ABSTRACT
The present article seeks to describe and classify contemporary developments and negotiation processes within professionalization – especially with regard to Germany. To this end, the central events and developments in early childhood education policy over the past 20 years are outlined and various aspects of the associated expert debates are identified. Subsequently, key aspects of selected theoretical positions on professionalization, upon which specific lines of discourse are (partially) based, are presented and discussed with respect to their significance for professionalism and professionalization. This then serves as a foundation for concretizing individual lines of discourse and their implications – mediating between the opposing poles of the individual and society. In this perspective, the paper demonstrates the potential of an in-depth engagement with social scientific theories, especially in the form of multilevel and systemic analysis. Accordingly, professionalism and professionalization must be considered at various levels of the professional system – that is, with respect to the individual, team, organization, and societal fields of politics and law. This perspective highlights the complexity and interdependence of professionalization processes. It also illustrates the dilemmas, limitations, and unintended consequences and side effects associated with calls to professionalize ECEC.
