La Educación infantil en las culturas escolares europeasun análisis político comparado

Abstract

This article examines the principal tendencies of pre-school education in the European Union. A comparative cultural analysis permits its to recognize the differences that exist in this area among the different countries, to establish the trajectory produced by the changes that have occurred in recent decades and to evaluate the impact of the growing Europeanization of national politics. Despite the notable diversity of situations, one can appreciate that there are some convergences with respect to the significance that early childhood, and as a result, early childhood education, has acquired in the context of global culture. It is necessary to underscore that this stage of education, more than others, has undergone many transformations: it has abandoned its traditional 'baby-sitting' character, it has increased spectacularly its level of academic content, and it has also witnessed a considerable improvement in the qualifications of its teachers. Today the education of children up to 6 years of age plays a crucial and rapidly expanding role in European school systems.