A growing number of 2 year olds are now attending early childhood education (ECE) services nationally and internationally. However, New Zealand has been slow to address the specialist provision and needs for high quality ECE for 2 year olds. The current survey of 248 New Zealand ECE services examined the ...

In the Hebrew story, King Solomon was asked to decide which of two “harlots” was the mother of an infant. His proposal to divide the baby between them revealed who could recognise the child’s best interests. This ancient story has resonance for early childhood education, for although our curriculum holds ...

Teachers understand the importance of whānau (family) involvement for children’s learning. This understanding comes from their own experience as teachers, from an extensive published research base, and, in Aotearoa New Zealand from the national early childhood education curriculum, Te Whāriki. Early childhood teachers also know that finding acceptable ways to ...

This article has arisen from a study involving teachers in an early childhood centre and their responses to being introduced to schema learning theory. As a former practitioner in early childhood education and in my current role in initial teacher education, I have an interest in cognitive constructivist learning theories ...

This article has two aims. First, it conveys the results of a questionnaire and focus-group study. This study asked parents of 3- to 5-year-old children what they would like to help support their children’s development toward the transition from early childhood services to primary school. Second, it describes the process ...

Early childhood education is a critical cultural and social space where children learn to live with and alongside others. Yet the education system in Aotearoa New Zealand is rarely responsive to queer cultures, often rendering them invisible. We claim that risk aversion and discourses of innocence within a heteronormative climate ...

The focus of this article is on the findings emerging from a cross-cultural research project exploring children’s working theories about identity, language, and culture in two diverse early childhood education centres in Christchurch: one Samoan immersion, and the other English-medium. The project team believes that by nurturing children’s identity, language ...

This article presents findings from a study that explored the values and practices of early childhood teachers working with children and families from diverse cultural backgrounds in three early childhood centres in New Zealand. The research aimed to identify effective teaching practice that weaves the cultural capital of families into ...

The engagement of migrant families in early childhood education is a strategy pursued by the Ministry of Education in Aotearoa New Zealand. A growing body of research has explored the realities being experienced by these migrant families. These realities include how families are able to maintain their cultural identities, practices ...