Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine developmental tasks in early childhood and suitable care and education to achieve them. The author considered this issue from the following three perspectives: (1) the historical process of forming a concept of life stages and developmental tasks, (2) the significance of early childhood, and (3) the difference between developmental tasks and the actual problems of child care and education. The results revealed that developmental tasks and their problems have not changed since the Middle Ages in terms of life stages. Although this suggests that developmental tasks for children are generally universal and remain constant throughout history, today it is necessary to have flexibility in dealing with educational tasks in order to adapt to current social demands.
