Early Childhood Educational Research

Cathy Nutbrown is President of Early Education and Professor of Education in the School of Education at the University of Sheffield. Her research over the last 30 years, has focussed on young children's learning and work with parents to support young children's literacy development. She won an ESRC Award for Research with Outstanding Impact on Society and a Nursery World Lifetime Achievement Award. She is author of over 150 publications including Early Literacy Work with Families (with Hannon and Morgan, Sage, 2005), Early Childhood Educational Research (Sage, 2019), and Home Learning Environments for Young Children (with Clough, Davies and Hannon, Sage, 2022).

Chapter 1: Research Threads: Weaving Understandings of Early Childhood Education from the 20th Century Part I: Children Chapter 2: Children's Rights and Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 3: Young Children's Well-Being and Spirituality Chapter 4: Play in Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 5: Children as Participants in their own Learning and in Research Chapter 6: Poverty in Childhood and the Impact of Early Childhood Education and Care Reflection on Part I: Research Focusing on Children Part II: Adults Chapter 7: Parents and Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 8: Inclusion and Diversity in Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 9: Multi-Professional and Inter-Disciplinary Working in Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 10: Professionalism, Qualifications and Status Chapter 11: Leadership in Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 12: Ethics of Work with Young Children in Early Childhood Education and Care Reflection on Part II: Research Focusing on Adults Part III: Learning and Teaching Chapter 13: Curricular Approaches: Pedagogy and Practice in Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 14: Early Literacy Development and Learning Chapter 15: Languages and Early Learning Chapter 16: Digital Technologies and Early Childhood Education and Care Chapter 17: Assessment in Early Childhood Education and Care Reflection on Part III: 21st Century Research Focusing on Learning and Teaching Chapter 18: Research in Early Childhood Education in the 21st Century: Salience, Significance and Challenge

Morphing between historical reviews and contemporary reports, Cathy examines policy shifts and their impact. Cleverly pepper and salting research, she recursively introduces themes and research questions. As a wise stateswoman who has seen it all before, Cathy reflects on the making of early childhood history, whilst at the same time discussing how it has made her. A must read. -- Marilyn Fleer Few authors have the credentials and discernment to write such an authoritative book. Cathy Nutbrown weaves an insightful narrative - mindful of history and context and respectful of young children and educators - drawing attention to research, which highlights central issues and questions that continue to demand attention and action in Early Childhood Education. -- Sacha Powell This is an invaluable, highly principled book in which Professor Cathy Nutbrown draws on wide, up-to-date research as well as her own experience and reflections as a practitioner, researcher and sharply political being. The work is at once a celebration of all that has been achieved in the field of early childhood and an urgent call for action in order to eradicate inequalities. Each chapter concludes with helpful suggestions of research questions and how these might be approached. -- Sarah Cousins Once again Cathy Nutbrown places the lives and experiences of young children at the heart of her work. Reflecting on the research focuses, in England and internationally, Nutbrown offers a 360 degrees view of the state of early childhood education and care. The three aspects of children, the role of the adults and learning and teaching are explored in depth and, as you would expect, the golden thread of children's rights and social justice is evident throughout the book. Cathy Nutbrown draws on her many years of experience to offer a unique perspective of what the research says about early childhood education and care today and identifies where further research is needed. A thought-provoking, motivating and excellent read. -- Helen Perkins