Excerpted from Executive summary

Executive summary

During their first three years, children grow and learn at a faster rate than at any other time in their lives. Increasingly, children spend at least part of this developmental period in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings. High-quality ECEC for all children can be a powerful way to promote young children’s learning, development and well-being, as well as support parental participation in the labour force. However, the ECEC sector for children under age 3 varies greatly across countries in terms of enrolment rates, structure, investment and governance. Within countries, the experiences of children under age 3 can also differ based on the type of setting they attend and the staff working in these settings.

The OECD Starting Strong Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS Starting Strong) asks ECEC staff and leaders in settings for children under age 3 about themselves and their ECEC settings. This report examines multiple factors that are known to determine quality of ECEC for children under age 3 in each of four participating countries (Denmark, Germany, Israel and Norway).