SAJCE 

South African Journal of Childhood Education 6(2) 

This special issue on early childhood care and education (birth to 9) in disadvantaged contexts is timely and critical, taking into account the urgency to deal with the constellation of risks facing young children and their families in vulnerable circumstances. Interventions directed at poor children and their families continue to be challenged by complexities, noted as identifying relevant conceptualisations for action, being responsive to sociocultural diversity and dealing with socioeconomic circumstances that stratify societies. In this issue, 10 articles from different countries, in their varying emphasis on early care and education in disadvantaged contexts, seek to highlight critical issues that need to be considered for more equitable opportunities and outcomes through the vantage point of the early years. The discussion that follows is arranged in three themes, namely highlighting dominant framings/responses, suggestions for contextual intervention and methodological issues in researching the vulnerable. 

Editorial article