Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Continuing the Dialogue

The papers that follow were prepared for a session sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Governing Board Committee on Professional Practice. The session was designed to engage members in dialogue concerning issues related to ‘developmentally appropriate practices’ within diverse communities and cultures. As a member of NAEYC’s governing board, I organized and moderated the session, and Marilou Hyson acted as discussant. Presenters prepared written answers to the question, ‘What is the value and what are the risks in the developmentally appropriate practice concept?’ They presented their ideas at the session, and a complex and exhilarating discussion followed. After the session, we decided the written answers might provide the stimulus for further discussion of the important issues raised in the session. That is the purpose of this colloquium.