The OECD studies about the benefits and universal rights to a quality early childhood education have promoted discussions about raising the standards of this mode of education in various countries. Thus, Finland, among other Scandinavian countries, stands out for maintaining for years of political favoritism to families and children. This is a consistent action to unify the forces of the state and families. Brazil has been using some of these foreign programs in order to help the excluded from the opportunities of education. The purpose of this work is to describe , compare and discuss two systems of alternative education similar in the two countries, based on the documents from the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Brazilian Ministry of Education, statistical data and scientific literature. We emphasize the importance of broadening the discussions and studies in the area in order to get an overview of the advantages or disadvantages of maintaining these programs.
Early childhood education; Non-formal education; Government policy making