Put “Academic Content” in Early Childhood Education and Early Childhood Teacher Education: A Response to Hyson et al.

Programs of teacher preparation in early childhood education have struggled with a lack of resources in nearly every area. As this and other articles attest, the numbers of potential teachers and teacher educators, particularly among minority candidates, have waned; the types of support (e.g., professional status, additional time for professional development, time and opportunity to conduct action and other types of research) are often lost in the name of managing teacher education programs with inadequate numbers of faculty. Financial backing for program maintenance and improvement has been low in many of our two- and four/five-year institutions. In addition, it is my belief that a broad, general focus on the many competing demands inherent in early education and care has contributed to a loss of a systematic focus on critically important content for prospective teachers and children alike. Given the new opportunities and the accountability ahead of us, we have a great deal of work to do. We are hampered by having too few teacher educators well prepared in research and who have sufficient depth of knowledge regarding key content-domain early educational practice. To this challenge, I want to elaborate on a few thoughts and recommendations. First and foremost, I believe that we must return to a clear emphasis on academic content in early childhood—both in our teacher preparation programs and in what we advocate that teachers do in their interactions with young children. Such emphasis can prepare children for success using methods that honor children’s developmental trajectories and cultural contexts. Second, we need to find more focused and strategic ways to work together, building on successful, research-based models already in place. I offer these thoughts on the basis of my own experiences, acknowledging that others may disagree or have far better ideas.