New NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards
and Accreditation Performance Criteria

In April 2005, the NAEYC Governing Board voted to approve the new NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards and NAEYC Accreditation Performance Criteria. These standards form the foundation of NAEYC’s new accreditation system and outline what NAEYC believes every early childhood education program should be. The new standards and criteria will make NAEYC Accreditation stronger for all involved, including teachers and administrators, employers and funders, and most important, for children and families relying on quality programs.

The accreditation performance criteria provide programs with detailed descriptions of how to meet the 10 program standards. The new standards and criteria are also the basis for a variety of resources and tools being developed that programs can use to evaluate and improve their services even before they begin working toward NAEYC Accreditation.

The first five NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards focus on maximizing the positive impact of programs on young children’s education and development. The remaining five standards focus on three other areas crucial to a high-quality early childhood program: teaching staff, partnerships with family and community, and leadership and administration.

There are more than 400 new accreditation performance criteria and the complete list of criteria is online at www.naeyc.org/accreditation/next_era.asp. To earn NAEYC Accreditation in the new system, a program will need to demonstrate that it meets all 10 NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards (listed below) by satisfying a majority of the accreditation performance criteria related to each standard.

Important dates: New self-study materials based on the new program standards and accreditation performance criteria were released at the NAEYC Annual Conference, December 7-10, 2005, in Washington, D.C.

On September 15, 2006, NAEYC’s current accreditation system will end and the new system will be fully operational. After that date, the new standards and criteria will replace the current (“1998”) accreditation criteria, and will apply to all programs seeking NAEYC Accreditation, and to all NAEYC-accredited programs – for annual reporting, verification visits, and other policies and procedures.

New NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards

Focus Area: Children
Program Standard 1 – Relationships
The program promotes positive relationships among all children and adults to encourage each child’s sense of individual worth and belonging as part of a community, and to foster each child’s ability to contribute as a responsible community member.

Program Standard 2 – Curriculum
The program implements a curriculum that is consistent with its goals for children and promotes learning and development in each of the following domains: aesthetic, cognitive, emotional, language, physical, and social.

Program Standard 3 – Teaching
The program uses developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate and effective teaching approaches that enhance each child’s learning and development in the context of the program’s curriculum goals.

Program Standard 4 – Assessment of Child Progress
The program is informed by ongoing systematic, formal, and informal assessment approaches to provide information on children’s learning and development. These assessments occur within the context of reciprocal communications with families and with sensitivity to the cultural contexts in which children develop. Assessment results are used to benefit children by informing sound decisions about children, teaching, and program improvement.

Program Standard 5 – Health
The program promotes the nutrition and health of children and protects children and staff from illness and injury.

Focus Area: Teaching Staff Program
Standard 6 – Teachers
The program employs and supports a teaching staff that has the educational qualifications, knowledge, and professional commitment necessary to promote children’s learning and development and to support families’ diverse needs and interests.

Focus Area: Family and Community Partnerships Program
Standard 7 – Families
The program establishes and maintains collaborative relationships with each child’s family to foster children’s development in all settings. These relationships are sensitive to family composition, language, and culture.

Program Standard 8 – Community Relationships
The program establishes relationships with, and uses the resources of, the children’s communities to support the achievement of program goals.

Focus Area: Leadership and Administration Program
Standard 9 – Physical Environment
The program has a safe and healthful environment that provides appropriate and well-maintained indoor and outdoor physical environments. The environment includes facilities, equipment, and materials to facilitate child and staff learning and development.

Program Standard 10 – Leadership and Management
The program effectively implements policies, procedures, and systems in support of stable staff and strong personnel, fiscal, and program management so that all children, families and staff have high-quality experiences.

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