ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses information about Roma participation in early childhood education in Europe. It proposes how inequities can be remedied, moving beyond typical responses to the dilemma of low participation, such as making early childhood education compulsory, eliminating fees, providing transportation and food, establishing comprehensive services, training teachers on diversity, reaching out to parents and embedding Roma culture in the curriculum. The chapter suggests an additional, necessary, innovative solution the nurturing of a Roma early childhood workforce. Building on methodologies perfected through the Starting Strong studies at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), John Bennett helped to design, mentor and consolidate a series of national monitoring reports, the Roma Early Childhood Inclusion (RECI) reports. He delivered the scathing message that the vast majority of young Roma children are straggling behind the rest of Europe, largely as a result of pervasive poverty and toleration of gross inequity by majority populations.
