On Tuesday (July, 12) and Wednesday (July, 13) we will organize two round table sessions on important topics in the ECEC field. In these sessions short pitches will be provided by researchers from a variety of countries, followed by a moderated discussion on the topic.

Tuesday July 12: Welcoming refugee children: how to provide good quality education and care?

In the last decade the world has seen a drastic rise in number of refugees and asylum applicants. Within this group, there is a high percentage of children and adolescents. European (and other) countries are faced with the task of providing high quality education for these children. Besides providing refugees with short-term provisions (e.g., housing, language courses), European countries are also concerned with the mid- long-term perspective enabling participation and integration. Education is one of the most important fields that enable such structural integration as in the long-term education has the possibility to facilitate inclusion and provide young refugee children with better academic and economic perspectives whether within their host country or after returning to their home country. Several challenges are involved in providing good quality education to these children. In this round table we will hear from colleagues from several European countries about their experience with refugee education in Europe and outside Europe. We will focus on exchanging experiences, discussing lessons learned and exchanging new ideas with a special focus on addressing multilingualism and processing of traumas.

Moderator: Ora Oudgenoeg, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

Contributors by country: England, Katharina Ereky-Stevens, University of Oxford | Germany, Yvonne Anders, University of Bamberg | Greece, Korina Hatzinikolaou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki | The Netherlands, Frederike Groothoff, Utrecht University | Poland, Olga Wysłowska, University of Warsaw

Wednesday July 13: ECEC in times of pandemic: how essential and resilient is ECEC in the face of great challenges?

In this roundtable discussion we will address how the ECEC systems in different countries responded to the challenges of the pandemic and the successive lockdowns. How did the ECEC system respond to the pandemic, also in comparison to the primary school system? Which (additional) services could be provided for children and families most in need during the lockdowns? Were children specifically supported in emotionally coping with the pandemic and its consequences?  How was contact and communication with families maintained? Did the quality of care and education suffer? Were there any positive effects as well? The roundtable will start with a number of short invited, research-based pitches on the experiences in different countries. The discussion will focus on the lessons learned and address the question how ECEC can be made more robust as an essential community service in the face of great challenges for society.

Moderator: Paul Leseman, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

Contributors by country: Belgium, Katrien van Laere, VBJK & University of Ghent | England, Eva Lloyd, University of East London | Scotland, Ingela Naumann, University of Edinburgh | Germany, Elisa Oppermann, Otto-Friedrich-University Bamberg | Israel, Esther Adi-Japha, Bar-Ilan University | Italy, Giulia Pastori, University of Milan Bicocca | The Netherlands, Pauline Slot, Utrecht University | Norway, Thomas Moser, University of Stavanger | Turkey, Pinar Kolancali, University of Oxford