2.2: Who is the NAEYC?

Let’s Take a Deeper Look

Before we begin to jump into the mentor/coach and mentee process, we are going to examine personal ethics, morals, and values.

First up, “ethics.” We often think of morals and values from a college philosophy class. Typically, students are given a hypothetical situation and asked to decide how to proceed. For example, one hypothetical situation might be, “You are in a boat, and there are 2 drowning children in the water. One drowning child is your relative, and the other drowning child is his/her friend. You can only save one person. Who do you save, and why?” Yikes! That is an impossibly difficult decision to make. These hypothetical ethical scenarios are meant to be morally difficult, and they are meant to challenge values and cause us to question why and what we do.

When investigating the concept of personal ethics, a good strategy is to examine our current norms. Since there is no such thing as an ethical Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system, a good tactic is to begin where we want to end up. This is like when we look at a map at the mall that indicates, “You are here,” then we figure out where we want to go, and then we create a track or path for our course.

In ECE, the desired GPS end point, particularly in the United States, is to follow the guidelines of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The NAEYC, and their Code of Ethics/links to an external source (NAEYC, 2024) (Appendix A), is an excellence source as our “GPS locator.”

Who Is the NAEYC?​​​​

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is a professional membership organization that works to promote high-quality early learning for all young children, birth through age 8, by connecting early childhood practice, policy, and research. Their goal is to advance a diverse, dynamic early childhood profession and support all who care for, educate, and work on behalf of young children. The association comprises nearly 60,000 individual members of the early childhood community and 52 Affiliates, all committed to delivering on the promise of high-quality early learning. Their collective vision is “that all young children thrive and learn in a society dedicated to ensuring they reach their full potential” (NAEYC, 2024, para. 1).

The NAEYC Code of Ethics is one of the five foundational documents (see links below) that NAEYC developed for Early Childhood Educators as a “GPS reference point.” It defines our professional code, and it specifies what ethical behavior in ECE looks like.

According to the NAEYC (2024), the code of ethics is a statement of standards of behavior agreed upon by the members of a profession, which is a group with special obligations to their society. It establishes the moral obligations that they are expected to honor. It rests on the foundation of the members’ shared values, and it expresses what they believe to be right, good, and fair (para. 3).

A code of ethics provides a vision of what a profession should be and how the members of that profession should behave. It builds members’ ethical awareness and judgment, provides them with guidance in decision making, gives them moral courage, and gives them a shared identity. It sends a message to society at large describing how it can expect members of that professional group to behave (NAEYC, 2024, para. 4).

The code is intended to guide the ethical, and moral decisions or dilemmas that ECE professionals face daily. Unfortunately, moral and ethical decisions are often made in the classroom without the needed supports and resources. Without support, resources, and intentional, well-thought-out responses, our reactions may be faulty. Instead of “responding” to the situation in a thoughtful manor, we might “react” to the situation in an inappropriate way or react with a behavior that is an unhealthy pattern from our past. Unintentional reacting, instead of intentional responding, may accidentally undermine relationships, thus causing conflict with relationships and conflict internally.

Internal conflict can jeopardize educators’ personal ethics, morals, values, and beliefs. If there is an internal conflict, it can even have an impact on health and wellbeing. This is one reason that it is important for us to know what our own personal ethics, morals, values, and beliefs are. It is a good idea for us to regularly examine these notions and try to understand how they came to be. Why do we value what we value? Why do we believe what we believe? How did these notions come to be in our lives? Is the origin from our families, friends, education, teachers, mentors, media, etc.? All of these shape us.

In the classroom, educators face daily decisions that have moral and ethical dimensions or dilemmas; thus, it is important for educators to learn to intentionally respond in ways that are equitable, just, moral, ethical, and line up with our own personal values. The NAEYC Code of Ethics is the golden standard for ECE professionals to set as best practice. The code guides our actions when responding to ethical dilemmas. It brings us shared values and gives us the platinum (Platinum is more valuable than gold) standard to strive for.

The Five Foundational Documents of the NAEYC:

1. The Code of Ethics (2024),

2. Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP, 2020),

3. Professional Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood Educators (2019),

4. Early Learning Program Standards (2025), and

5. Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education (2019).

Each of these five documents addresses important ECE issues and emphasizes the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and treating every individual with respect, dignity, value, empathy, and worth.

The NAEYC (2024) states that ethics must be grounded in philosophy and must address issues, such as fairness, autonomy, justice, mercy, kindness, generosity, and charity. Behaving in an ethical way is not just instinct, but involves using the knowledge of ethical principles, which influences our professional actions. The NAEYC articulates this professional code of ethics and complements and supports the other four foundational documents.

The NAEYC Position

Early childhood educators must uphold essential professional, ethical responsibilities to ensure that each and every child, from birth through age 8, has equitable learning opportunities regardless of whether the setting is in a center, home, or school. The Code of Ethics for Early Childhood Educators, together with the other four Foundational Statement documents, articulates these ethical responsibilities, and supports ethical behavior in ECE environments (NAEYC, 2024, p. 4). (Italics for the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct are supplied by the author to help differentiate the textbook from the NAEYC material.)

NAEYC Core Values (NAEYC, 2024)

The following core values are rooted in history, reflective of the present, and responsive to the future. They ground early childhood educators’ professional relationships and are organized so that practitioners know which values most closely undergird which responsibility.

The first set of values apply to all Professional Relationships:

• Respect and support the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each and every individual

• Respect and support diversity among individuals, as well as within and across groups of individuals, in terms of their backgrounds and lived experiences

• Recognize that all individuals—children and adults—thrive within relationships based on trust and respect

With respect specifically to Professional Relationships with Children, early childhood educators’ core values include:

• Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable part of the human life cycle

• Base professional practice on current and accurate knowledge of how to understand and support children’s development and learning

• Recognize that children are best understood and supported in the context of family, culture, community, and society

With respect specifically to Professional Relationships with Families, early childhood educators’ core values include:

• Appreciate, value, and support the bond between the child and their family

• Respect and support families in their task of nurturing children

With respect specifically to Professional Relationships between and among Colleagues and Staff, early childhood educators’ core values include:

• Be open to ideas and willing to learn

• Recognize the importance of maintaining and contributing to a humane, supportive, and fulfilling work environment

• Commit to the continuous professional learning and growth of self and staff

• Draw upon research and knowledge from relevant disciplines, including adult development and learning

With respective specifically to Professional Relationships in the context of a broader Community and Society, early childhood educators’ core values include:

• Respect the critical role of a knowledgeable, competent, and diverse early childhood education and care workforce working across all settings

• Serve as an advocate for children, their families, and their teachers in community and society (NAEYC, 2024, p. 4).