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The aim of this project is to conduct policy- and practice-relevant research that assesses the associations among various supports for home-based child care (HBCC) educators, educators’ well-being, and their use of supportive practices with children and families. We propose utilizing the National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) 2019: Home-based Provider dataset, which includes nationally representative data of both regulated family child care (FCC) educators as well as family, friend, and neighbors (FFN). Specifically, we seek to identify the extent to which access to and use of various supports for HBCC educators relate to educators’ personal health and mental health, and use of supportive referral practices for children and families, as well as their use of expulsion practices. Additionally, given that structural factors often shape access and utilization in communities with concentrated poverty, as well as rural communities, we seek to understand the extent to which poverty density and rurality relate to access to and use of resources, as well as educator well-being and practices.

The aim of this project is to conduct policy- and practice-relevant research that assesses the associations among various supports for home-based child care (HBCC) educators, educators’ well-being, and their use of supportive practices with children and families. We propose utilizing the National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) 2019: Home-based Provider dataset, which includes nationally representative data of both regulated family child care (FCC) educators as well as family, friend, and neighbors (FFN). Specifically, we seek to identify the extent to which access to and use of various supports for HBCC educators relate to educators’ personal health and mental health, and use of supportive referral practices for children and families, as well as their use of expulsion practices. Additionally, given that structural factors often shape access and utilization in communities with concentrated poverty, as well as rural communities, we seek to understand the extent to which poverty density and rurality relate to access to and use of resources, as well as educator well-being and practices.

Family engagement is widely considered a key component of high-quality early care and education (ECE). While most efforts to improve the quality of family engagement focus on teacher training, strong evidence from health care research suggests that the organizational context is a critical determinant of the quality of client-professional relationships. The importance of the organizational context for effective programs and quality improvement in child care has been largely neglected in both research and policy. This study examined the influence of the organizational context on the quality of family partnerships in four ECE programs involved in the Strengthening Families initiative in one state and tested the theory of a "relational bureaucratic" organizational system as a determinant of high-quality family partnerships in formal child care settings. Results showed that (1) a "relational bureaucratic" organizational context was associated with high-quality family partnership practices and (2) a "conventional bureaucratic" context was associated with low-quality family partnership practices. The "relational bureaucratic" organizations shared several key characteristics, including administrators who model and support caring and responsive staff relationships within the organization and the use of specific structures and processes to promote a caring and responsive professionalism. Results point to the importance of a relationship-centered organizational system as a key ingredient for effective partnerships with families, with implications for policy and practice. (Contains 3 tables.)

This study offers a description of the daytime programs and facilities serving the preschool population in Denmark, with emphasis on the types of programs offered, their administrative organization, minimum standards, scope and cost, and supply and demand. The greatest detail is given to the "bornehave" and "bornehaveklasse" serving the 3-to 7-year-old population. These programs are seen in their historical perspective and contemporary context with regard to the Danish social responsibility and policies for child welfare. Educational philosophies behind the programs and the official goals for them are reported. Other institutions generally related to the early childhood education process (such as colleges for teacher training and further education, education libraries, research institutes, teacher centers) were investigated. The journals and organizations publishing materials relevant to child care are reviewed, and the nature and extent of Danish research in early childhood are reported. (Author/ED)

This report describes Canada's current child care policy and service provisions, presents the findings from a survey of work-related child care services in Canada and goes on to analyze work-related child care within the broader context of child care policy. The survey questioned the directors of 176 employer-supported child care centers throughout Canada. Detailed results of this survey are presented, outlining levels of financial support, schedules, fees, auspice, reported problems, benefits, and disadvantages. The survey found that work-related child care is a growing trend, that it receives significant public financial support, that its rates are similar or higher to community-based programs, and that work-related child care is not very flexible to employees' needs. The report concludes that work-related child care is not an answer to Canada's child care situation. It is not a solution from a practical point of view, since it is a discretionary, individual response to a societal issue, not a public policy solution. (MDM)

This report describes Canada's current child care policy and service provisions, presents the findings from a survey of work-related child care services in Canada and goes on to analyze work-related child care within the broader context of child care policy. The survey questioned the directors of 176 employer-supported child care centers throughout Canada. Detailed results of this survey are presented, outlining levels of financial support, schedules, fees, auspice, reported problems, benefits, and disadvantages. The survey found that work-related child care is a growing trend, that it receives significant public financial support, that its rates are similar or higher to community-based programs, and that work-related child care is not very flexible to employees' needs. The report concludes that work-related child care is not an answer to Canada's child care situation. It is not a solution from a practical point of view, since it is a discretionary, individual response to a societal issue, not a public policy solution. (MDM)

Early care and education can prepare children for school, but while some preschool and child care programs do an excellent job, others are inadequate and some may even harm healthy development. This study focuses on child care center directors to better understand why there is so much variation, and how public initiatives can better help poor-quality programs improve. Using data from in-depth interviews and classroom observations, the research considers how various factors--including director and program characteristics, market forces, and federal state and local policies--are associated with each other, director decision making, and program quality. Appended are: (1) Director Interview Guide; (2) Obtaining Nominations for High-Quality Centers to Include in Sample; (3) Sampling Steps; and (4) Additional Details on CLASS Dimensions and ECERS-R Items Used in the Research. (Contains 1 figure, 3 tables, 4 boxes and 10 notes.) ["Understanding Quality in Context: Child Care Centers, Communities, Markets, and Public Policy" was written with Anna Danziger, Teresa Derrick-Mills and Heidi Johnson.]

This article is from BMC Family Practice , volume 14 . Abstract Background: Overweight and obesity in younger children could better be brought in focus through a deeper understanding of how Child Health Care nurses (CHC-nurses) perceive their work with the problems of overweight at the CHC Centers. The aim of this study was to elucidate the CHC-nurses conceptions of their preventive work with childhood overweight and obesity in Child Health Care. Method: A qualitative study, based on open-ended interviews, involving 18 CHC-nurses strategically selected from 17 CHC Centres in the southern part of Sweden using a phenomenographic approach. Results: Two categories of description emerged from the data: (i) Internal obstacles to the CHC- nurses’ work with overweight in children and (ii) External obstacles to the management of overweight in children. The CHC-nurses conceived their work with overweight in Child Health Care to be complicated and constrained by several obstacles depending on the nurses’ personal priorities, knowledge, responsibility and the absence of resources and cooperation, as well as the lack of uniform guidelines for preventing and managing childhood overweight and further a deficient management organisation. Conclusion: Nurses’ attention to monitoring overweight in children, and their initiative for prevention, is based on their conceptions of the obstacles that hinder them in their efforts. An increased awareness of the CHC-nurses conceptions of the priorities, their sense of responsibility and prevention practices is warranted. If measures in this direction are not taken there is a growing risk that overweight children will pass through the CHC without any formal recognition of their situation. There is an indication that the present level of the CHC-nurses’ preventive work with childhood overweight has room for improvement in several areas. It is suggested that the specialist education of these health care professionals should be supplemented and that organisation of the management of childhood overweight should be also revised at the primary health care level.