Advancing Equity and Embracing Diversity in Early Childhood Education: Elevating Voices and Actions

This book describes both how structural inequities deeply embedded in US society have a negative impact on children's development and learning and how educators who have a strong understanding of how children's development and learning takes place within a cultural context are equipped to create effective and affirming environments, instructional activities, and assessments. Research indicates that children benefit from highly qualified, reflective teachers who provide developmentally appropriate, culturally relevant, and linguistically responsive experiences and interactions. The book includes recommendations for ways the broader early childhood system, institutions of higher education, and policy can support early childhood educators in meeting their professional and ethical responsibilities to our most vulnerable populations. Also includes practical and concrete ways classroom teachers can address equity as they plan their lessons, select materials, and support children and families. The book expands on key points of NAEYC's Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education position statement (2019) so that educators, policymakers, and other key stakeholders are knowledgeable, skilled, and equipped to transform the lives of children and their families.

List of contents

Acknowledgments

Contributor List


NAEYC's "Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education" Position Statement



Introduction
Iliana Alanís, Iheoma U. Iruka, and Susan Friedman

Part 1: Reflections on Equity

Section 1: Reflections on Ourselves


Chapter 1: Looking Inward: Reflections from Early Education Professionals on Their Journey to Reduce Bias and Racism
Iheoma U. Iruka, with Anthony Broughton, Michael Gonzalez, Jillian Herink, Steven Hicks, Tamara Johnson, Jen Neitzel, Karen Nemeth, Nicol Russell, and Shannon Wanless

Section 2: Reflections on Our Profession


Chapter 2: Why History? Educating the Early Childhood Workforce for Equity
Barbara T. Bowman

Chapter 3: Quality Includes Removing Bias from Early Childhood Education Environments
Felicia L. DeHaney, Carla Thompson Payton, and Alandra Washington

Chapter 4: Being an Equity Leader
John Nimmo, Debbie LeeKeenan, and Louise Derman-Sparks

Chapter 5: Recognizing Shortcomings of a Traditional Professional Knowledge Base
Tonia R. Durden and Stephanie M. Curenton

Part 2: Responsive Pedagogical Practices

Chapter 6: Creating Caring Communities in Early Childhood Contexts
Garnett S. Booker III

Chapter 7: Focusing on What Really Counts: How Noticing and Appreciating Simple, Ordinary Moments in Early Childhood Care and Education Can Enrich Human Relationships and Promote Professional Equity
Junlei Li and Dana Winters

Chapter 8: Developing the Three Cs of Reciprocity
Zeynep Isik-Ercan

Chapter 9: What About the Children? Teachers Cultivating and Nurturing the Voice and Agency of Young Children
Brian L. Wright

Chapter 10: Equity, Diversity, and Child Development: Implications for Practice
Iliana Reyes, Mimi Gray, and Teresa Acevedo

Chapter 11: Equitable Learning Opportunities for Young Bilingual Children: Strategies to Promote Oral Language Development
Dina C. Castro and Ximena Franco

Chapter 12: Creating High-Quality STEM Experiences for All Young Learners: What Do Teachers of Young Children Need to Know?
Jie-Qi Chen

Chapter 13: Developing Meaningful and Relevant Writing with K-3 Dual Language Learner Students
Daniel R. Meier

Chapter 14: Providing Responsive Supports to Dual Language Learners with Disabilities
Lillian Durán

Chapter 15: Making Thinking, Learning, and Development Visible and Inclusive Through Authentic Assessment
Hilary Seitz

Chapter 16: Learning Stories: Observation, Reflection, and Narrative in Early Childhood Education
Isauro M. Escamilla

Part 3: Moving Forward as a Profession

Chapter 17: The Work: Promoting Equity and Justice in Early Childhood
Jen Neitzel

Chapter 18: Agency and Power in Young Children's Lives: Five Ways to Advocate for Social Justice as an Early Childhood Educator
Jennifer Keys Adair and Shubhi Sachdeva

Chapter 19: Creating Anti-Racist Early Childhood Spaces
Rosemarie Allen, Dorothy L. Shapland, Jen Neitzel, and Iheoma U. Iruka

Chapter 20: Early Childhood Teacher Educators' Critical Role: Preparing Culturally Efficacious Early Childhood Teachers
Belinda Bustos Flores, Socorro Herrera, and Janelle Beth Flores

Appendix: A Note on Terminology Used in this Book

About the Editors

Index

About the author

Iliana Alanís, PhD, a native of South Texas, is professor of early childhood and elementary education in the department of interdisciplinary learning and teaching at the University of Texas at San Antonio. With over 20 years in the early childhood field, her work focuses on teaching practices in culturally and linguistically diverse early childhood contexts with an emphasis on the effect of schooling for language minority children in Spanish/English dual language programs. She is especially interested in forms of teaching that promote native language development and its correlation to second language acquisition. With over 48 refereed publications related to dual language education, her recent research focuses on higher¿order cognitive and linguistic interaction found in student-student exchanges. Dr. Alanís is former president of the Texas Association for Bilingual Education and former board member for the National Latino Children's Institute. She's served as a NAEYC Governing Board member and an Early Childhood Advisory Board member for Scholastic Education. As a member of the Dual Language Training Institute, she facilitates professional development for teachers in dual language classrooms across the country. Dr. Alanís is coauthor of The Essentials: Supporting Dual Language Learners in Diverse Environments in Preschool and Kindergarten (NAEYC, 2021).

Iheoma U. Iruka, PhD, is research professor in public policy and founding director of the equity research action coalition at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Iruka is engaged in projects and initiatives focused on how evidence¿informed policies, systems, and practices in early education can support the optimal development and experiences of children who are from households with low income, ethnic minorities, and immigrants. She is focused on ensuring healthy development and excellence for young diverse learners, especially Black children, through classroom and family tools, the examination of nontraditional pedagogical approaches, public policies, and publications geared toward early education practitioners and policymakers. She is an author of several books, including Don't Look Away: Embracing Anti¿Bias Classrooms (Gryphon House, 2020). Dr. Iruka serves or has served on numerous national boards and committees, including the Brady Education Foundation, the American Psychological Association's Board of Educational Affairs Task Force on Racial and Ethnic Disparities, and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine committees on Supporting Parents of Young Children and Applying Neurobiological and SociöBehavioral Sciences from Prenatal through Early Childhood Development: A Health Equity Approach.

Susan Friedman is senior director of publishing and professional learning at the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). In this role, she leads the content development work of NAEYC's books, periodicals, digital content, and professional learning teams. Early childhood educators rely on NAEYC's award-winning content to stay current on research and best practices they can implement in their classrooms. Susan has extensive prior experience in content programming as well as editorial oversight and production with many years of experience creating content on play, developmentally appropriate uses of media, and other topics for educators and families. She has presented at numerous educational conferences, including NAEYC's Professional Learning Institute and Annual Conference, the South by Southwest Education (SXSW EDU) Conference & Festival, and the School Superintendents Association's Early Learning Cohort. Susan began her career as a preschool teacher at City and Country School in New York City. She holds degrees from Vassar College and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Summary

Brings together a range of thought leaders in early childhood education to describe both how structural inequities embedded in US society have a negative impact on children's development and learning, and how educators can equip themselves to create effective and affirming environments, instructional activities, and assessments.

Foreword

This book will be promoted via various NAEYC marketing efforts, including social media pages promotions (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest with a reach of over 200K followers); promotional emails; advertisements in Young Children, Teaching Young Children, and Exchange magazines; and NAEYC’s seasonal resource catalogs. Select authors of the publication will also present a webinar on a topic covered in the book soon after its publication. Finally, the publication will be advertised and sold at various early childhood conferences and trade shows (NAEYC’s Annual Conferences, NAEYC’s Professional Learning Institutes, Zero to Three, etc.).

Additional text

This book confronts us with the inequities present in early childhood education. It compels us not to remain silent, compliant, or complicit, but rather to take anti-racist actions at every level—classroom, program, teacher preparation, and policy.

Product details

• Authors: Iliana Alanis, Iliana Alanís
• Assisted by: Iliana Alanis (Editor), Susan Friedman (Editor), Iheoma Iruka (Editor), Iheoma U. Iruka (Editor)
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 29.06.2021
• EAN: 9781938113789
• ISBN: 978-1-938113-78-9
• No. of pages: 152
• Assisted by: Susan Friedman
• Illustrations: Figures and tables
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Education > School education, didactics, methodology; EDUCATION / Curricula, EDUCATION / Early Childhood (incl. Preschool & Kindergarten), Curriculum planning & development