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In oduc ion
© 2023 Ve lag Ba ba a Bud ich
Published e sion
Fonsén, Elina; Ah iainen, Raisa; Heikkinen, Ki si-Ma ja; Heikonen, Lau i; S ehmel,
Pe a; Tami , Emanuel
Fonsén, E., Ah iainen, R., Heikkinen, K.-M., Heikonen, L., S ehmel, P., & Tami , E. (2023).
In oduc ion. In E. Fonsén, R. Ah iainen, K.-M. Heikkinen, L. Heikonen, P. S ehmel, & E. Tami
(Eds.), Ea ly Childhood Educa ion Leade ship in Times o C isis : In e na ional S udies Du ing he
COVID-19 Pandemic (pp. 9-12). Ve lag Ba ba a Bud ich. h ps://doi.o g/10.2307/jj.2430379.3
2023
Ve lag Ba ba a Bud ich
Chap e Ti le: In oduc ion
Chap e Au ho (s): Elina Fonsén, Raisa Ah iainen, Ki si-Ma ja Heikkinen, Lau i Heikonen,
Pe a S ehmel and Emanuel Tami
Book Ti le: Ea ly Childhood Educa ion Leade ship in Times o C isis
Book Sub i le: In e na ional S udies Du ing he COVID-19 Pandemic
Book Edi o (s): Elina Fonsén, Raisa Ah iainen, Ki si-Ma ja Heikkinen, Lau i Heikonen, Pe a
S ehmel, Emanuel Tami
Published by: Ve lag Ba ba a Bud ich. (2023)
S able URL: h ps://www.js o .o g/s able/jj.2430379.3
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Ea ly Childhood Educa ion Leade ship in Times o C isis
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In oduc ion
In oduc ion
Elina Fonsén, Raisa Ah iainen, Ki si-Ma ja Heikkinen,
Lau i Heikonen, Pe a S ehmel & Emanuel Tami
Elina Fonsén e al.
Times o c isis u he unde lines he meaning o leade ship as he common
h ead o an educa ional o ganisa ion. Leade s in ea ly childhood educa ion
(ECE) ha e been o ced o ace emendous challenges and changes wi hin a
e y sho ime ame. A global pandemic o his scale is some hing ha no one
has wi nessed be o e. The Execu i e Commi ee, Wo ld O ganisa ion o Ea ly
Childhood Educa ion OMEP has o mula ed a posi ion pape o ECE o e-
mind he impo ance o con inuing high quali y ECE in spi e o he pandemic
(OMEP 2020). The posi ion pape poin s ou ha “ he global c isis has es ed
he poli ical, heal h, and economic sys ems o many coun ies” and how all ha
may jeopa dise he child enʼs igh o educa ion and he quali y o educa ion.
The e o e, he ques ion o leade ship in ECE is c ucial o ensu e educa ional
igh s.
Ou book s i es o mee he esea ch cap o ECE leade ship du ing he
c isis. The book discusses he phenomenon o leade ship and cap u es leade sʼ
expe iences du ing he pandemic in he con ex o ECE. Timely collec ed e i-
dence-based in o ma ion is aimed a guiding u u e policy-making and educa-
ional de elopmen , inspi ing academic esea ch, gi ing new insigh s o uni-
e si y cou ses, and suppo ing leade s and p ac i ione s in ECE cen es. The
added alue o his olume is in c acking mechanisms o dealing wi h a sys-
emic c isis and change. Mo eo e , he book adds o he unde s anding o he
abili y o he ECE cen esʼ o eco e om he c isis, and in oduces po en ial
p omo i e ac o s o esilience in he u u e.
The pu pose o his book is o p o ide unde s anding o leade ship s a e-
gies, leading ECE p ac ice, and a numbe o ways o cope wi h uns able and
apidly changing s a es o a ai s du ing he COVID-19 pandemic. The c isis
si ua ion makes isible he (un)sus ainabili y o p ac ices in leade ship. This
book b ings oge he esea che s om di e en co ne s o he wo ld, and ena-
bles he iden i ica ion o ways o c isis leade ship and managemen in ECE
cen es in many na ional con ex s. The esea ch epo ed he e con ibu es o
he knowledge abou leade ship, necessa y skills and compe encies o leade s
bu also he need o esou ces (e.g. o digi alisa ion). Mo eo e , he book
d aws a pic u e o a a ie y o condi ions whe e leade s ha e mas e ed he c i-
sis.
The book is composed o pee - e iewed o iginal esea ch a icles ap-
p oaching he heme o COVID-19 pandemic om a ious pe spec i es
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Elina Fonsén e al. 10
p o iding a o um wi hin which we can lea n, sha e ou lessons lea ned, and
de elop new insigh s ega ding leade ship in ECE o he u u e. The book
p ocess s a ed in 2021 wi h a call o pape s ha was sen o a wo ldwide
esea ch ne wo k, he in e na ional leade ship esea ch o um (ILRF-EC).
ILRF-EC has been es ablished in Finland, and i cu en ly has membe s in all
con inen s. This edi ed book is he 4 h publica ion o he ILRF-EC ne wo k
(h ps://il ec.o g/) and in Se ies In e na ional Leade ship Resea ch Fo um
Ea ly Educa ion (ILRFEC) Resea ch monog aph #4.
The book is di ided in o wo sec ions o which he i s “Leade ship p ac-
ices du ing he COVID-19-pandemic” conside s adminis a i e, leade ship
and pedagogical p ac ices and solu ions conce ning ECE in imes o he pan-
demic. Tha sec ion is composed o pape s o esea che s om Finland, No -
way, Aus ia, Ge many, Swi ze land, Is ael, he USA (Flo ida) and Aus alia.
Excep ional ci cums ances b ough up pedagogical leade ship challenges bu
also new oppo uni ies, and changes needed o be implemen ed in bo h daily
pedagogical leade ship and ECE pedagogy. Some o he s udies indica e ha
p o essional de elopmen , social suppo and dis ibu ed leade ship may be de-
eloped e en in imes o c isis. In his sec ion esea che s also discuss chal-
lenges such as ime e u ning o ECE cen es on a daily basis and communi-
ca ing heal h messages om he go e nmen . S udies indica e ha leade s,
eache s, pa en s and e en he go e nmen had o y di e en al e na i es o
deal wi h he c isis and de elop esilience owa ds u u e challenges.
Sec ion 2 “Coping wi h s ess, esilience and lessons lea ned om c isis
leade ship in ECE cen es” ocuses on changed demands and challenges o
leade s du ing he pandemic, and b ings ou hei subjec i e expe iences and
coping s a egies. In addi ion, in his sec ion he au ho s poin ou lessons
lea ned o c isis leade ship imp o emen . Sec ion 2 includes s udies om Fin-
land, Sweden, G eece and Ge many, and a pape compa ing he esul s om
an in e na ional esea ch g oup om Finnish, Ge man and Is aelian con ex s.
The esea ch epo ed in his sec ion desc ibes he leade sʼ s uggle wi h go -
e nmen al demands, he handling o unce ain y and anxie y among he s a
membe s. Fu he , hemes o aking ca e o oneʼs own well-being, changes in
he collabo a ion wi hin eams as well as changed p io i ies and leade ship
s yles in ela ion o coping wi h he c ises a e discussed in a icles unde his
sec ion. The esea che s p o ide insigh s o ECE leade sʼ needs o suppo and
compe ence a eas ha could be de eloped ega ding leade sʼ capabili y o en-
coun e u u e c ises and o be be e in engaging in he ques ions o well-being
in hei wo king communi ies. ECE sys ems ha e shown ha hey may ha e
wo ked well du ing he pandemic c isis, bu i is impo an ha he sys ems
should be u he de eloped om he pe spec i e o o e all esilience.
In he conclusion he edi o s d aw oge he a ange o empi ical esul s,
elabo a e in e na ional simila i ies and na ional speciali ies. The conclusion
discusses heo e ical app oaches o explain he sha ed expe iences o ECE
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11 In oduc ion
leade s in he pandemic and conside s he di e ences in camping s a egies
and he expe iences du ing COVID-19-pandemic. I will poin ou he essen ial
lessons and de elop c i e ia o c isis managemen in ECE cen es and on he
ques ion how ECE cen es can become esilien o u u e c ises.
This book will con ibu e o he In e na ional discou se on he p o ession-
alisa ion o ECE leade ship, inspi e u he esea ch and consul p ac ice and
policy. We edi o s hope ha ou book p o ides you wi h new knowledge and
esh ideas o de elop ECE all o e he wo ld!
Elina Fonsén, Raisa Ah iainen, Ki si-Ma ja Heikkinen, Lau i Heikonen,
Pe a S ehmel and Emanuel Tami
Acknowledgmen s
We would like o exp ess ou app ecia ion o all sponso s and e iewe s who
made his book possible o publish.
P o ide s o Funding:
Robe Bosch Founda ion, Ge many
Facul y o Educa ional Sciences, Uni e si y o Helsinki
Depa men o Educa ion, Uni e si y o Jy äskylä, Finland
Open Science Cen e, Uni e si y o Jy äskylä, Finland
Tel Hai college, Is ael
Hambu g Uni e si y o Applied Sciences, Ge many
ILFR -EC publica ions
Hujala, E., M. Waniganayake, and J. Rodd (eds.). 2013. Resea ching Leade ship in
Ea ly Childhood Educa ion. Tampe e Uni e si y P ess. ps://il ec.o g/publica i
on/ esea ching-leade ship-in-ea ly-childhood-educa ion/
Waniganayake, M., J. Rodd, and L. Gibbs (eds.). 2015. Thinking and Lea ning abou
Leade ship: Ea ly childhood esea ch om Aus alia, Finland and No way. In e -
na ional Leade ship Resea ch Fo um (ILRF) Resea ch Monog aph #2. Sydney:
Communi y Childca e Coope a i e NSW. h ps://il ec.o g/publica ion/ hinking-
and-lea ning-abou -leade ship-ea ly-childhood- esea ch- om-aus alia- inland-
and-no way/
S ehmel, P., J. Heikka, E. Hujala, J. Rodd, and M. Waniganayake (eds.). 2019. Lead-
e ship in Ea ly Educa ion in Times o Change. Resea ch om Fi e Con inen s.
In e na ional Leade ship Resea ch Fo um Ea ly Educa ion (ILRFEC) Resea ch
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Elina Fonsén e al. 12
monog aph #3. Ve lag Ba ba a Bud ich. h ps://il ec.o g/publica ion/leade ship-
in-ea ly-educa ion-in- imes-o -change- esea ch- om- i e-con inen s/
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