Early Years Pedagogy for Social Justice

The LEYF Model for Change
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-032-82813-8
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 264 Seiten, Format (B × H): 174 mm x 246 mm

Early Childhood Education and Care sits at the centre of some of the most urgent challenges of our time, from poverty and inequality to social cohesion. Yet too often, early education systems reproduce these inequalities rather than disrupt them. This book argues that it does not have to be this way.

Drawing on international research, neuroscience and decades of practice, Dr June O’Sullivan OBE presents the social justice pedagogy she developed through the London Early Years Foundation (LEYF). At its heart is a simple but powerful idea: fairness must be designed into systems, relationships and everyday practice, and judged by how far it expands children’s life chances.

Covering leadership, quality, children’s rights, pedagogy and the art, craft and science of Early Years teaching, the book sets out a vision for community-based, multi-generational education rooted in inclusion, equity and compassion. Through case studies, reflective questions and the seven interwoven strands of the LEYF approach, the chapters show how values can be translated into everyday practice including:

• Leadership for Excellence, weaving sustainability throughout
• Spiral Curriculum
• Enabling Environments
• Harmonious Relationships
• Safe, Fit and Healthy
• Home Learning Engagement
• Multi-Generational Community Approach

Offering a practical framework for designing early education systems that can be adapted, replicated and scaled to better serve disadvantaged children, families and communities, this is essential reading for educators, leaders and policymakers.

Zielgruppe

Parents, Professional Practice & Development, and Undergraduate Advanced

Autoren/Hrsg.

O’Sullivan, June

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Pädagogik Lehrerausbildung, Unterricht & Didaktik Lehrerausbildung
• Sozialwissenschaften Pädagogik Schulen, Schulleitung Kindergarten & Vorschule
• Sozialwissenschaften Pädagogik Teildisziplinen der Pädagogik Erziehung in der Familie
• Sozialwissenschaften Pädagogik Teildisziplinen der Pädagogik Sonderpädagogik, Heilpädagogik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Social Justice in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) 2. The Pedagogy Cocktail: How to Mix a Social Justice Pedagogy 3. Leading the Social Justice Pedagogy 4. A Spiral Curriculum to Drive Social Justice 5. The Spiral Curriculum: Linking Learning to Social Justice for Every Child 6. The Enabling Environment (EE) 7. Harmonious Relationships (HR) 8. Safe, Fity and Healthy (SFH) 9. Home Learning 10. Multi-generational Community Approach 11. The Social Justice Leader 12. Anchoring Change using the ACT Model 13. Measuring What Matters: Quality as a Driver of Social Justice 14. Scaling What Works: Replication, Investment and System Change 15. A Final Word: Building Social Justice in ECEC

Über Autor(innen)

June O’Sullivan OBE is Chief Executive of LEYF, the UK’s largest childcare charitable social enterprise, with 43 nurseries across London. She continues to innovate while supporting others to replicate values-led, socially just models of early education.