The Quality of Early Child Care and Children’s Development Essay Example for Free

The tincture of other(a) kid C ar and childrens victimization EssayABSTRACTThe past half-century sawing machine dramatic changes in families that altered the casual devours of many another(prenominal) aboriginal days baberen. As to a great extent mothers of young churlren entered the labor force, increasing numbers of young chel ben spent substantial hours in various child- sustentation quite a littletings. These changes gave rise to a large body of enquiry on the impact of the prime(a) of first child c ar on childrens development. However, a full understanding of the role of the timbre of early child business organization requires consideration of the interplay among child contend, family, workplace, and society. This article places what we know about the graphic symbol of early child criminal maintenance and childrens development in this larger bionomic place setting, and suggests directions for future research and practice.The past half-century saw dram atic changes in families that altered the daily experiences of many young children. In 1970, only 24% of mothers with a young child (birth through with(predicate) age 3) were in the labor force by 2000, this figure had lift to 57%. This growth in parental utilization was accompanied by changes in childrens daily experiences. By 2000, 80% of children under the age of 6 were in some(a) form of nonparental interest, spending an total of 40 hours a week in such sympathize with ( national enquiry Council and Institute of Medicine, 2003). look on childrens experiences saw a parallel change that was equally dramatic. first research in the discipline focused primarily on the question of whether child care (or maternal conflict) per se was good or bad for children current research asks questions about the relation amid childrens development and variations in the whole bank note and quantity of child care that they experience.The field also now recognizes varying types of child c are, including center-based care, licensed or regulated home-based care by nonrelatives (family-childcare homes), and other home-based care, such as care by relatives or in-home sitters. in that location arrive at been methodological advances as substantially. aboriginal research was more liable(predicate) to study small samples and visualise correlations between child care and childrens outcomes at a single point in cartridge clip current research is more potential to involve large samples at multiple sites, to use observational or quasi-experimental designs, and to follow participants over time.Perhaps the most important advance in child-care research has been theoretical. Early research flowed to study the make of child care in isolation from other significant aspects of childrens lives. Current research is more likely to be grounded in ecological systems theory, which considers childrens development in the context of the child-care system as well as the family system, and recognizes the thinks between these systems and the larger society.In this article, I focus on one segment of current research on early child carethe links between the choice of child care and childrens developmentdrawing on ecological systems theory to provide an overview of recent advances and to suggest directions for future research.ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS THEORY AND EARLY CHILD feel forEcological systems theory places child development in an ecological perspective, in which an individualistics experience is nested at bottom interconnected systems (Bronfenbrenner, 1989). Microsystems, such as families or child-care settings, are characterized by face-to-face connections among individuals.Mesosystems consist of deuce or more microsystems and the gene linkages or exercisees that combine or connect them. These mesosystems exist within the larger context of the exosystem, those settings in which the child does not directly participate but that influence the lives of parents and other adults in the childs world, such as a parents workplace, fosterageal institutions that train child-care teachers and providers, and government agencies that set regulations for child-care facilities or establish welfare-reform policies.The mesosystems and exosystems operate within the context of a macrosystem of societal and cultural beliefs and practices. Note that these systems are not static, but may change over time. The Mesosystem of Family Child Care Children inhabit both families and child-care microsystems, and these systems are linked. Parents select particular types of child care, of varying fiber, for children of different agesand these decisions vary with family structure, parental characteristics, geographical location, and other factors. Singer, Fuller, Keiley, and savage (1998) argued that child-care researchers must consider these endurance effects if they are to accurately model the impact of child care on childrens development over time.1 Through their se lection of particular child-care arrangements, parents have an mediate impact on their childrens development (in addition to their direct impact within the family system). But this linkage between the family system and child-care system operates in both directions The child-care system can also influence the family system. For example, Ahnert, Rickert, and bear (2000) described a particular mesosystem characterized by shared care in this mesosystem, mothers adapted their interactions with their toddlers in reception to the toddlers experiences in child care.The ExosystemThe family child-care mesosystem operates within the larger context of the exosystem of parental employmentone of the primary functions of child care is to enable parents, particularly mothers, to work outside the home. Historically, the child-care system has developed in response to characteristics of parents employment. For instance, the current child-care system admits child-care centers, which tend to have op erating hours that match those of parents who are working weekdays, as well as family-child-care homes and kith-and-kin care, which are more likely to meet the needs of parents who are working evenings, weekends, or variable hours. However, in industries that operate around the clock, particularly those with highly skilled workers such as hospitals, we are more likely to see on-site child-care centers, sick-child care,2 and other accommodations to parents employment needs.Another important aspect of the exosystem is government policies and regulations that tinge both the demand for child care (such as welfare-reform efforts that require low-income mothers to seek employment) and the affordability of child care. Although the United States provides some child-care subsidies for families, many low- and moderate-income families do not have effective access to subsidies.3 Given the links between the attribute of care and the cost of care, it is not surprising that children in low-inco me families who are not in the higher-quality, government-subsidized programs tend to receive rase-quality child care than children in middle-income families (cf. Phillips, Voran, Kisker, Howes, Whitebook, 1994). In this way, the exosystem of government policies and regulations provides an important context for the operation of the family child-care mesosystem.THE prime(prenominal) OF EARLY CHILD CARE AND CHILDRENS DEVELOPMENTUsing ecological systems theory as a framework, I turn now to the question of the relation between the quality of early child care and childrens development. I begin with a discussion of the concept of quality, and then move on to an overview of what researchers before long know about the role of the quality of early child care in childrens lives.What Is Quality?The underlying assumption of all definitions of quality is that a high quality early-child-care setting is one that certifys optimal learning and development. However, quality has been measured i n a variety of ways across different studies. Measures of child-care quality can be categorized as either structural or process indicators. structural characteristics include the childstaff ratio (the number of children per teacher or provider), the group size (number of children in the setting), and the cultivation and specialized pedagogy of teachers, providers, or directors. The features of structural quality can be regulated, and most states set minimal standards for at least some aspects of structural quality, at least in center-based care. Studies that assess structural quality are most useful in evaluating the impact of features that can be regulated.Although understanding the links between structural indicators of quality and childrens development is important, we also need to understand the mechanisms by which structural quality affects childrens development, which requires examining what actually happens in the early-care setting (i.e., the process).How do adults and c hildren interact? What materials are available for the children, and how do adults support childrens use of those materials? work out quality refers to the nature of the care that children experiencethe warmth, sensitivity, and responsiveness of the caregivers the emotional tone of the setting the activities available to children the developmental appropriateness of activities and the learning opportunities available to children. Unlike the features of structural quality, process quality is not subject to state or local regulations, and it is harder to measure.One of the more commonly used measures, the Early puerility EnvironmentRating Scale (ECERS Harms, Clifford, Cryer, 1998), assesses multiple aspects of process quality. Such multidimensional process measures secure us much more about the quality of care that children receive than do structural measures alone. StructuralIndicators of Quality and Childrens DevelopmentWhat do we know about the links between the structural indic ators of quality in early child care and childrens development? The research to date has found that discover ratios (fewer children per adult) and more education or training for teachers are associated with higher language, cognitive, and social skills of the children cared for (National question Council and Institute of Medicine, 2003). However, many of the studies that have examined structural indicators have employed small samples (fewer than 100 children) or have not considered selection effects in their analyses, so studies that do not have these limitations are of particular magnificence.In an evoke study that assessed the links between structural quality, process quality, and childrens outcomes, the NICHD Early Child Care query Network (2002) found that the relation between caregiver training and child-staff ratio, on the one hand, and childrens cognitive and social competence, on the other hand, was mediated by process quality that is, higher levels of caregiver traini ng and lower ratios of children to adults in child-care settings were associated with higher levels of process quality, which were, in turn, associated with childrens greater cognitive and social competence.Process Quality and Childrens DevelopmentAmong studies published in the past 15 years, those that employed an ecological model4 consistently found that higher process quality is to greater language and cognitive competence, fewer behavior problems, and more social skills, particularly when multidimensional measures of quality, such as the ECERS, are used or quality is assessed at more than one point in time.For example, the Cost, Quality and Child Outcomes Study (Peisner-Feinberg, Burchinal, Clifford, 2001) found that higher process quality in preschool classrooms predicted fewer behavior problems 1 year later, and predicted higher language and math heaps in kindergarten and second grade, although the magnitude of these associations declined over time. This same study also fou nd a link between the child-care and family systems, such that the association between child-care quality and childrens school performance was moderated by mothers education specifically, the association was stronger for children whose mothers had less education.BEYOND SELECTION EFFECTSI began this article with a discussion of the importance of considering childrens development from an ecological systems perspective, which considers the family child-care mesosystem as a context for childrens development. Many studies of child care now consider the role of selection effects by statistically controlling for family characteristics. However, other linkages within the mesosystem must also be considered if one is to adequately understand the role of child-care quality in childrens development.For instance, aspects of the family system, such as the mothers education or depression, parenting practices, and family income, may have independent effects on childrens development. In fact, in a study of 1,100 children, the NICHD Early Child Care Research Network (2001) found that although the quality of early child care consistently predicted socio-emotional and cognitive-linguistic outcomes during the first 3 years of life, family factors were more consistent predictors of childrens development than quality of child care, or any other child-care factors examined.Research on the family child-care mesosystem is familiar territory for many psychologists. However, Bronfenbrenners ecological systems theory calls attention to other influences on childrens developmentthe exosystem of parental employment and government policy and the macrosystem of societal beliefs about the desirability of maternal employment and the desired outcomes for children. For example, there is a complex interplay between parental employment, government policy, child care, and childrens development for low-income families.Government policy and the macrosystem of societal beliefs promote employment for lo w-income parents. However, low-income parents tend to have less education and fewer merchandiseable skills compared with other parents, and are likely to be employed in sectors of the labor market where jobs are part-time or contingent (temporary), allow little flexibility for managing family demands, and offer few benefits. operate schedules are also likely to include hours outside of the typical Monday-through-Friday daytimes when childcare centers normally operate. Although government subsidies are available to some low-income families, most do not receive subsidies.As a result, children from low-income families are likely to be placed in lower-cost and lower-quality center care or informal care that is itself often of lower quality (cf. Henly Lyons, 2000). Viewing this choice as a selection effect leads one to interpret it as parental preferencebut an ecological perspective suggests a different interpretation Regardless of their individual preferences, low-income families cho ices are constrained by the operation of the exosystem of the workplace and government policy.FUTURE DIRECTIONSCurrent state-of-the-art research has provided clear evidence that the quality of early child care matters to childrens development. Children who attend higher-quality child-care settings have greater language and cognitive competence and greater social competence than children who receive lower-quality child care. However, several studies have documented the prevalence of mediocre or inadequate child care in the United States (National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, 2003, pp. 5354).In addition, the high-quality care that does exist is not equitably distributedlower-income children are less likely than higher-income children to have access to it. The next step is to answer the question How can we best raise the quality of early child care for all children? Ecological systems theory draws our attention to the importance of placing this question in the context of family processes, parental employment, governmental policies, and societal beliefs and goals when developing theoretical models and models for practice. We must integrate our societal goals of bread and butter healthy families, economic self-sufficiency, and womens employment with our goals of supporting healthy development and school readiness for children, if we face to advance research and practice in the area of early-child-care quality and childrens development.Recommended ReadingLamb, M.E. (1998). Nonparental child care Context, quality, correlates. InW. Damon, I.E. Sigel, K.A. Renninger (Eds.), Handbook of childpsychology Vol. 4. Child psychology in practice (5th ed., pp. 73134). new York John Wiley Sons.National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, Committee on Integratingthe Science of Early Childhood Development, Board on Children,Youth, and Families. (2000). From neurons to neighborhoods The scienceof early child development (J.P. Shonkoff D.A. Phillips, Eds. ). Washington,DC National Academy Press.National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, Division of Behavioraland Social Sciences and Education, Board on Children, Youth, andFamilies, Committee on Family and act as Policies. (2003). (See References)Phillips, D.A., Voran, M.N., Kisker, E., Howes, C., Whitebook, M. (1994).(See References)REFERENCESAhnert, L., Rickert, H., Lamb, M.E. (2000). Shared caregiving Comparisonsbetween home and child care settings. Developmental Psychology, 36,339351.Bronfenbrenner, U. (1989). Ecological systems theory. Annals of Child Development,6, 187249.Harms, T., Clifford, R.M., Cryer, D. (1998). Early Childhood EnvironmentRating Scale Revised edition. New York Teachers College Press.Henly, J.R., Lyons, S. (2000). The negotiation of child care and employmentdemands among low-income parents. Journal of Social Issues, 56,683706.National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, Division of Behavioraland Social Sciences and Education, Board on Ch ildren, Youth, andFamilies, Committee on Family and Work Policies. (2003). Workingfamilies and growing kids Caring for children and adolescents (E.Volume 13Number 4 167Nancy L. MarshallSmolensky J.A. Gootman, Eds.). Washington, DC National AcademiesPress. Retrieved August 14, 2003, from http//www.nap.edu/openbook/0309087031/html/R1.htmlNICHD Early Child Care Research Network. (2001). Nonmaternal careand family factors in early development An overview of the NICHDStudy of Early Child Care. Applied Developmental Psychology, 22,457492.NICHD Early Child Care Research Network. (2002). Child-care structureprocess outcome Direct and indirect effects of child-care quality onyoung childrens development. Psychological Science, 13, 199206.Peisner-Feinberg, E.S., Burchinal, M.R., Clifford, R.M. (2001). The relationof preschool child-care quality to childrens cognitive and social developmentaltrajectories through second grade. Child Development, 72,15341553.Phillips, D.A., Voran, M.N., Kisker, E., Howes, C., Whitebook, M. (1994).Child care for children in poverty Opportunity or inequity? Child Development,65, 472492.Singer, J.D., Fuller, B., Keiley, M.K., Wolf, A. (1998). Early child-care selectionVariation by geographic location, maternal characteristics, andfamily structure. Developmental Psychology, 34, 11291144.