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Abstract

Millie Almy, professor emerita, University of California, Berkeley, entered the field of early childhood education after graduating from Vassar College in 1936. For the next ten years she participated variously as teacher, director, and supervisor in programs which are regarded today as landmarks in preschool education. Examples of such programs include: The Yale Guidance Nursery, a Works Progress Administration (WPA) nursery school, and a Lanham Act child care center. This article presents her recollections of these programs and her insights into her experiences. Almy addresses the critical issues of program quality, teacher qualifications and compensation, and parent involvement. These are issues which continue to challenge early childhood educators today.

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References

Gessell

, and Ilg

(1943). Infant and child in the culture today: The guidance of development in home and nursery school. New York: Harper and Row.

Isaacs

(1936). The Nursery Years. New York: The Vangard Press. First published in Great Britain, April 1929.

Landreth

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(1942). Education of the young child: A nursery school manual. New York: Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Yale University Clinic of Child Development. (1940). The first five years of life: A guide to the sudy of the preschool child. New York: Harper & Brothers. First published in 1925 under the title The mental growth of the preschool child: A psychological outline of normal development from birth to the sixth year, including a system of development diagnosis.

Millie Almy: Nursery School Education Pioneer 1

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