Community services that provide alternative forms of nonparental caregiving are more numerous and accessible to families with preschool-age children than to families with infants. About two-thirds of 5-year-olds in the United States have parents who are employed and need assistance in providing child care (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2003). The type of supplemental care provided for children varies according to their age and the type of child care parents desire (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, 2003). While infants are more typically placed in home-based care by either a relative or nonrelative, preschoolers who are not yet enrolled in a kindergarten program are more likely to be placed in a group center-based program.
The most common type of supplemental care for those who are not enrolled in kindergarten is a nursery school program. This is unlike day-care situations for infants, who most frequently are cared for by a nonrelative. Families today use such services for a number of reasons. Many mothers of young children are employed outside the home, for example, and this type of care is necessary to help the family provide for children’s needs. Other families wish young children to have enriching experiences that are not usually available in the home. Others wish their child to experience educational opportunities in preparation for public school. Most programs today provide educational stimulation for young children in addition to custodial care.
Relatives provide about half of the child care for families of preschool-age children (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, 2003). Of those who are relatives providing care, fathers and grandparents provide the greatest amount of child care for preschool-age children when mothers are employed outside the home. Among providers of child care who are not relatives, slightly over half of preschool-age children are cared for by day-care centers and by nonrelatives in their homes.
There continues to be much discussion about the advantages and disadvantages of nonparental child care for preschoolers. A variety of concerns have been raised about the short- and long-term effects of such care on children’s developmental progress. Researchers have examined issues such as attachment, the quality of parent-child interaction, the degree of children’s compliance, and other behavioral effects in children who have experienced nonparental care. In reviewing the research on such issues, Belsky (1990) cites several important factors. When nonparental care is sensitive and responsive to children’s needs, for example, young children are observed to be compliant, cooperative, and achievement-oriented. In many respects, nonparental child care is like that which is provided by parents: The relationship that nonparental adults promote with children has a greater impact than the methods used in working with children. This parallel implies consequences based on the quality of nonparental care. Negative emotional attitudes of nonparental caregivers and their failure to respond to children’s needs are thought to result in problem behavior. Generally speaking, the intellectual gains offered by preschool programs are greatest for low-income children rather than middle-class children, due to the differences in home environments (Erel, Oberman, & Yimiya, 2000).
Child-Care Centers
These programs are used more commonly when young children are not enrolled in kindergarten. Child-care or day-care centers typically offer care of children for varying lengths of time. The kinds of programs used most commonly by families with preschoolers involve groups of children. Some programs are nonprofit and are sponsored by companies, community agencies, or educational institutions. Others operate as a business venture for profit.
Day care in the United States has not had a respectable reputation until recently. In the past, most day- care programs provided nothing more than custodial care. Today, this is changing as more staff members are trained in early childhood education. In many respects, there are few differences between preschool and day-care programs today.
Is Day Care Harmful to Young Children?
Researchers continue to investigate this question and have learned that it involves complex issues (Belsky, 1990; National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, 1999, 2003). The context in which young children receive care may be associated with different child outcomes. It is important to take both the quality of child care and the characteristics of a family into consideration when examining long-term influences on children’s development. For example, young children show the least competence in peer relation skills when they acquire insecure attachments to both parents and nonparental caregivers. This does not occur when they have a secure attachment to their day-care provider but not to their mother. Apparently, incompetent peer relationship skills are counterbalanced by the context of the nonparental caregiver-child relationship as compared with the parent-child relationship.
For the present, it may be safe to say that there appears to be little difference in the effects of parental and nonparental care on young children. There is one caveat to this statement: The quality of nonparental care must be high (National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, 1999, 2003). Child development experts describe factors indicative of a high-quality nonparental care program as: (1) clean, (2) safe, (3) adequately staffed, (4) providing opportunities for comfortable play with other children, and (5) showing respect for children’s individual needs. Not all day-care programs are rated high in these factors. Until researchers examine the complete array of circumstances that affect children’s development, this question will remain unanswered.
Preschool Programs
Preschool programs are more educational than custodial in nature. Many young children have some type of preschool experience rather than day care. Most communities have several types of programs available for families with young children. Preschool programs are typically short-term in duration, with sessions for 2 to 3 hours in the morning or afternoon. Children can attend for varying numbers of days throughout a week. The more common types of programs are outlined briefly in the following paragraphs.
Specialized Curriculum Programs.
Some preschool programs offer a particular curricular focus, such as one based on Piagetian cognitive theory, the Montessori method, or an open classroom model. The theoretical philosophy of a particular program is emphasized over other factors. The materials used in a Montessori program foster sequential thinking skills. Young children are taught to proceed sequentially to reach goals or solutions to problems. A cognitive-based curriculum may provide opportunities for young children to classify objects as one of many activities.
Special-Needs Programs.
Some families have a child with atypical needs. These children can benefit from preschool programs designed to meet their needs. Such programs typically involve children with special physical or mental handicaps. There is a trend, however, to incorporate children with special needs into other preschool programs, due to a belief that all children will benefit by gaining greater empathy for one another.
Compensatory Programs.
Compensatory preschool programs are specially designed to provide a variety of experiences for children from disadvantaged families. Head Start is an example of such a program. Activities promote a preschooler’s acquisition of language, social, and cognitive skills to enhance the child’s self-concept and a sense of initiative. Nutritional and health needs are addressed as well. Unique to these programs is parental and family involvement, which serves to strengthen family functioning.
Excellent long-range benefits result from participation in these programs (National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, 1999, 2003). Children who have attended Head Start programs score higher on achievement tests and have higher grades in elementary school. These children are also less likely to be placed into special education classes or to repeat a grade. Their preschool experience in compensatory programs makes them similar to other children in this regard.
View Full Article
Excerpt from Parent-Child Relations: An Introduction to Parenting, by J.J. Bigner, 2006 edition, p. 165-170.
© ______ 2006, Merrill, an imprint of Pearson Education Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The reproduction, duplication, or distribution of this material by any means including but not limited to email and blogs is strictly prohibited without the explicit permission of the publisher.
photo by:
Dan Gordon 
10 Ways to Spice Up Your Barbecue
Happy Graduation
New Workbooks Are Here!
Add your own comment