States’ Efforts in Improving the Qualifications of Early Care and Education Teachers

An important component of quality early care and education (ECE) is teacher training. Only 18 states require teachers in private ECE settings to undergo any preservice training, however, and there are many barriers to improving these teachers’ qualifications. Individual states are initiating various efforts that address those challenges and hold promise for improving ECE, including the provision of scholarships and financial incentives, specifications regarding the types of training ECE teachers need, and career lattices that delineate pathways for continued learning and improved practice. The article describes these efforts and summarizes the practices that seem to offer promise for improving ECE teachers’qualifications. The article also suggests topics to be considered in regard to future research.