From the introduction: "Professional development (PD) systems are expected to ensure early childhood teachers have the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to design high quality learning environments, implement evidence-based interactional and instructional practices, and use child progress and outcomes information to inform and refine their practices. Based on expectations that PD will result in improved interactional and instructional practices that, in turn, promote children’s development and learning, PD has become a 'hot topic'... Yet, despite the mounting number of documents and policy initiatives promoting the importance of PD, as well as promising approaches for its effective design and delivery, too many early childhood teachers experience PD that is episodic, disconnected from practice, and based on a 'train-and-hope' mentality..."