As the importance of early childhood education continues to rise, New Directions for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century: International Perspectives provides a comprehensive look at the structure and management of early childhood education in culturally diverse settings. This text consists of eleven chapters which explore early childhood education and child care in countries such as the United States, Japan and Britain. The format of each chapter varies, as some contributors summarize present and past research and others focus more on the curricular and historical changes that impact how young children are educated.

Chapter 1 focuses on Korea and the current trends that affect early childhood education and child-care. The reader is offered a brief review on background information, such as the changing nature of family structure and women's participation in the economy, which has drastically affected the ability of early childhood kindergartens to care for this changing demographic. At the close of the chapter, current education policy and support is discussed as well as the future perspective of this country's early childhood education system. The author provides an outline of this system, which is based in a theoretical perspective that the Chinese government has undertaken to reform and restore its early childhood education.

The authors of chapter 3 offer that this chapter will provide the background of early childhood education in Taiwan and will present the new directions for the 21st century. As promised, the reader is provided with a review of the issues that have affected the education of Taiwan's youngest citizens, such as the rights of children, mothers and women and the curriculum concerns that have driven changes in this country's services to young children. The author ends the chapter with a short presentation on how the culture of the 21st century will impact the direction of early childhood education.

Chapter 4 provides a look at how globalization has forever changed how young children are educated in Japan. Information technology is presented as a major force of change in the education of young children. The reader is given the basic premises of the education reform and how they are situated with specific theories of play.

Continuing in chapter 5, Japan's early childhood education views are provided as a way to understand the issues and the development of their theories. Combining those views with the historical views of the child as well as the cognitive profiles of early childhood education, the author shows readers the concepts that define Japan's educational methods. Not concentrating exclusively on early childhood education, this chapter also introduces early education, which refers to the gifted and talented population and specific curriculum aims.

The United Kingdom's care of young children is the focus of chapter 6. In a review of the literature, the author presents how each of these methods of care sometimes have exceeded and occasionally have fallen short of the ideals that constitute Britain's early childhood educational system.

Concentrating on the shortcomings of France's creche and ecole maternelle, the seventh chapter discusses issues and problems in servicing its early childhood population. Creches by contrast, provide care for children under the age of 3. Noting the differences in opportunities available for the early childhood population, the author examines the overlapping sectors of care for children under and over the age of 3.

Updating a previous project entitled Preschool in Three Cultures, chapter eight reports on the changes in preschool education in the cultures of Japan, China and the United States. Comparative ethnographies that include a longitudinal dimension are rare, and the authors offer readers a chance to see how these cultures have absorbed and reacted to change in their countries and how these changes relate to differences in early childhood education.

Chapter 9 presents another view on play therapy and how it is integrated in early childhood education in the United States. Readers learn in this chapter how play can support the social development of young children and align with more traditional methods of academic and cognitive development that is critical during these years of development.

The last chapter of this book returns to the roots of early childhood education in America. The current perspective of early childhood education has been shaped by schools such as the infant school, the primary school and the philosophy of Freidrich Froebel and his kindergarten curriculum. In an effort to evaluate the newest approaches to early childhood education, the authors provide readers with a thorough understanding of the contributions to what Americans offer as early childhood education.

In conclusion, this text offers a valuable resource for those directly affiliated with early childhood education or others who are interested in an international perspective of care for young children. Education of young children occurs in a variety of contexts and through diverse settings and circumstances. Missing from this analysis of international concepts regarding early childhood education, the Reggio Emilia approach was not presented or referenced in this text. As a forerunner in preschool education, it seems to be an oversight that readers are not presented with information as to how it is has impacted international early childhood education and care and how the approach has changed Italy's care of this population.