Summary: History of Early Childhood Education

In this module we traced **Early Childhood Education** from its roots in the 1500s, through the rise of formal Kindergartens in the 19th century, the first state-sponsored programs in the Russian Federation, the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, and the modern MDGs and SDGs. We also met **Dr. Maria Montessori** — the first Italian woman to earn a medical degree, who applied a scientist's eye to the classroom and reshaped early childhood education with her sensorial materials, hands-on practical-life work, prepared environments, and respect for the child as an active learner.