EU Project Builds Socially Sustainable Early Childhood Education Future – A New Digital Training Environment in Development

A new EU-funded project, running from 2024 to 2027, aims to promote socially sustainable early childhood education across Europe by focusing on multidisciplinary collaboration and social pedagogy. Key partners include Laurea University of Applied Sciences, the early childhood education services of the City of Vantaa, and universities and kindergartens from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The project will develop professional competencies in early childhood education and create an open-access digital training environment, with the first module ready by fall 2025.

The project delves into the role of social pedagogical professionals within multidisciplinary early childhood education teams, focusing on their seamless integration and impactful contributions to early childhood education. By addressing pressing societal challenges such as poverty, discrimination, and unemployment, the initiative underscores the critical role of high-quality early childhood education in fostering resilience among children and their families. Furthermore, the project highlights the growing importance of social pedagogical professionals in mitigating workforce shortages, showcasing their distinctive ability to harmonize education, care, and family-centered approaches in early childhood settings.

The project seeks to identify and implement best practices for utilizing the multidisciplinary expertise of social pedagogical professionals, teachers, and childcare workers. A free digital training platform will be developed to support early childhood educators worldwide, tailored to diverse starting points and contexts.

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For more information, please contact Project Manager Virpi Lund.

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