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This study provides a comprehensive overview of trends in Scandinavian early childhood education (ECEC) research from 2006 to 2021, based on the Nordic Base of Early Childhood Education and Care’s (NB-ECEC) annual reports. The study reveals a notable increase in empirical studies in Scandinavia, particularly in Sweden and Norway. The rise in English publications is attributed to international collaborations and political guidelines. Dominant thematic areas include pedagogical practices and teaching and learning, while economics and classroom management receive less focus. Qualitative research prevails, with a shortage of quantitative methods like randomised controlled trials and longitudinal designs. The study emphasises the importance of diversifying research methodologies, acknowledges positive developments in research quality, and notes an increasing trend in international peer-reviewed journal publications.

In this commentary, we draw on examples from the thematic issue ‘Longitudinal studies in ECEC—challenges of translating research results into policy actions’ to discuss how research from longitudinal studies in ECEC can potentially inform policy making. Thereby, we point out the challenges in the relationship between research and policy and suggest three key factors that can promote the impact of meaningful research in policy decisions. The first factor comprises aligning research questions with policy priorities as well as research and policy making processes. In an attempt to systematise existing forms of research and policy interaction, we present ideal–typical models of collaboration and relate them to studies in this thematic issue. Second, we argue that research used in policy decisions should rely on sound methodology, including state of the art techniques of sampling as well as reliable and valid measures. While acknowledging that various research designs are required to get a bigger picture of the complexity of ECEC, we call attention to the particular potential of longitudinal studies to inform policy making. Third, we stress the importance of disseminating research results to different stakeholders and outline challenges of translating research findings into policy decisions. Finally, in the outlook, we discuss how collaboration between ECEC research and policy making can be increased and which barriers need to be overcome.

The purpose of this study is to find patterns in the latent profiles of behavioral problems of children aged 4, 5, and 6, in the child and caregiver variables that affected the composition of the latent profile group, and in the differences in children’s social skills by latent profile groups. The study relies on a sample of 1461 children enrolled in the Panel Study on Korean Children. Fostering children’s social abilities has been stressed in recent policy documents in Korea, including the Character Education Promotion Act and the recently introduced Nuri curriculum. Therefore, the current paper investigates factors influencing children’s behavior problems via a longitudinal analysis. A latent profile analysis was performed and resulted in three profile models. Our findings are as follows: First, according to the latent profile of children’s behavior problems, we came up with three group models that best fit the data. Group 1, named the non-problem group, had at all ages below standard scores for behavioral problems. Group 2, named the normal group, had average or slightly above average scores for behavioral problems, though such problems decreased as the child got older. Group 3, named the in-danger group, had average or above standard scores for externalizing behavioral problems, while the scores for internalizing behavioral problems were above the subclinical standard point at age 4 and at the clinical standard point at ages 5 and 6. Second, after exploring the influencing factors (at child and parent levels) for children belonging to the in-danger group, the study found that the child was more likely to belong to the in-danger group if female, if the level of activity and sociality was low, if the mother’s parenting stress was high, and if the family income was low. Lastly, the study looked into whether there were any group differences in young children’s social skills. The findings show that regarding capacity for cooperation and self-control, the scores of the non-problem group were higher than those for the in-danger group. Regarding capacity for exhibiting assertiveness and responsibility, the lowest scores among the three groups belonged to the in-danger group.

In Korea, recent upward trends in age of marriage and downward trends in fertility rates have motivated the Korean government to provide childbirth grants and Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) subsidies. Through such provisions, the government hopes to lower parents’ concerns regarding child-rearing expenses and to promote higher birth rates. Using combined data from the Panel Study of Korean Children (PSKC) and the Korea Longitudinal Study of Women and Families (KLoWF), this study analyzes the relationship between birth rates and anticipated child-rearing expenses. The method of kernel matching was used to combine and analyze information on children from the KLoWF and the child care environment as well as on child-rearing expenses from the PSKC. The study’s findings suggest a significant but weak relationship between birth rates and the anticipated financial costs for raising a child. This relationship is more prominent in the low-education and low-income group than in economically well-situated and highly educated families. Based on the results, we suggest the following policy recommendations: firstly, further research needs to be conducted to determine the effects of governmental support on child-rearing. Secondly, customized support that considers family income and education should be provided to improve birth rates.

Poor-quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) can be detrimental to the development of children, as it may lead to poor social, emotional, educational, health, economic, and behavioral outcomes. A lack of consensus, however, regarding the strength of the relationship between teacher qualification and the quality of the ECEC environment makes it difficult to identify strategies that could enhance developmental and educational outcomes. This meta-analytic review examines evidence on the correlation between teacher qualifications and the quality of ECEC environments. Results show that higher teacher qualifications are significantly correlated with higher quality ECEC environments. Specifically, the education level of teachers or caregivers is positively correlated to overall ECEC qualities, as well as subscale ratings including program structure, language, and reasoning.

The most recent data from the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) present good news; 79% of Australia's Early Childhood Education and Care services are now meeting the National Quality Standard (NQS). Yet one in five services remain below standard. Understanding the context and characteristics of these services, and those of their workforce, and identifying features that distinguish them from services meeting the NQS are the first step in directing quality improvement supports. We compared services rated Working Towards with those Meeting or Exceeding the standard, through analysis of two discrete datasets: (1) ACECQA snapshots providing service data and (2) The Early Years Workforce Study providing data on educators and educator experience. We identified distinguishing structural characteristics and relational factors within services rated Working Towards. Based on the findings, strategic directions for bringing the last 21% of services across the line to meet the National Quality Standard are detailed. [Author abstract]

This review looks at the current state of research on early childhood education and care (ECEC) from a sociological stance. We summarize how children's experiences and benefits from participation in ECEC are related to their families' socioeconomic position in modern industrial nations. By bringing together child development and intervention research from economics, education, and psychology with a sociological, social stratification perspective, our report focuses on ECEC as a policy strategy for equalization in early childhood. We argue that two major stratifiers, families and country-specific ECEC settings, need to be considered more closely when we seek to understand the efficacy of early educational interventions in modern societies. While well-targeted educational programs are found to lowerachievement gaps among children from different social backgrounds, a disproportionate use of early education by socioeconomically privileged families may offset the benefits of early interventions. In addition, the current stratification patterns in various nationwide ECEC contexts may further strengthen the gaps in children's (early) achievements.

Internationally, standard observational measures of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) are used to assess the quality of provision. They are applied as research tools but, significantly, also guide policy decisions, distribution of resources and public opinion. Considerable faith is placed in such measures, yet their validity, reliability and functioning within context should all be considered in interpreting the findings they generate. We examine the case of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) in the Australian study, Effective Early Education for Children (E4Kids). Using this measure Australian educators were identified as \"low quality\" in provision of instruction (average 2.1 on a scale of 1-7). When these results became public, they attracted negative press coverage and the potential for harm. We interrogate these findings asking three questions relating to sampling, contextual and empirical evidence that define quality and measurement strategies. We conclude that measurement problems, most notably a floor effect, is the most likely explanation for uniformly low CLASS-Instructional scores among Australian ECEC educators, and indeed across international studies. Using a theoretically and empirically informed rescaling strategy we show that there is a diversity of instructional quality across Australian ECEC, and that rescaling might more effectively guide improvement strategies to target those of lowest quality. Beyond, our findings call for a more critical approach in interpretation of standard measures of ECEC quality and their applications in policy and practice, internationally. [Author abstract]

Research on children’s risky play and young children’s risk taking is a relatively new research area that has drawn the attention of many researchers in the last decades. Nevertheless, to our knowledge, no earlier studies have measured the prevalence of risky play when children can freely choose what to play, with whom, and where. Most research on risky play has also exclusively focused on outdoor play. This study aims at examining the occurrence and characteristics of children’s risky play, indoors and outdoors, in early childhood education and care (ECEC) institutions. Children (N = 80) were observed in two-minute sequences during periods of the day when they were free to choose what to do. The data consists of 1878 randomly recorded two-minute videos, which were coded second by second for the occurrence of several categories of risky play. Results revealed that risky play was registered in 10.3% of the total data material. The data is further analysed to explore distribution among different types of risky play, as well as differences between gender, age and environment (indoors vs. outdoors).