Across the world there are many different approaches and perspectives when looking at the early childhood sector. Many different countries have different ways they handle things; much of this is due to their cultural point of view. This essay will examine and compare the Irish early childhood sector with the Swedish one, and then compare and evaluate which of the two is better and why. The essay will trace the history of the provision; types of services; personal; CV; pedagogy; quality and inclusion in the two countries. History of the offer In 1854 the first nursery school was opened. The key function of these early programs was to offer low-cost care to disadvantaged children whose mothers had jobs outside the home. In 1944, when limited public support was established, the term “nursery” was changed to “day center” and the National Board of Health and Welfare became the new supervisory authority. In the initial stages, the main purpose of the day centers was to offer different choices of placement in foster families. Foster homes, day care centers, and family day care centers were connected by a family purpose. Professionals working in nurseries and pre-school classrooms were expected to have comparable training and work on related content for children of all ages (Gunnarsson et al 1999). In Sweden, by law, children between the ages of one and twelve are entitled to a place in a nursery school. Demand for formal childcare in Ireland began to grow in the early 1970s, related to the tendency for women to remain in the workforce. after the wedding. At that time, formal childcare provision was very limited and existed mainly as pre-school educational opportunities in very small and moderately unstructured settings...... middle of paper ......the National Curriculum Swedish: Play and learn by focusing on core values. [online] Available at: http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/australian_journal_of_early_childhood/ajec_index_abstracts/the_swedish_national_curriculum_play_and_learning_with_fundamental_values_in_focus.html [Accessed: 20 March 2014].Start Strong OECD (2004) Five Curriculum Outlines. [online] Available at: www.oecd.org/dataoecd/23/36/31672150.pdf [Accessed: 22 March 2014].Webgate.ec.europa.eu (2014) Sweden: Early childhood education and care - Eurypedia. [online] Available at: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Sweden:Early_Childhood_Education_and_Care [Accessed: 22 March 2014].Wexfordchildcare.ie (2014) Aistear & Siolta . [online] Available at: http://www.wexfordchildcare.ie/index.php/providers/aistear-a-siolta [Accessed: 13 March 2014].