NAEYC's vision is to establish NAEYC Accreditation of programs for young children as a leading force for enhancing children's well-being and early learning by improving the quality of early childhood programs serving children birth through kindergarten.

 

NAEYC distinguishes Self-Study from the actual accreditation process and emphasizes its importance.  NAEYC encourages programs to enroll in Self-Study even if they have no intention of pursuing NAEYC Accreditation.  Self-Study is the primary process for facilitating real and lasting improvements in early childhood programs.  Ideally, all programs will think about how they can create a better place for children to grow and learn.

 

The Self-Study resources, including the Self-Study Kit and related materials in TORCH, are helpful tools in improving the quality of early childhood programs and thus in enhancing the quality of life for young children.

 

NAEYC continues to expand its efforts to help all programs engage in Self-Study using tools based on its program standards and accreditation criteria -- regardless of whether the programs are seeking NAEYC Accreditation.