The Role of Equity and Diversity in Early Childhood Education - V. 1

Reviewed by Tricia Black, Faculty Instructor, Rogue Community College on 10/1/25

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book is very comprehensive in terms of providing relevant information regarding culture, child and teacher identities, appropriate classroom materials, dual language learners, and socioeconomic status of families. I especially appreciate the many examples, and prompts for reflection that are embedded throughout this textbook. While there is no glossary included, many definitions related to terminology are included within the text.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

There were a couple of typos, however they did not interfere with the readability of this textbook. The content appears to be accurate, and there are many cited sources throughout.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The format of this textbook would lend itself well to updates without disruption. That is actually my one "complaint" about this book. The statistics are quite outdated considering this book was revised in August, 2025. I know that national, or even state data, is not released for a few years after collection, but many of the referenced statistics are over 10 years old. Aside from that, I do believe that this text will pass the test of time.

Clarity rating: 5

I consider this textbook to be highly readable for my community college students. While there is no glossary or index provided, most acronyms and educational terms are defined within the sentence that references them in the book. It makes it easy to understand when defined within context.

Consistency rating: 5

There is a very nice flow to this textbook. The chapters are laid out in a consistent pattern, and appropriate educational terminology/slang is included in each chapter. While not every chapter includes a "Think About It", or a case study, several do. Those are two of my favorite features of this book. I would consider revising it to include those two aspects in the future.

Modularity rating: 5

This textbook is comprised of 16 chapters which sounds like a lot of reading, however, most of the chapters are not very long, and the page layout and font lend themselves well to easy readability. Each chapter includes real-life, classroom examples as well as pictures and/or diagrams. This helps the reader to contextualize the content as well as breaking up the reading. It is also an easy book to use only specific chapters from if you do not want to use it in its entirety.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

While each chapter contains its own topic, the order in which the chapters are presented follows a logical order. For example, chapter one discusses diversity, equity and equality, which are referred to in subsequent chapters. Having an understanding of how the authors define these terms and thinks of them in relation to classrooms is necessary at the outset of the book. There are a couple chapters that may be more relevant or beneficial in a different order, but there is nothing that stands out as disrupting the current order of the textbook.

Interface rating: 5

This resource is very easy to navigate and is highly readable. I looked at it in two different formats: one on Libretexts where you can click on each chapter to read them individually, as well as downloading the textbook and reading it as a PDF. They are different reading experiences, but both worked well without distorting the graphics included.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I found only a couple of typos within this textbook and they did not distract from the information presented in any way.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Many cultures are discussed in the textbook, and several examples and case studies highlight the differences between the cultural majority teachers and cultural minority families in a respectful way that promotes getting to truly know and value the families you serve. This book also encourages using a strengths-based approach to working with all students and families.

There is always room for improvement, but I found this book to be a great introduction for preservice teachers. It is clearly written, and provides many examples and opportunities for reflection. I especially appreciate the sections that guide educators to identify their own biases in a constructive way. Many other diversity books do not include this.