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Johann Amos Comenius
Comenius wrote the first picture book for children. The book was called Orbis Pictus. -
Social Reform
Probably the three most significant contributors on Comenius are books with illustrations, an emphasis on education with the senses, and the social reform potential of education. -
John Locke
John Locke published his essay, which postulated that children are born with a tabula rasa, or clean slate, on which all experiences are written. John Locke was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism." -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
He is best known for his book Emile in which he raised a hypothetical child to adulthood. He was a Swiss writer and philosopher and proposed that children were no inherently evil, but naturally good. -
Johann Henrich Pestalozzi
A Swiss educator. He offered theories on education and caring that have formed the basis of many common teaching practices of early childhood education. Pestalozzi stressed the idea of the integrated curriculum that would develop the whole child. -
Kindergarten
Froebel opens the first kindergarten in Blankenburg, Germany. As an educator, Froebel wanted to help kids learn through play. -
Friedrich Wilhelm Froebel
One of the major contributors to early childhood education. Best known as the "Father of the Kindergarten." His organization of educational thought and ideas about learning, curriculum, and teacher training served as the foundation for the development of a system of education for young children. -
Robert Owen
An industrialist and follower of Pestalozzi. He extended his concerns for social reform to the families of those working in the cotton mills of Wales. He established labor practices for the workers and schooling for their children, most of whom began working in the mills as young as 6 years old. -
Rudolf Steiner
An Austrian philosopher, scientist, and artist. He gave lectures for the German factories of Waldorf-Astoria led to the establishment of schools now known as Waldorf Education. -
Nursery Schools
The name was coined to describe a place where children nurtured. Nursery schools and day nurseries went beyond custodial health care. They fostered the child's total development. -
Maria Montessori
Montessori became the first female in Italy. The Montessori Method is both a philosophy of child development and a plan for guiding growth, based on the belief that education begins at birth and the early years are of the utmost importance. -
High/Scope
High/Scope was conceived to address the effects of poverty on children's development and to focus attention on cognitive aspects of learning. The first study, entitled "Planned Variation," focused on Head Start programs. -
Sputnik
The launch of Sputnik caused an upheaval in educational circles. Sputnik was the first successful space exploration in the world. -
A. S Neil
He was the most famous proponent of the "free/natural school" movement in the mid-20th century. His book Summerhill describes 40 years of that educational program, of which he was headmaster. -
Head Start
Head Start began in 1965 as a demonstration program aimed at providing educational, social, medical, dental, nutritional, and mental health services to preschool children rom a diverse population of low-income families. Dr. Edward Zieglar was the first director. -
Media and Technology
The introduction of technology into modern life is staggering in its speed and influence. Learned from the 20th century about brain development and neuroscience must now be blended with the technology that we are using in the early 21st century and beyond. -
Standards
The No Child Left Behind Act was passed in 2001. Common Core Status Standards released in 2010 call for new standards in English-Language arts and mathematics for grades K-12. -
No Child Left Behind
In the United States, the Leave No Child Behind legislation is passed, reauthorizing federal programs to improved public school performance, requiring all public schools that receive federal funds to administer a statewide standardized test annually to all students, specifying an annual report card detailing progress, and calling for highly qualified teachers with minimum qualifications for all students. -
DAP
Developmentally appropriate practices. The foundation of good teaching for young children is based in engaging in practices, regardless of the setting, that are appropriate for the to the children in front of you