The South African government has undertaken to expand universal access to Early Childhood Development (ECD) with a particular focus on children from socially disadvantaged communities and with disabilities. This requires training and support of ECD practitioners, such that they are equipped 399with the necessary knowledge and competencies to implement effective teaching and learning approaches at ECD level. This research explored an innovative, inclusive approach to ECD practitioner development in which both Deaf and hearing students were enrolled in an ECD practitioner training program facilitated jointly by New Beginnings (an ECD non-profit training organization) and the Deaf Federation of South Africa (DeafSA). The research scrutinized key aspects of the training program, including how it extended students content knowledge on ECD, their pedagogical knowledge; as well as epistemological access for Deaf students. The findings and conclusions have important implications not only for equipping ECD practitioners with knowledge and skills, but also demonstrates how practitioner training itself can be effectively structured to cater for diversity among trainees.

Bekink, M. (2022). “The right of children with disabilities to early childhood development: Is South Africa complying with international law?” South African Journal on Human Rights, vol. 38, no. 3–4, pp. 192–214. doi: 10.1080/02587203.2022.2149421

Bruns, D. A., and Mogharreban, C. C. (2007). “The gap between beliefs and practices: Early childhood practitioners’ perceptions about inclusion,” Journal of Research in Childhood Education, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 229–241. doi: 10.1080/02568540709594591

Carpenter, T. P., Fennema, E., Petersen, P., and Carey, D. (1988). “Teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge of students’ problem solving in elementary arithmetic,” Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, vol. 19, no. 5, pp. 385–401. doi: 10.2307/749173

Clarke, V., and Braun, V. (2014). “Thematic analysis,” in T. Teo, Ed., Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology, New York, NY: Springer, pp. 1947–1952. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269930624_Thematic_Analysis

Crowe, S., Cresswell, K., Robertson, A., Huby, G., Avery, A., and Sheikh, A. (2011). “The case study approach,” BMC Medical Research Methodology, vol. 11, Art. no. 100, doi: 10.1186/1471-2288-11-100

Department of Basic Education, Report on the implementation of education White Paper 6 on Inclusive Education. An overview for the period 2013–2015, Pretoria, South Africa: Government Printers, May. 2015. [Online]. Available: https://static.pmg.org.za/160308overview.pdf

Department of Education, The Education White Paper 6 on Inclusive Education, Pretoria, South Africa: Government Printers, 2001.

Department of Higher Education and Training, Policy on minimum requirements for programs leading to qualifications in higher education for early childhood development educators, 2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.dhet.gov.za/Teacher%20Education/Policy%20on%20minimum%20requirements%20-%20ECD.pdf

Gess-Newsome, J., Taylor, J. A., Carlson, J., Gardner, A. L., Wilson, C. D., and Stuhlsatz, M. A. M. (2019). “Teacher pedagogical content knowledge, practice and student achievement,” International Journal of Science Education, vol. 41, no. 7, pp. 944–963. doi: 10.1080/09500693.2016.1265158

Granberg, C., Palm, T., and Palmberg, B. (2021). “A case study of a formative assessment practice and the effects on students’ self-regulated learning,” Studies in Educational Evaluation, vol. 68, Art. no. 100955. doi: 10.1016/j.stueduc.2020.100955

Karisa, A., Samuels, C., Watermeyer, B., McKenzie, J., and Vergunst, R. (2002). “Priorities for access to early childhood development services for children with disabilities in South Africa,” South African Journal of Childhood Education, vol. 12, no. 1, Art. no. 1119. doi: 10.4102/sajce.v12i1.111

Leijen, Ä., Malva, L., Pedaste, M., and Mikser, R. (2022). “What constitutes teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge and how it can be assessed: A literature review,” Teachers and Teaching, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 206–225. doi: 10.1080/13540602.2022.2062710

Maluleke, N. P., Khoza-Shangase, K., and Kanji, A. (2021). “School readiness and academic achievement of children with hearing impairment: A South African exploratory study,” South African Journal of Childhood Education, vol. 11, no. 1, Art. no. 898, doi: 10.4102/sajce.v11i1.898

McKee, M., Schlehofer, D., and Thew, D. (2013). “Ethical issues in conducting research with deaf populations,” American Journal of Public Health, vol. 103, no. 12, pp. 2174–2178. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2013.301343

Meier, C., Lemmer, E., and Gören Niron, D. G. (2015). “Problems and prospects in early childhood education provisioning in Turkey and South Africa,” Journal of Asian and African Studies, vol. 52, no. 4, pp. 444–457. doi: 10.1177/0021909615595989

Mishra, S., and Dey, A. K. (2022). “Understanding and identifying ‘themes’ in qualitative case study research,” South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 187–192. doi: 10.1177/22779779221134659

Murris, K. (2019). “Children’s development, capability approaches and post-developmental child: The birth to four curriculum in South Africa,” Global Studies of Childhood, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 56–71. doi: 10.1177/2043610619832894

Priya, A. (2021). “Case study methodology of qualitative research: Key attributes and navigating the conundrums in its application,” Sociological Bulletin, vol. 70, no. 1, pp. 94–110. doi: 10.1177/0038022920970318

Republic of South Africa, National Development Plan 2030: Our future-Make it work, Boksburg, South Africa: Sherino Printers, 2012. [Online]. Available: https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/201409/ndp-2030-our-future-make-it-workr.pdf (accessed Jul. 14, 2022).

Republic of South Africa, South African Schools Act, Pretoria, South Africa: Government Printers, 1996. [Online]. Available: https://www.gov.za/documents/south-african-schools-act (accessed Jan. 11, 2023).

Shing, C. L., Saat, R. M., and Loke, S. H. (2015). “The knowledge of teaching—Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK),” Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Sciences, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 40–55. [Online]. Available: https://mojes.um.edu.my/index.php/MOJES/article/view/12781/8206

Shulman, L. S. (1986). “Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching,” Educational Researcher, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 4–14. doi: 10.3102/0013189X015002004

Shulman, L. S. (1987). “Knowledge and teaching: Foundations of the new reform,” Harvard Educational Review, vol. 57, no. 1, pp. 1–23.

Tobin, J., Hsueh, Y., and Karasawa, M. Preschool in three cultures revisited: China, Japan, and the United States. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2009.

Tobin, J., Wu, D., and Davidson, D. Preschool in three cultures: Japan, China, and the United States. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1989.

Toom, A., Pyhältö, K., Pietarinen, J., and Soini, T. (2021). “Professional agency for learning as a key for developing teachers’ competencies?” Education Sciences, vol. 11, no. 7, Art. no. 324. doi: 10.3390/educsci11070324

United Nations, Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities, New York: United Nations, 2006. [Online]. Available: https://www.refworld.org/legal/agreements/unga/2006/en/90142 (accessed Mar. 3, 2023).

Vandermaas-Peeler, M., Westerberg, L., and Fleishman, H. (2019). “Bridging known and new: Inquiry and intersubjectivity in parent-child interactions,” Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, vol. 21, pp. 124–135. doi: 10.1016/j.lcsi.2019.02.011

Viruru, R. Early childhood education. Postcolonial perspectives from India. London, New Dehli: Sage Publications Inc., 2000.

Vygotsky, L. S. Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1978.

Yang, W., and Li, H. (2019). “Changing culture, changing curriculum: A case study of early childhood curriculum innovations in two Chinese kindergartens,” The Curriculum Journal, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 279–297. doi: 10.1080/09585176.2019.1568269

Yin, R. K. Case study research, design and method, 4th ed. London: Sage Publications Inc., 2009.