Physical Education in Early Childhood Education and Care in China

The development of early childhood physical education in China can be traced back to the 1980s. In 1981, the concept of "childhood physical education" was first proposed. In 1992, the article on preschool education first appeared in China's top peer-reviewed academic journals. After 2008, the research results of early childhood physical education have grown rapidly. China's early childhood physical education practice started late, but it has gained more and more attention in the whole society. The current main efforts in practice include: adding the elements of sports in the training of preschool teachers; building the curriculum and teaching materials for children's physical education; establishing and improving the relevant policies, standards and regulations for early childhood physical education; the development of off-campus early childhood physical education institutions and competitions. At the same time, it still exists issues such as regional imbalance development, lacking competent professional teachers and monotonous teaching method and activities in early childhood physical education. But, no matter at the research level or in the practice filed, early childhood physical education is still a hot topic in Chinese society.