Ethnic Heterogeneity of Social Networks and Cross-Ethnic Friendships of Elementary School Boys and Girls

The present study examines the ethnic heterogeneity of children’s social networks and cross-ethnic friendships as a function of gender, age, and time in an ethnically diverse school. Subjects were 350 children in first through sixth grades. Mutual peer nominations of 350 children yielded 956 reciprocal dyads and 88 social network groups. Girls had larger and more ethnically diverse social networks than boys. Girls were more likely to belong to a social network group and less likely than boys to be isolates as the school year progressed. At roughly fifth and sixth grade, girls had more reciprocal friends than boys, and at roughly third and fourth grade, girls were more likely than boys to have cross-ethnic friends. With regard to friendship stability, same-ethnic/same-gender (girl) dyads were most stable and cross-ethnic/mixed-gender (boy-girl) dyads were least stable

Social and Relational Factors in Early Education and Prosocial Actions of Children of Diverse Ethnocultural Communities

This study examined whether social exchanges and relationships among young children and with teachers in early care and education are associated with prosocial behavior of children from diverse ethnocultural backgrounds. Social and relational factors including closeness of the teacher-child relationship, emotional tone of teacher-child interaction, engagement in social pretend play, competency in pretend play with peers, and positive social interaction among peers were explored in relation to children’s prosocial action. White, African American, and Latino boys and girls who participated in the National Evaluation of Early Head Start were selected for this study just prior to entering kindergarten (N = 1,078). Results indicated that children’s engagement in social pretend play and teacher ratings of children’s competency in pretend play with peers were associated with the prosocial behavior of children in the three ethnocultural groups. The association of the other social and relational factors with children’s prosocial behavior varied across racial or ethnic background. Implications for future research are discussed

Worthy Work, Unlivable Wages: The National Child Care Staffing Study, 1988-1997

In 1997, nine years after the original National Child Care Staffing Study, the Center for the Childcare Workforce interviewed directors at the centers still in operation to assess changes in wages, benefits and turnover; whether increases in public investment for child care have benefited the child care workforce; and the extent to which former welfare recipients are employed in center-based child care

Worthy Work, STILL Unlivable Wages: The Early Childhood Workforce 25 Years after the National Child Care Staffing Study

The National Child Care Staffing Study (NCCSS) released in 1989, brought national attention for the first time to poverty-level wages and high turnover among early childhood teaching staff, and to the adverse consequences for children. In the succeeding 25 years, combined developments in science, practice, and policy have dramatically shifted the context for discussions about the status of early childhood teaching jobs, and the importance of attracting and retaining a well-prepared workforce that is capable of promoting young children’s learning, health and development.Today, the explosion of knowledge about what is at stake when early childhood development goes awry has coincided with powerful economic arguments for investments in high-quality early care and education. New evidence about the ways in which stress and economic insecurity challenge teachers’ capacity to provide developmentally supportive care and education is lending scientific support to the claim that child well-being depends on adult well-being not only at home but in out-of-home settings. And, serious debate at the federal level, echoed in virtually every state, is underway about the vital importance of improving the quality of early education, and the most productive strategies for ensuring that young children’s critical early experiences will promote, not undermine, their lifelong learning and healthy development.Worthy Work, STILL Unlivable Wages compiles evidence from multiple sources to provide a portrait of the early childhood teaching workforce today in comparison to 25 years ago. The need to rely on a variety of data sources to obtain this portrait reveals the absence of a comprehensive, regularly updated database on the status and characteristics of the early childhood workforce. In addition to examining trends in center-based teachers’ education, wages and turnover, the report includes new evidence examining economic insecurity and use of public benefits among this predominantly female, ethnically diverse workforce. The report also appraises state and national efforts to improve early childhood teaching jobs, and offers recommendations aimed at reinvigorating a national conversation about the status and working conditions of the more than two million teaching staff who work in our nation’s early care and education settings

The National Child Care Staffing Study Revisited: Four Years in the Life of Center-Based Child Care

In 1992, Center for the Child Care Workforce (CCW) returned to the original staffing study sites to assess changes in wages, benefits and turnover. Through interviews with 225 center directors across the nation, this follow-up study found meager improvement in teaching staff wages, identified in the original findings as the most important predictor of quality child care

Worthy Work, Unlivable Wages: The National Child Care Staffing Study, 1988-1997

In 1997, nine years after the original National Child Care Staffing Study, the Center for the Childcare Workforce interviewed directors at the centers still in operation to assess changes in wages, benefits and turnover; whether increases in public investment for child care have benefited the child care workforce; and the extent to which former welfare recipients are employed in center-based child care

Who Cares? Child Care Teaching and the Quality of Care in America

This landmark study explored how teaching staff and their working conditions in 225 centers affect the caliber of center-based child care available in the United States. It first brought public attention to the problem of low wages and high turnover, and children attending lower-quality centers and centers with more staff turnover were less competent in their language and social development

NAEYC Accreditation as a Strategy for Improving Child Care Quality

This study focuses on the three communities in northern California over a two-year period (1994-1996). It examines the extent to which centers seeking and achieving NAEYC accreditation improve in quality, assesses the level of quality achieved by NAEYC accreditation centers, and explores the extent to which NAEYC accreditation contributes to a skilled and stable early care and education workforce

NAEYC Accreditation as a Strategy for Improving Child Care Quality

This study focuses on the three communities in northern California over a two-year period (1994-1996). It examines the extent to which centers seeking and achieving NAEYC accreditation improve in quality, assesses the level of quality achieved by NAEYC accreditation centers, and explores the extent to which NAEYC accreditation contributes to a skilled and stable early care and education workforce