ABSTRACT
The Russian term for early childhood education (ECE) is doshkol’noe obrazovanie, which can be roughly translated as “preschool education.” ECE in the Russian Federation is considered to be the first level in the national system of general education that also includes primary, basic, and secondary levels. The first Russian preschools started appearing in the 1860s–70s in large cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg. Preschool institutions in Russia exist in both the public and private sectors. The majority of public preschools receive municipal funding and are mandated to serve the young children residing in a given municipality. Very few public preschools have specialized yasli programs for infants and toddlers, and slots in these programs are usually reserved for the families from socially protected groups. With the passing of the new Federal State Educational Standard, the situation has changed dramatically: the document contains a provision explicitly prohibiting using child outcome data in assessing program quality.
