Stats and Facts

For more than 20 years, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has helped families feel good about the child care programs they choose. The NAEYC Accreditation torch is a sign that children will be safe, healthy, and learning every day.

NAEYC Accreditation is a national, voluntary measurement system to help raise the quality of child care centers, preschools, and kindergartens. Programs that can seek NAEYC Accreditation:

• Child care centers
• Preschools
• Kindergartens
• Other center-based programs serving children from birth through Kindergarten

THE LIFE OF NAEYC ACCREDITATION

1985: NAEYC created the first comprehensive system to measure the quality of early childhood education.

1999: Began a process of self-evaluation to improve the accountability, efficiency, and credibility of its already strong accreditation.

2006: NAEYC’s new and improved Accreditation system will be fully operational.

EARNING THE TORCH

To obtain the NAEYC mark of quality, programs go through a rigorous four-step process.

Enrollment: Programs must go through a self-assessment before applying for accreditation.

Application: Programs submit an application and determine a time frame for completing a formal self-assessment report.

Candidacy: Fundamental licensing, staffing, health, and safety requirements must be met by all programs.

On-Site Visit: Observation of the program by NAEYC assessors determines if the program meets all 10 NAEYC standards.

10 STANDARDS OF HIGH-QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

1. Promote positive relationships for all children and adults to encourage each child’s sense of individual worth.
2. Implement a curriculum that fosters all areas of child development: cognitive, emotional, language, physical, and social.
3. Use developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate and effective teaching approaches.
4. Provide ongoing assessments of a child’s learning and development and communicate the child’s progress to the family.
5. Promote the nutrition and health of children and protect children and staff from injury and illness.
6. Employ a teaching staff that has the educational qualifications, knowledge, and professional commitment necessary to promote children’s learning and development and to support families‚ with diverse needs and interests.
7. Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with each child’s family.
8. Establish relationships with and use the resources of the community to support the achievement of program goals.
9. Provide a safe and healthy physical environment.
10. Implement strong personnel, fiscal, and program management policies so that all children, families, and staff have high-quality experiences.

NAEYC IS THE WORLD’S LARGEST ORGANIZATION WORKING ON BEHALF OF YOUNG CHILDREN

• Nearly 100,000 members
• A national network of more that 300 local, state, and regional affiliates
• A growing global alliance of similar organizations