Landscapes in Early Childhood Education provides an analytical framework for addressing current (global) issues within the field of early childhood education. Early childhood specialists from several nations show how they have applied this framework in their analyses of specific case studies. The case studies illuminate supports and constraints to the field and provide recommendations for improved practice. The case studies address areas or «landscapes»: the global landscape – issues of global significance to the field of early childhood education; the political landscape – issues that show the relationship between politics and the field of early childhood education; the landscape of policy and practice – issues regarding micro policies and classroom practices; the professional landscape – issues relating to the development and practices of early childhood professionals; and the curricular landscape – issues relating to curriculum in early childhood settings.

The Editor: Jacqueline Hayden is internationally recognized for her comparative work on social and policy issues in early childhood education. Dr. Hayden is Director of the Master of Teaching (Early Childhood) program at the University of Western Sydney, Australia.