Defining Quality Child Care: Multiple Stakeholder Perspectives

Multiple perspectives regarding the definition of quality child care, and how child care quality can be improved, were examined using a focus group methodology. Participants were representatives from stakeholder groups in the child care profession, including child care center owners and directors (3 groups), parents (3 groups), child caregivers (3 groups), policy makers (1 group), and social service providers (1 group). Qualitative analysis revealed 6 components of quality that were consistently discussed across all participant groups: (a) communication and rapport, (b) caregiver practices, (c) staff characteristics, (d) finances and resources, (e) visibility and involvement, and (f) professionalism. Analyses highlighted differences among stakeholder groups and the complex interplay among quality components. Findings are compared to previously documented perspectives on child care quality, and a conceptual model is presented that (a) summarizes findings about how proximity to child impacts definitions of quality and (b) highlights the central role played by child care center directors. Implications for child care practice and policy are discussed.     

Defining Quality Child Care: Multiple Stakeholder Perspectives

Multiple perspectives regarding the definition of quality child care, and how child care quality can be improved, were examined using a focus group methodology. Participants were representatives from stakeholder groups in the child care profession, including child care center owners and directors (3 groups), parents (3 groups), child caregivers (3 groups), policy makers (1 group), and social service providers (1 group). Qualitative analysis revealed 6 components of quality that were consistently discussed across all participant groups: (a) communication and rapport, (b) caregiver practices, (c) staff characteristics, (d) finances and resources, (e) visibility and involvement, and (f) professionalism. Analyses highlighted differences among stakeholder groups and the complex interplay among quality components. Findings are compared to previously documented perspectives on child care quality, and a conceptual model is presented that (a) summarizes findings about how proximity to child impacts definitions of quality and (b) highlights the central role played by child care center directors. Implications for child care practice and policy are discussed.     

Quality of Care at School-Aged Child-Care Programs: Regulatable Features, Observed Experiences, Child Perspectives, and Parent Perspectives

This study investigates children's experiences at 30 school-aged child-care (SACC) programs. Regulatable features such as total enrollment, child-staff ratio, and staff education were assessed via director report. Observers recorded positive/neutral and negative staff-child interactions, and rated programs in terms of flexibility and age appropriateness. Negative staff-child interactions were more frequent when child-staff ratios were larger and when staff had less formal education. The presence of a greater number of different types of program activities was associated with staff having more frequent positive interactions with children and with observers rating programs as flexible and age appropriate. These regulatable and observed features were examined in relation to children's ( N = 180) and parents' ( N = 152) perceptions of program psychosocial climate. Children's reports of overall climate, emotional support from staff, and autonomy/privacy provisions were predicted by program features. Children reported poorer program climate when programs had larger enrollments and when observers recorded more frequent negative staff-child interactions. Children had more positive program perceptions when programs offered a greater variety of activities. Children's reports of program climate in addition to observed child-staff ratios were associated with parental perceptions of the programs. Parents had more positive perceptions when child-adult ratios were smaller and when their children reported more positive climates. This study suggests a convergence between observer, child, and parent about factors contributing to quality of after-school programs.     

Before Head Start: Income and Ethnicity, Family Characteristics, Child Care Experiences, and Child Development

The present study describes the early life histories of a large sample of three-year-old children from different ethnic backgrounds living in three levels of family income—poverty, near-poverty, and above-poverty. The study examined the developmental characteristics of children in the three groups and related them to family characteristics and experiences in child care. To no one's surprise, significant differences associated with income were found for most of the family measures. Poverty and near-poverty families were more likely to have mothers with lower education, less sensitivity, more depression, and lower HOME scores. Correlatively, for the child development measures, there was an upward progression associated with income. Poverty children consistently showed the greatest deviation from established norms for cognitive and social behavior. A striking finding, however, was the considerable variability found on all the measures—a pattern not sufficiently stressed in related research. This finding has major implications for curriculum planning in Head Start programs. The analysis also showed that child care experience cannot be disregarded as a significant aspect of the history of a prospective enrollee in Head Start or other intervention programs geared to low-income children. Fewer of these children are likely to have a child care history, as families that used at least 10 hours of child care per week were less likely to be either poor or near-poor and thus eligible for enrollment. While this may reflect selection factors associated with child care usage, it also indicates that availability of child care is essential for borderline families that try to stay out of poverty. Number of hours of care per week and age of enrollment did not predict developmental level when the full income sample was considered. However, when only poor and near-poor children in care for at least 20 hours a week were used in the analysis, higher quality of care was associated with more favorable developmental outcomes in the children.     

Before Head Start: Income and Ethnicity,Family Characteristics,Child Care Experiences,and Child Development

The present study describes the early life histories of a large sample of three-year-old children from different ethnic backgrounds living in three levels of family income—poverty, near-poverty, and above-poverty. The study examined the developmental characteristics of children in the three groups and related them to family characteristics and experiences in child care. To no one's surprise, significant differences associated with income were found for most of the family measures. Poverty and near-poverty families were more likely to have mothers with lower education, less sensitivity, more depression, and lower HOME scores. Correlatively, for the child development measures, there was an upward progression associated with income. Poverty children consistently showed the greatest deviation from established norms for cognitive and social behavior. A striking finding, however, was the considerable variability found on all the measures—a pattern not sufficiently stressed in related research. This finding has major implications for curriculum planning in Head Start programs. The analysis also showed that child care experience cannot be disregarded as a significant aspect of the history of a prospective enrollee in Head Start or other intervention programs geared to low-income children. Fewer of these children are likely to have a child care history, as families that used at least 10 hours of child care per week were less likely to be either poor or near-poor and thus eligible for enrollment. While this may reflect selection factors associated with child care usage, it also indicates that availability of child care is essential for borderline families that try to stay out of poverty. Number of hours of care per week and age of enrollment did not predict developmental level when the full income sample was considered. However, when only poor and near-poor children in care for at least 20 hours a week were used in the analysis, higher quality of care was associated with more favorable developmental outcomes in the children.     

Rights of the Child and Early Childhood Education and Care in Europe

‘Securing the rights articulated in the Convention is an effective approach to improving the quality of early experiences.’ 1 1 Early Childhood Rights Indicators, A guide for Monitoring the Convention on the Rights of the Child, http://earlylearning.ubc.ca/media/uploads/documents/internationalresearchbriefjan2012.pdf , p2
This article analyses early childhood education and care and child rights in early childhood and their relationship in the European Union. Both are primarily national competencies. The EU has limited access and tools to influence policies and practices, while there are many ways in which indirect interventions are not only possible, but greatly used, often in areas that do not seem to be closely related to the issues discussed here. Yet there is a strong desire and interest of the different EU institutions to encourage and support Member States to implement both ECEC targets and child rights. In this article, we show that, while ECEC has become an essential part of different policies at EU level, there have been efforts to implement and mainstream child rights, with special attention paid to specific dimensions in relation to early childhood policies and practices, but a child rights based approach is missing.     

Infant Neurosensory Development: Considerations for Infant Child Care

Infant brain development is a dynamic process dependent upon endogenous and exogenous stimulation and a supportive environment. A critical period of brain and neurosensory development occurs during the third trimester and into the “fourth” trimester (first three months of life). Disruption, damage, or deprivation in the infant’s social and physical environment can create permanent deficits in the developing neurosensory systems. Implications for infant child care environments are discussed, and a review of quality and standards in infant child care environments leads to a call for improvements to optimize child development.     

The Transition from Early Child Care to Preschool: Emerging Toddler Skills and Readiness for Group-Based Learning

Research Findings: National policy today is on the brink of defining preschool experiences as essential for children’s academic success. Indeed, many children’s classroom experience begins as they transition from infant/toddler care to a preschool classroom. This study examined developmentally relevant skill domains among 36-month-olds (effortful control, social engagement, and language abilities) and tested their organization in a latent factor model of skills hypothesized to promote classroom adaptation. Assessments of low-income children interacting with a parent and examiner from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project were utilized (n = 1,814). The data included observations of mother–child interactions during semistructured activities at home and child behavior assessments. Results indicated that the interrelated structure of children’s skills was best defined in a 2-factor, latent variable model: effortful control and social communication. These learning skills were related to but separate from general cognitive ability. Practice or Policy: Home-visiting programs for infants and toddlers are expected to promote children’s school readiness, yet little research has focused on the skills that facilitate children’s transition to the large-group learning environment at age 3. Implications of this model for early prevention efforts and early childhood teacher training to promote children’s readiness for group-based learning are discussed.     

幼儿发展的社会文化生态学理论的新进展

近些年来,就人与环境的关系问题,发展心理学界又提出几种新的观点,其中以生态文化理论,幼儿发展的生态系统理论和发展位置理论(Developmental Niche)最为引人注目。虽然三者侧重点各有不同,但是它们都指出需要在更广阔的社会和文化环境中研究幼儿发展。     

Relationship-Focused Child Care Practices: Quality of Care and Child Outcomes for Children in Poverty

Research Findings: Child care delivery practices promoting continuous, primary caregiver-child relationships (relationship-focused child care) were evaluated for 223 preschool-age children (45% African American, 55% Latino) attending child care centers serving low-income children. Both relationship-focused and non-relationship-focused centers were accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Children in relationship-focused programs received more sensitive, involved, and affectionate caregiving and were more engaged with their caregivers than children in comparison centers, but some differences were greater for African American children. Outcomes associated with relationship-focused care included greater parent-reported child compliance and closer parent-caregiver relations, but no consistent benefits for cognitive school readiness, receptive language, or child behavior problems were found. Follow-up assessments were completed 1 year later for 119 children who remained in their programs. Social and cognitive outcomes improved over time, but some changes were moderated by child race/ethnicity and center type. Over time, parents reported greater child compliance and caregivers reported better parent-caregiver relationships in relationship-focused programs. Practice or Policy: Some social benefits of continuous, primary caregivers were found, but children's cognitive competencies improved with sustained attendance at these accredited programs regardless of the relationship-focused practices.     

Relationship-Focused Child Care Practices: Quality of Care and Child Outcomes for Children in Poverty

Research Findings: Child care delivery practices promoting continuous, primary caregiver–child relationships (relationship-focused child care) were evaluated for 223 preschool-age children (45% African American, 55% Latino) attending child care centers serving low-income children. Both relationship-focused and non-relationship-focused centers were accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Children in relationship-focused programs received more sensitive, involved, and affectionate caregiving and were more engaged with their caregivers than children in comparison centers, but some differences were greater for African American children. Outcomes associated with relationship-focused care included greater parent-reported child compliance and closer parent–caregiver relations, but no consistent benefits for cognitive school readiness, receptive language, or child behavior problems were found. Follow-up assessments were completed 1 year later for 119 children who remained in their programs. Social and cognitive outcomes improved over time, but some changes were moderated by child race/ethnicity and center type. Over time, parents reported greater child compliance and caregivers reported better parent–caregiver relationships in relationship-focused programs. Practice or Policy: Some social benefits of continuous, primary caregivers were found, but children's cognitive competencies improved with sustained attendance at these accredited programs regardless of the relationship-focused practices.     

美国学前儿童观察记录系统的评价内容、实施方法与借鉴意义

推进学前儿童发展评价是提升学前教育质量的必然要求,已成为当今世界学前教育质量评价的主流趋势.“学前儿童观察记录系统”是在美国学前教育项目中被广泛应用的儿童发展评价工具.本文在对“学前儿童观察记录系统”评价内容和实施方法进行介绍和分析的基础上,探讨了其对于我国学前教育质量评价的借鉴意义,即坚持儿童发展与教育评价一体化,倡导课程改进与教育评价一体化,推动教师成长与教育评价一体化.     

Rural Neighborhood Context,Child Care Quality,and Relationship to Early Language Development

Research Findings: Prior research with older urban children indicates that a disadvantaged neighborhood context is associated with poorer early development, including poorer verbal ability, reading recognition, and achievement scores among children. Neighborhood disadvantage in rural communities and at younger age levels may also be related to development; however, this relationship has received little examination. In this study we utilized data from the Family Life Project, a representative sample of babies born to mothers in poor rural counties in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, to address questions related to the relationship between neighborhood context (disadvantage and safety) and children's early language development. We examined the mediation of this relationship by child care quality. We also examined geographic isolation and collective socialization as moderators of the relationship between neighborhood context and child care quality. Results indicated that although neighborhood disadvantage did not predict children's development or child care quality, neighborhood safety predicted children's receptive language, with child care quality a partial mediator of this relationship. Collective socialization but not geographic isolation moderated the relationship between neighborhood safety and child care quality. Practice or Policy: Implications for policy, practice, and future research are discussed, including improving community safety through community policing, neighborhood watch, and social networks and increasing access to quality child care.     

保育、教学与养育的融合

在北欧国家,特别是丹麦,大多数儿童都能接受托幼机构的教育,因而他们能与其他儿童和教师一起共享社会生活。本文对丹麦有关保育是儿童健康和发展的手段,而教学是儿童学习的媒介这一常见的观念进行解构。这一观念把保育(在日托中心进行)和学习(在学校进行)看作是一对矛盾,使得丹麦早期教育处于一种浪漫的儿童中心地位。保育、教学和养育应该彼此融合。教师的作用主要体现在支持儿童自身的实验、调查以及儿童的社会性互动和游戏。     

美国儿童保育与发展专款项目的内容与特点

作为美国第二大贫困儿童早期保教项目,"儿童保育与发展专款"项目以立法为保障,以政府为主导,以地方自主管理为原则,目标明确,体系完整,强调家长的参与,注重保教质量的提升.从而极大地促进了美国0～5岁贫困儿童早期补偿教育事业的发展.     

Corporate-Sponsored Child Care: Benefits for Children, Families, and Employers

As more women enter the workforce, businesses are beginning to devise methods to assist employees with their child care needs. Research has demonstrated the benefits of corporate child care arrangements, not only for the employer but also for employees. Some companies utilize early childhood accreditation as a means of establishing quality caregiving. Yet, almost no research has been conducted to determine how corporate sponsored child care, accredited or not, affects the children involved. Many questions beg to be answered before it is known what the benefits of corporate-sponsored child care are for young children.