Quality matters in early childhood education and care. Sweden 2013

Description

Early childhood education and care (ECEC) can bring a wide range of benefits--for children, parents and society at large. However, these benefits are conditional on "quality". Expanding access to services without attention to quality will not deliver good outcomes for children or long-term productivity benefits for society. This series of country reports focuses on quality issues. Each report tackles a specific theme that was selected by the country reviewed. These reports suggest strengths and point to areas for further reflection on current policy initiatives.  Read more... Foreword -- Executive summary -- Introduction -- -Aim of the policy profile -- Structure of the report -- Chapter 1. What does research Say? -- -What is curriculum? -- What is at stake? -- Why does it matter? -- What aspects matter most? -- What are the policy implications? -- What is still unknown? -- References -- Chapter 2. Where does Sweden stand compared to other countries? -- -Strengths -- Potential areas for reflection -- Chapter 3. What are the challenges and strategies? -- -Common challenges -- Sweden's efforts -- Possible alternative strategies: Lessons from New Zealand, Norway and Portugal -- References -- Annex: Definitions and methodology.