This special issue of European Early Childhood Education Research Journal explores the issue of diversity in education, and suggests that ongoing debate and disagreement between professionals, policy makers, parents and children is vital, as it compels us to rethink our conceptions of what “good practice” may be. This selection of articles includes contributions on the perspectives of children and parents from very diverse regions: inner cities such as Birmingham or Brussels as well as post-conflict or conflict areas such as Northern Ireland and Israel.

In very diverse ways, the contributions in this special issue show not only how different family contexts need to be taken into account in early childhood education, but also that what these contexts mean may differ significantly, according to different parents and children. The articles in this special issue are not intended to reach a consensus, but to illustrate the vital importance of disagreement in respect for diversity in education. We need disagreement in order to challenge what is taken for granted and to acknowledge that our expertise is provisional and tentative.