Journal profile · EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
Early Childhood Education Journal
ISSN 1082-3301 · eISSN 1573-1707 · Springer Nature · 8 issues per year
Early Childhood Education Journal: CAS Zone 3 · Education (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.78; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,090; median 165 days to acceptance (69 articles, last 24 months); 259 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Early Childhood Education Journal is published by Springer Nature and is in Zone 3 of Education in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Early Childhood Education and Development, Child Development and Digital Technology and Parental Involvement in Education, together about 41.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Education. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Early Childhood Education Journal is a professional publication of original peer-reviewed articles that reflect exemplary practices in the field of contemporary early childhood education. Articles cover the social, physical, emotional, and intellectual development of children age birth through 8, analyzing issues, trends, and practices from an educational perspective. The journal publishes feature-length articles that skillfully blend 1) theory, research, and practice, 2) descriptions of outstanding early childhood programs worldwide, and 3) quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research. Early Childhood Education Journal is of interest not only to classroom teachers, child care providers, college and university faculty, and administrators, but also to other professionals in psychology, health care, family relations, and social services dedicated to the care of young children. Areas of Emphasis: International studies; Educational programs in diverse settings; Early learning across multiple domains; Projects demonstrating inter-professional collaboration; Qualitative and quantitative research and case studies; Best practices in early childhood teacher education; Theory, research, and practice relating to professional development; Family, school, and community relationships; Investigations related to curriculum and instruction; Articles that link theory and best practices; Reviews of research with well-articulated connections to the field
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
Editor-in-chief Patricia A. CrawfordPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 2 in mainland China (about 3%); most named United States 56, Australia 6, Mainland China 2, Hong Kong, China 2, Türkiye 2 (70 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Early Childhood Education and DevelopmentSocial Sciences22.9%
- Child Development and Digital TechnologySocial Sciences10.8%
- Parental Involvement in EducationSocial Sciences8.2%
- Reading and Literacy DevelopmentPsychology6.4%
- Family and Disability Support ResearchPsychology6.4%
- Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional DevelopmentPsychology4.7%
- Teacher Education and Leadership StudiesSocial Sciences3.8%
- Education and Technology IntegrationSocial Sciences3.8%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Education Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Education & Educational Research | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Education Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Education & Educational Research | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Education Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Education & Educational Research | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
SCIEPsycINFOERICCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 1.78LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.9Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.3LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.96LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 2LetPub ·
- h-index
- 96OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,368OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.06OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 10.5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 36.6%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 247LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 2,025Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 1,200,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 4,322 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 266 | 163 | 98 |
| 2025 | 259 | 125 | 472 |
| 2024 | 213 | 94 | 949 |
| 2023 | 177 | 77 | 1,285 |
| 2022 | 148 | 77 | 2,230 |
| 2021 | 148 | 61 | 4,016 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with Crossref · to
165 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 124 days – 289 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 25 days (106 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 192 days
- Sample
- 69 articles with submission and acceptance dates (598 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Submission to first decision
- 15 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,090 / EUR 2,490 / GBP 2,190 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers2, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 150–250 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 4
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 7,500 words
- Reference style
- Author–date
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- editorialOriginal Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review Paper Maximum article length Original articles normally have between 5,000 and 7,500 words. This includes the re…main text ≤ 7,500 words
- guest editorialTypes of papers Original Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review PaperLength not stated
- original articleOriginal Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review Paper Maximum article length Original articles normally have between 5,000 and 7,500 words. This includes the re…Length not stated
- original paperOriginal Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review Paper Maximum article length Original articles normally have between 5,000 and 7,500 words. This includes the re…Length not stated
- reportTypes of papers Original Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review PaperLength not stated
- reviewOriginal Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review Paper Maximum article length Original articles normally have between 5,000 and 7,500 words. This includes the re…Length not stated
- review paperTypes of papers Original Paper, Guest Editorial, Report, Review PaperLength not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Trial registration / reporting guidelines
- AI use Generative AI Images
Please check Springer’s policy on generative AI images and make sure your work adheres to the principles described therein. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship principles
LLMs do not satisfy authorship criteria Model summary
These guidelines describe authorship principles and good authorship practices to which prospective authors should adhere to. Authorship clarified The Journal and Publisher assume all authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to submit and that they obtained consent from the responsible authorities at the institute/organization where the work has been carried out, before th…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Disclosures and declarations
All authors are requested to include information regarding sources of funding, financial or non-financial interests, study-specific approval by the appropriate ethics committee for research involving humans and/or animals, informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved animals (as appropriate). The decision whether such …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Compliance with Ethical Standards
Competing interests disclosure required Model summary
To ensure objectivity and transparency in research and to ensure that accepted principles of ethical and professional conduct have been followed, authors should include information regarding sources of funding, potential conflicts of interest (financial or non-financial), informed consent if the research involved human participants, and a statement on welfare of animals if the research involved an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Open Choice articles do not require transfer of copyright as the copyright remains with the author. In opting for open access, the author(s) agree to publish the article under a Creative Commons license. Details of the OA licences offered to authors can be found on the individual journal website, in the journal's How to publish with us guide. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access publishing
To find out more about publishing your work Open Access in Early Childhood Education Journal, including information on fees, funding and licences, visit our Open access publishing page. Back to top
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Double-blind peer review
Double-blind peer review Model summary
This journal follows a double-blind reviewing procedure. This means that the author will remain anonymous to the reviewers throughout peer review. It is the responsibility of the author to anonymize the manuscript and any associated materials. Author names, affiliations and any other potentially identifying information should be removed from the manuscript text and any accompanying files (such as …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Trial registration / reporting guidelines Clinical Trial Registration
The World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a clinical trial is "any research study that prospectively assigns human participants or groups of humans to one or more health-related interventions to evaluate the effects on health outcomes". The WHO defines health interventions as “A health intervention is an act performed for, with or on behalf of a person or population whose purpose is to ass…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- Frequency
- 8 issues per year
- ISSN
- 1082-3301
- Electronic ISSN
- 1573-1707
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 54, Issue 6 (August 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Early Childhood Education Journal
What CAS zone is Early Childhood Education Journal in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Early Childhood Education Journal is in Zone 3 of Education, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Education & Educational Research. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Education. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Early Childhood Education Journal?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.78; CiteScore 5.3, h-index 96.
How long does peer review take at Early Childhood Education Journal?
Based on the dates recorded on 69 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 165 days (interquartile range 124–289 days). Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Early Childhood Education Journal?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150–250 words; Keywords: ≥ 4; Manuscript length: ≤ 7,500 words; Reference style: Author–date. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Early Childhood Education Journal based?
Of the 70 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 2 (about 3%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (56), Australia (6) and Mainland China (2). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Early Childhood Education Journal?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Early Childhood Education Journal is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists SCIE, PsycINFO, ERIC and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Early Childhood Education Journal open access, and what is the APC?
Early Childhood Education Journal is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,090.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .