Early Childhood Care and Education in Low- and Middle- Income Countries

Dear Colleagues,

The foundations of human development are set in the first few years of life, and research in the fields of neuroscience, economics, and educational sciences has provided compelling reasons to invest in these early years. Programme evaluation research has indicated that participation in early childhood programmes promotes child outcomes in high-, middle-, and low-income countries. This Special Issue concerns factors within early childhood care and education systems that are associated with positive child outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. Its release is particularly timely, as the second World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education will be held in November 2022. This conference will showcase key enablers, good practices, and scale-up of proven ECCE programmes and innovations worldwide.

This Special Issue aims to collect 12 case studies of effective early childhood care and education programmes conducted in low- and middle- income countries. It will add to the policy and research base on early education programmes and disseminate findings on effective early childhood education programmes.

The chosen case studies will describe the chosen policy or programme, provide evidence of its effects or non-effects, and analyse the reasons for the results. Policies can include those designed to improve the access, equity, and quality of ECE programmes. The cases can include examples from multiple contexts or countries. Short communications are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Nirmala Rao
Prof. Dr. Caroline Cohrssen
Guest Editors

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