Preparing early childhood teachers: Policies, transitions, and school readiness challenges

Abstract

This chapter focuses on how early childhood teacher education policy at the federal and state levels in the United States might affect the education of children aged 3-5. It is for that age range that varying state policies for early education and care, and more stringent credentialing criteria stemming from the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 overlap. It utilizes an example from one state--Massachusetts--to shed light on such varying teacher licensing policies. The chapter underscores some of the challenges facing preschool settings in urban areas, as the field serves an ever-increasing number of children from culturally, linguistically, and socioeconomically diverse families, making the point that workforce diversity training is intertwined with expectations of increasing preschool quality. Finally, the chapter provides concrete and effective strategies to embed cultural and linguistic diversity awareness in the preparation of teachers for young children. © 2011 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.

Publication Title

Teaching Teachers: Approaches in Improving Quality of Education

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS