New NESET report provides guidelines for continuous professional development of ECEC professionals working with multilingual children

NESET published a new report titled Working with multilingual children and families in early childhood education and care (ECEC): guidelines for continuous professional development of ECEC professionals  by Lisandre Bergenon-Morin, Brecht Peleman and Hester Hulpia. The report addresses the growing number of children who are raised in multilingual environments and highlights the importance of early childhood education and care (ECEC) in their language development.

The report emphasizes the valuable contribution that children from multilingual families bring to ECEC centres, both for their own holistic development and for enriching the learning experiences of other children. It also acknowledges ECEC professionals’ specific challenges in supporting multilingual children and families.

By offering research- and practice-based policy recommendations, the report aims to improve the quality of CPD and promote effective support for ECEC professionals engaged with multilingual children and families. The report draws upon a comprehensive literature review and two case studies conducted in Germany and Belgium. It provides general recommendations and explores the application of key findings and recommendations to CPD for multilingual children and families with a refugee background.

You can access the full report, executive summaries in English, French and German, and a summarizing one-pager in our Library.