This book is a comparative study of how early childhood educational policies and initiatives in three countriesChina, India, and the United Stateshave been utilized as both direct and indirect strategies for responding to fierce global economic competition. Human capital theory and cultural ecology theory serve as the conceptual framework for discussing how this has played out in each of the three countries. In addition, this book presents a discussion and analysis of how the beliefs, parents' perspectives, and practices with regard to child-rearing and the education of young children have both changed and remained the same in response to forces of globalization.

Compares early childhood educational policies and procedures in China, India, and the United States Features insight gathered from original interview and survey data on parents' perceptions of various factors' influence on education, including globalization Makes recommendations for the reallocation of resources to better ensure high quality early education, while emphasizing the importance of child-friendly classroom environments and prioritizing play within them

Autorentext

Guangyu Tan is Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the State University of New York at Fredonia, USA. Her research interests are comparative studies in P-16 education.

Amita Gupta is Professor of Early Childhood Education and former Department Chair in the School of Education at the City College of New York, CUNY, USA. She has been in the field of early childhood education for more than thirty years with extensive cross-cultural experience.

Gay Wilgus is Associate Professor in the Graduate Program in Early Childhood Education at the City College of New York, CUNY, USA. Her recent research is focused on motherhood studies and carework.

Inhalt

Globalization, Human Capital Development, and Cultural Ecology.- 2. Childhood Development and Education in China: Breaking the Cycle of Poverty and Improving Future Competitiveness.- 3. Early Childhood Education in India: Promises, Policies, and Pitfalls.- 4. From A Nation at Risk to No Child Left Behind to Race to the Top: The U.S. Response to Global Competition.- 5. "One Child, Only Hope" No More: The Evolution of China's Population Control Policy and Its Impact on Parenting and Child Care.- 6. Early Childhood Parental Philosophies and Practices in Urban India: Education, Care, and Well-Being of Young Children in a Society Shaped by Traditional and Global Forces.- 7. Class, Ethnicity, and Gender Dimensions of Child Rearing in America.- 8. Educational Policy, Parents, and Investment that Matters.-