ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book discusses the contradictory tendencies of de- and re-centralization in the Nordic curricula, evident for example in the regulations and directions concerning documentation and assessment. It also argues that we can recognize a movement towards the Anglo-Saxon tradition of curriculum design in the Nordic countries. The book familiarizes the reader with the documentation practices of Nordic early education at the grassroots level. Drawing on a case study of three Swedish preschools, it illuminates the types of documentation tools that are applied in early childhood education (ECE). The book raises questions with regard to what sense the documentation and assessment practices are about empowering, supporting and strengthening children, parents and professionals, and to what sense they can weaken, mislead and constrains the different actors. Finally, it considers documentation and assessment practices and teacher's role in them from the viewpoint of a reflective.
