Early Childhood Education

Early Childhood Education 

Empowering Educators, Researchers, and Advocates for Early Childhood

Our Early Childhood Education (ECE) program prepares change-makers committed to excellence and justice for young children and their families. As a dynamic, multidisciplinary field within Curriculum & Instruction, we embrace complexity, celebrate diversity, and center multiple perspectives through rigorous ethnographic and qualitative research.

Research-Driven. Justice-Focused. Globally Engaged.

We prepare scholars, educators, and advocates for impactful careers in research, policy development, and educational practice across K-12 and higher education settings. Our program distinguishes itself through:

• Deep ethnographic inquiry into children's lives, learning, and communities
• Qualitative research methods that honor children's voices and experiences
• Childhood studies perspectives that examine how childhood is socially, culturally, and historically constructed
• Advocacy frameworks for educational equity and social justice

Core Expertise Includes:

Research Methods & Theory

• Child development and learning in cross-cultural contexts
• Childhood studies
• Ethnographic inquiry
• Policy studies and educational reform
• Ethnographic and qualitative research methods and analysis

Practice & Pedagogy

• Innovative pedagogical approaches
• Learning environments, materiality, and spaces
• Curriculum design and implementation
• Culturally sustaining and anti-bias education

Leadership & Advocacy

• Professional leadership and policy advocacy
• Family and community partnerships
• Social justice and equity in early childhood
• Global perspectives on childhood and education

Why Our Program?

Our inclusive approach grounds ECE in both local and global contexts. We welcome students from diverse backgrounds—including international scholars—creating a vibrant learning community where cross-cultural perspectives deepen understanding. Through ethnographic fieldwork, qualitative analysis, and participatory research methods, you'll develop the tools to document children's experiences, challenge inequities in schools and society, and advocate for transformative change for educational excellence.

Join us in advancing early childhood education and childhood studies at PSU- a vibrant research community where research illuminates practice, advocacy drives justice, and every child's humanity is honored.

Program Contact:

Allison Sterling Henward, PhD 
Associate Professor 
Program Lead, ECE 
Comparative and International Education 
[email protected] 
Chambers Building 150a
State College, PA 16802

Career Opportunities

ECE graduates have found success in a variety of academic and professional settings, including positions at:

• Government agencies
• Museums, such as the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.
• Non-Profit organizations
• Research-intensive institutions
• Teaching-intensive institutions