In particular, it attempts to show how the study of such child care has been shaped by a Western world view in which white, middle class values and social ideology are particularly salient. The effects of this cultural context can be seen in the basic assumptions of studies on out-of-home child care, in the questions these studies pose for investigation, and in the motivation of the investigators engaged in this line of research. These in turn determine the research designs, the units of analysis for the examination of children’s functioning and of the child care environment, the operational definitions of variables, and the statistical procedures employed in many of these studies. The analysis begins by examining cultural variations in societal attitudes to out-of-home child care as a function of cultural context and basic assumptions concerning childhood, development, and the role ascribed to the family and the community at large in children’s development. The paper then proceeds to examine the relationship between cultural context and its valued developmental goals and the developmental outcomes studied in child care research. The relationships between goals set for child care, cultural beliefs concerning child-rearing practices, the definition of “quality of care” and the study of the relationship of home and child care, in child care research, are also examined. It then explores the major research questions and methodology concerning the effect of child care on development in the Anglo-American child care research tradition. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for culturally sensitive routes to studying child care.

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Section: Goals and Child Carementioning

confidence: 99%

Out-of-home Child Care Research: A Cultural Perspective

Rosenthal

1999

International Journal of Behavioral Development

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“…A special study of children 'at risk' for developing special educational needs was conducted to further exploit the rich database This indicated that the positive benefits of preschool included reducing the proportion of young children 'at risk' of developing SEN. Farquhar (1999) has suggested that there are currently four distinct approaches to quality in early childhood research: 'the standards approach', 'the stakeholder approach', 'the postmodernist approach' and the 'ecological and ethnographic approaches'. While the first of these has been concerned to provide evidence to policymakers, the stakeholder approach (Balaguer et al ., 1992;Farquhar, 1990) has been applied significantly to support the efforts of minority ethnic groups. Perhaps the most notable example of this has been research supporting Maori interests in cultural rejuvenation and language promotion and in development of the Te Whariki approach to early childhood education in New Zealand (Irwin, 1990;Siraj-Blatchford, 1999).…”

Section: The Major Findings Of Eppementioning

confidence: 99%

Educational Research and Evidence-based Policy: The Mixed-method Approach of the EPPE Project

Siraj‐Blatchford

Sammons

Taggart

et al. 2006

Evaluation & Research in Education

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In a review of the challenges to progress in providing social research evidence that might usefully inform policy, Oakley (2004) argues strongly that the 'paradigm divide' between qualitative and quantitative research communities continues to constitute a major problem. Oakley refers to a number of recent critiques of what is seen as 'misplaced positivism' in educational research and Hammersley (1997, 2005) has suggested that educational research findings are now routinely being applied uncritically to inform educational policy and practice. Research in early childhood education has not been immune to these general criticisms and specific concerns have also been expressed regarding alleged technicism, and the reification of dominant conceptions of early educational quality. In this paper we test these theoretical claims against the realities of conducting one recent and influential early years study: the Effective Provision of Preschool Education (EPPE) Project. The paper provides an account of the EPPE research and also locates the study in terms of the contemporary literature on mixed-method research. It is argued that similar mixedmethod approaches may be applied to escape many of the problems identified by critics. We conclude with a discussion of the wider implications for educational research.

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“…Irrespective of this, there are limitations with the model, as with any model, as no one concept holds true for all people. Moreover, as Moss (1994) and Farquhar (1990) have noted, 'quality' in early childhood centres and in respect to education is subjective, value laden, socially and culturally constructed, and dynamic rather than an objective reality applicable to all. For this reason, communication between parents and early childhood centres must be effected with consideration of the unique characteristics of each setting and each individual within settings.…”

Section: Stage 5: Communication Based On Selfactualisation Promoting mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Communication Accretion Spiral: A Communication process for Promoting and Sustaining Meaningful Partnerships between Families and early Childhood Service Staff

Elliott

2005

Australasian Journal of Early Childhood

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Findings of an investigation of parents' perceptions of early childhood service quality identified limitations in staff-parent communication which inhibit the development of a shared parent and staff approach to children's care and education. These findings have informed the development of an accretion model of communication for crossing the boundaries which hinder the promotion of relevant communications. The Communication Accretion Spiral process explains how the accrual of information and knowledge of parents and staff is built up over time. These communications are the basis for shared understandings of children's learning and development across home/service contexts, promoting and sustaining meaningful communications which lead to informed shared decision-making.

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Quality in early education and care: What do we mean?∗

Cited by 15 publications

References 12 publications

Out-of-home Child Care Research: A Cultural Perspective

Out-of-home Child Care Research: A Cultural Perspective

Educational Research and Evidence-based Policy: The Mixed-method Approach of the EPPE Project

The Communication Accretion Spiral: A Communication process for Promoting and Sustaining Meaningful Partnerships between Families and early Childhood Service Staff

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