Curriculum

Child development theory and research have had a profound influence on early childhood education and care (ECEC) policies, programs, and services in the United States and internationally. In eight weeks (three hours/week), this course provides an overview of the research on young children (birth to age five), demographics of this population, critical domains of development, significance of early brain development, and issues of inequality and disproportionality that deeply shape child outcomes. It attempts to explore what develops in the first years of life, why this period is so critical, what have been the central questions that have driven both research and policy, whether policies and research have helped to reduce inequality and advance equity, and what critical issues are still unanswered (or even unasked). The course familiarizes students with the cultural ideas, beliefs, values, and social purposes that have shaped and continue to influence children and families in the United States. Further, the course presents research from a range of disciplines (e.g., psychology, sociology, education, neuroscience, economics) to help students understand the complexity of developmental factors relevant to ECEC policy development and program design. The goals of the course are to help students understand the importance of early development, the critical need to develop ECEC policies grounded in research and practice, and the effectiveness and limitations of ECEC policies to address fundamental issues of inequality. Finally, the course is intended to enable students to place their own professional interests and concerns in a broader historical and educational context.

This course focuses on the practice of ECEC, as well as the role of families and policymakers in altering practices and policies. Beginning with sessions that are designed to provide rich background, the course offers an analysis of the critical forces that shaped contemporary ECEC. Following this, current services and policies are examined, as are inventive theories about how to organize such services to achieve optimal quality, equity, sustainability, and efficiency. With this background in mind, sessions turn to more detailed examination of the diverse challenges that characterize the field. Positioned to be both realistic and optimistic, the sessions confront the issues and unveil some of the thinking and efforts to redress them. In so doing, the course focuses on quality and diverse efforts to achieve it; the lack of equity; the need for more effective approaches to the workforce, funding, and governance; and the importance of parental voice. By its conclusion, you will have familiarity with policies governing and shaping ECEC, as well as challenges and potential solutions. You will be given diverse opportunities to apply your learnings through a series of individual and group projects.

Policy research and analysis are key components in each stage of the policy cycle (agenda setting, policy formulation, policy adoption, policy implementation, policy evaluation, policy termination and policy change). Theory takes a prominent role in this course, as it provides the lens through which to understand the central questions, logics, and values that underpin how policy is understood and supported by analysts and researchers. Throughout the course, theories and policy tools will be applied to real-world examples, providing concrete opportunities to examine different, sometimes competing, analytic approaches and the contexts in which they are applied. To anchor our ability to compare/contrast theories and approaches, we will use a simplified policy analysis framework throughout the course to guide class discussions and to organize ideas (see course assignments for additional detail). The framework may ultimately also be useful for you to develop and refine your own, personalized situatedness in the broad field of policy analysis. This framework is guided by six key questions: 1. What is the problem that begs for a solution? What are the underlying assumptions behind this problem? 2. What indicators demonstrate the problem exists? 3. What is the rationale for government/policy intervention to address the problem? 4. Who are the key stakeholders related to the problem and the solution? 5. Who are the primary opponents to solving the problem this way? What alternative rationales/solutions might they recommend? 6. What evidence or measures of success would “prove” that the problem has been affected in the way the policy designers planned?

Divided into four units, this course is designed to provide a foundational knowledge of the fundamentals of policy creation, design, and development, with an emphasis on those policies that impact ECEC. The course focuses on how policy is constructed and who and what influences that construction. Especially important, the course addresses the critical roles that communication, advocacy, and ethics play as policy evolves. More specifically, the course will address: (i) the multiple venues and processes for creating public policies; (ii) different types of public ECEC funding; (iii) federal, state, and local policy roles; (iv) considerations of ethics and leadership from public policy and ECEC perspectives; and (v) the development of policy advocacy communications skills. Throughout the course, you will recognize that the policy cycle depends on a network of complex interactions among people within government (i.e., elected officials and bureaucrats) and multiple outside influencers (e.g., advocates, foundations, think tanks, and voters).