DEC International Partnership Highlight: Costa Rica

DEC is engaged in a reciprocal learning partnership with Costa Rica as part of the Latin Americans Learning Collaborative. DEC member, Dr Beatriz Cordero from the University Santa Paula provides an update on work in Costa Rica to support high quality preservice training and professional development centered around Recommended Practices.

The participation of DEC in the IV International Congress on Early Attention, held in San José, Costa Rica, March 28-29, 2025, was of great importance in several areas:

First, in terms of the Early Attention (EA) professionals who attended the congress, mostly from Costa Rica, but also from Colombia, Nicaragua and Guatemala. The participation with this excellent paper of Dr. Peggy Kemp allowed us to unify criteria on the importance of training in recommended practices in our countries, for the benefit of the quality of intervention for the most vulnerable early childhood population and their families.

Likewise, it has allowed us to update our professors, all of whom were present at the congress, as well as to strengthen the clarity of our administrative leaders of Mimisterio de Educacion Publica of Costa Rica, to respond in the best way with our responsibility and commitment to the training of new professionals, with the Master's Degree in Early Attention, which fully complies with international quality criteria for training. 

In addition, at the national level, which allows us access to scientific evidence in Spanish and experience in the development and implementation of systems, participating in the First National Assembly of Construction of Early Attention Systems Based on Recommended Practices: Policy and Legislation, with the participation of the 11 deputies of the Republic of Costa Rica gathered for the first time in the history of the country to analyze the construction of a draft law of the Republic that supports a system of EA, with the aim of continuing to strengthen the efforts made for several years the School of Early Attention at the Santa Paula University directed by Dr. Beatriz Cordero, to articulate the efforts made for several years at the national level in the construction of systems that allow the development of recommended practices with evidence of being efficient and effective for the Early Attention of this population in Costa Rica. 

How we use the Recommended Practices; Starting in 2018, we are developing country actions in 4 substantive areas:

1. NATIONAL RESEARCH:

We began to transform our knowledge and practices based on research that allows us to contextualize knowledge. We started with Beatriz Cordero's doctoral thesis, which resulted in the first national research on Family Centered Early Care, research entitled: 

Quality of life and support needs of families of people with disabilities in early ages in Costa Rica, from which two scales are validated for the country to evaluate and systematize the results of early care programs:

1. Family Needs Scale CR.

2. Family Quality of Life Scale CR.

In addition, we have updated our research lines to align them with recommended practices, and all the studies developed in the postgraduate program are related to the topic of PR in ECI, since 2018.

We are currently developing national research in collaboration with the Catholic University of Valencia and Dr. Margarita Cañadas:

I. Implementation of evidence-based practices from the construction of comprehensive early care systems: results and impact on families and services.

II. Validation of scales at the national level 

III. ECI Systems in Costa Rica With the participation of:

1. Universidad Santa Paula. School of Early Childhood 

2. Ministry of Public Education 

3. National Network for Child Care and Development 

4. Patronato Nacional de la Infancia 

5. Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica 

2. EDUCATION IN RECOMMENDED PRACTICES 

1. Complete updating of the content of the Master's Degree in Early Attention, in line with the Recommended Practices, focusing on the family and in the natural environment.

2. Training for our professors of the Master's Degree in Early Attention, and education include international teachers with experience in implementing recommended practices.

3. Practical methodology (60%) for the training of national and international professionals, new generation, as well as in service. 

4. EARLY ATTENTION CENTER IN THE COMMUNITY

 Implementation of recommended practices in our community.

5. ASOCIACIÓN COSTARRICENSE DE ATENCIÓN TEMPRANA Y DESARROLLO INFANTIL 

To build alliances with professionals, families, public or private institutions, and other associations to implement best practices in infant care in Costa Rica through webinars and free forums to raise awareness among the community.