Page 251 - Ana Mlekuž in Igor Ž. Žagar, ur. • Raziskovanje v vzgoji in izobraževanju: Digitalizacija vzgoje in izobraževanja – priložnosti in pasti. Ljubljana: Pedagoški inštitut, 2023. Digitalna knjižnica, Dissertationes 46
P. 251
povzetki ■ summaries
From split to unitary early childhood education
and care (ECEC) systems: comparison of the educational
programmes for the ECEC teachers
Maša Vidmar, Manja Veldin, Ilaria Farinella
The European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice (2019) has classified coun-
tries into five groups, based on the degree of integration of their early child-
hood education and care (ECEC) system. Unitary ECEC systems, which
cover the whole pre-school period (0-6 years), are more efficient compared
to split systems. The aim of this paper is to present the mainstream ECEC
settings in five European countries with varying degree of integration of
their ECEC system, and within them to compare in more detail the cate-
gories of ECEC core practitioners (teachers) and their initial educational
programmes. The data were collected through a questionnaire specifical-
ly designed for the purpose of the study. It was completed by the national
partners in the NEMO project with the contribution of relevant external ex-
perts. The data collected cover the most typical (mainstream) settings and
the relevant practitioners in public and private ECEC. The reference year is
2019/2020. The mainstream ECEC settings in the participating countries
are: unitary setting (Slovenia), unitary setting with separate pre-primary
class (Sweden), combination of split and unitary settings (Spain), split set-
ting (Cyprus), split setting with the implementation of a unitary setting in
process (Italy). Countries have different educational requirements for core
practitioners, but most often it is ISCED 6; in more detail: no regulations
(Sweden), ISCED 5 (Spain - for working with younger children), and in most
of the remaining countries ISCED 6 (Slovenia, Cyprus, Spain - for work-
ing with older children, Italy - for working with younger children) or even
ISCED 7 (Italy - for working with older children). Initial educational pro-
grammes for core practitioners are mostly provided by universities, most
often last 3-4 years and range from 180 to 240 credits. The programmes are
very similar to one another and cover similar topics, (mostly) including a
study placement (an exception is Spain for working with younger children).
All programmes include psychology and pedagogy (general subjects), lan-
guage and communication skills, and special and inclusive education (spe-
cial didactics). The significance of such a comparison to inform national
policy reforms towards a unified ECEC system is discussed.
Keywords: early childhood education and care, unitary and split systems,
initial education, preschool teachers, EU comparison
251
From split to unitary early childhood education
and care (ECEC) systems: comparison of the educational
programmes for the ECEC teachers
Maša Vidmar, Manja Veldin, Ilaria Farinella
The European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice (2019) has classified coun-
tries into five groups, based on the degree of integration of their early child-
hood education and care (ECEC) system. Unitary ECEC systems, which
cover the whole pre-school period (0-6 years), are more efficient compared
to split systems. The aim of this paper is to present the mainstream ECEC
settings in five European countries with varying degree of integration of
their ECEC system, and within them to compare in more detail the cate-
gories of ECEC core practitioners (teachers) and their initial educational
programmes. The data were collected through a questionnaire specifical-
ly designed for the purpose of the study. It was completed by the national
partners in the NEMO project with the contribution of relevant external ex-
perts. The data collected cover the most typical (mainstream) settings and
the relevant practitioners in public and private ECEC. The reference year is
2019/2020. The mainstream ECEC settings in the participating countries
are: unitary setting (Slovenia), unitary setting with separate pre-primary
class (Sweden), combination of split and unitary settings (Spain), split set-
ting (Cyprus), split setting with the implementation of a unitary setting in
process (Italy). Countries have different educational requirements for core
practitioners, but most often it is ISCED 6; in more detail: no regulations
(Sweden), ISCED 5 (Spain - for working with younger children), and in most
of the remaining countries ISCED 6 (Slovenia, Cyprus, Spain - for work-
ing with older children, Italy - for working with younger children) or even
ISCED 7 (Italy - for working with older children). Initial educational pro-
grammes for core practitioners are mostly provided by universities, most
often last 3-4 years and range from 180 to 240 credits. The programmes are
very similar to one another and cover similar topics, (mostly) including a
study placement (an exception is Spain for working with younger children).
All programmes include psychology and pedagogy (general subjects), lan-
guage and communication skills, and special and inclusive education (spe-
cial didactics). The significance of such a comparison to inform national
policy reforms towards a unified ECEC system is discussed.
Keywords: early childhood education and care, unitary and split systems,
initial education, preschool teachers, EU comparison
251
