Sue C. Wortham

From Principle to Practice: Using the Global Guidelines to Assess Quality Education and Care.

I n July 1999,83 early childhood professionals from 27 countries and every continent except Antarctica gathered in Ruschlikon, Switzerland, at the International Symposium on Early Childhood Education and Care for the 21st Century. Co-sponsored by the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) and the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (Organisation Modiale pour L’kducation Prckcolaire, or OMEP) and spearheaded by Sue Wortham, Leah Adams, and Ulla Grob-Menges, the symposium’s mission was to craft guidelines for programs that serve children under the age of formal schooling in countries throughout the world. After extensive discussions about what constitutes universal characteristics of good early education and care, working groups drafted statements that subsequently were combined, refined, and carefully edited. These efforts resulted in the joint publication of Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century (hereafter referred to as the Global Guidelines) by ACEI and OMEP (2000). The Global Guidelines concisely describe basic, universal components of quality education and care for young children and, as a result, can be used worldwide. Following an overall

Using ACEI's Global Guidelines Assessment for Improving Early Education

The Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21 st Century were developed as a collaborative project between the U. S. National Committee of the World Organization for Early Childhood (OMEP) and of the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI). The project’s intent was to provide guidance concerning the fundamental elements that are necessary to create high quality environments for early care and education. This paper presents the history of the development of a related instrument, called the ACEI

Transition Classes, a Growing Concern.

Abstract The purposes of this study were to: determine the extent of extra-year programs for kindergarten students in Texas school districts; examine identification procedures and curricular interventions; determine the ethnic and gender makeup of the classes; establish the growth trend of these classes state-wide; and, identify alternative programs that school districts have initiated to address the needs of this population of students. Survey data and site visits indicated that 39 percent of the 285 school districts responding had transition classes. These districts varied in: articulation of program purpose; identification, testing and placement of students; and, curriculum used in transition classes. Transition students were described by districts as developmentally young, at risk, academically weak, disadvantaged, and limited English proficient. Twenty-five testing instruments were being used to make placement decisions. Sixty-five percent of the school districts indicated that they had no specified ...

Among the Periodicals

Abstract In keeping with the theme of this issue, the reviews in this column are related to children and violence. The articles examine the effects that unsafe conditions have on childrens lives and social and cognitive development, and on their behavior.