Early participation in high-quality education centers has a profound effect on a child's development, independent of the child's background. At present Germany faces the challenge of expanding the number of participating children in early childhood education and ensuring high educational quality at the same time.
But what is the current status of early childhood education and childcare in Germany? Updated in July in cooperation with the Center for Statistics on Child and Youth Welfare in Dortmund, the internet portal http://www.laendermonitor.de/ offers current data on educational participation, investments and educational quality for all 16 German States. State-Level comparisons released yearly by the project Ländermonitoring Frühkindliche Bildungssysteme (State by State: Monitoring Early Childhood Education) offer additional insights into the status quo and trends in early childhood education and care throughout Germany. The comparisons make clear, for example, that slots for children under the age of three need to be expanded at twice the current speed in the country's western regions, and the child-staff ratios should be improved throughout the country.
The project's annual report "Länderreport Frühkindliche Bildungssysteme" has become a standard reference work in policy discussions and when implementing reforms. Based on empiric data and facts the transparent presentation of information in both media sets impulse for further developing early education and care systems in Germany.
