International differences in gradients in early childhood overweight and obesity : the role of maternal employment and formal childcare attendance

Background There are significant cross-country differences in socio-economic gradients in later childhood and adulthood overweight/obesity; few studies assess whether this cross-national variation is evident from early childhood. Furthermore, the role of childcare in explaining overweight/obesity gradients might vary across countries, given differences in access, quality and heterogeneity within. Additionally, childcare is linked to parental characteristics such as maternal employment. The interplay between childcare and employment in producing early overweight/obesity gradients has received little attention, and might vary cross-nationally. Methods Using harmonized data from six high-quality, large datasets, we explore the variation in gradients in early overweight/obesity (at age 3–4 years old) by parental education across several high-income countries (USA, UK, France, the Netherlands, Germany and Japan). We then assess whether differential formal group care use attenuates some of these gradients, and whether this varies across maternal employment. Results Gradients in early childhood overweight/obesity by parental education are evident across several developed countries. Countries with higher overall prevalence of early overweight/obesity did not have the largest inequalities across education groups. The contribution of formal group care to producing these gradients varied across countries and across maternal employment status. Conclusion Early childhood inequalities in overweight/obesity are pervasive across developed countries, as noted for older children and adults. However, mechanisms producing these gradients vary across national contexts. Our study shows that, given the right context, quality childcare and maternal employment can successfully support healthy weight trajectories and not contribute (or even reduce) social inequalities in early overweight/obesity

Cross-national differences in socioeconomic achievement inequality in early primary school : the role of parental education and income in six countries

This paper presents comparative information on the socioeconomic status (SES) gradients in literacy skills at age 6-8, drawing on harmonized national datasets from France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. We investigate whether understanding of comparative SES gradients in early-to-mid childhood depends on the operationalization of SES (parental education, income, or both); and whether differences in inequalities at the end of lower secondary schooling documented in international large-scale assessments are already present when children have experienced at most two years of formal compulsory schooling. We find marked differences in the SES gradient in early achievement across countries that are largely insensitive to the way SES is measured, and that seem to mirror inequalities reported for older students. We conclude that country context shapes the link between parental SES and children’s educational achievement, with country differences rooted in the early childhood period

Challenges of Quality of Learning Outcomes for Countries with the Unfinished Agenda of Universal Primary Education and Gender Parity: The Case of Yemen

This paper sheds light on a potential risk of trade-off between access to primary education and the quality of education in underserved areas in the case of Yemen, which still faces challenges in access, equity, and quality in spite of its rapid improvement over the past decade. It will first examine the level of learning achievement in relation to an improvement of enrollments and gender parity in rural schools where girls were more disadvantaged in 2004, when Yemen started the national basic education strategy toward 2015. It will also examine the level of learning achievement in relation to the other supply-side variables, of which quality and quantity are often affected by expansion of access. The data used here are the student- and school-level data collected by the JICA Research Institute at rural schools in Yemen in 2011 and the data from the TIMSS in 2011. The analyses point to a trade-off between improved access and quality of learning. The results indicated that the school-level increase of gender parity in enrollment and the total enrollment growth of boys and girls alike over the past three years are negatively associated with the current students’ math test scores. The estimation results of trade-offs are valid while controlling for basic students and family characteristics, such as parental education and occupation. As anticipated from previous education production function analyses, some policy variables, such as teacher availability and existence of participatory school management committees, change across schools, and they are important for explaining the learning differences in the relatively underserved rural areas of Yemen. These findings underscore the need of revisiting such policy measures in further increasing access while ensuring the quality standards for disadvantaged areas and avoiding widening of the quality difference within the country and ensuring learning for all

Teacher and Parental Perspectives of Barriers for Inclusive and Quality Education in Mongolia

This paper calls attention to the concept of quality education for children with disabilities in developing countries, specifically focusing on Mongolia. Quality education for children with disabilities has been overlooked by the international community despite the extensive commitment to ensuring access to basic education and learning outcomes for children (Croft, 2010). At the same time, influenced by the international community, inclusive education policies that bring children with disabilities into regular classrooms, have been introduced in many developing countries. While there have been some studies on inclusive education in the developing world, very little research has been conducted on the situation in Mongolia. This paper therefore examines how teachers and parents in regular and special schools evaluate the current educational provisions in schools towards better education for children with disabilities in Mongolia. The findings from the descriptive analyses demonstrate that perceived barriers are ‘poor school facilities,’ ‘lack of equipment,’ ‘inadequate incentives for teachers’ and ‘insufficient school budgets.’ In addition to these items, teachers and parents in special schools are highly concerned about ‘lack of understanding in the community.’ Third, each of the four groups—teachers and parents in regular and special schools—perceive ‘resource barriers’ including issues of money and facilities as the strongest obstacle, followed by ‘teacher training and experience’ and ‘understanding’ at statistically significant levels. Fourth, there are statistically significant differences in opinions between parents and teachers in regular schools related to ‘resource barriers’ (with parents viewing the problem as more important). As for ‘teacher training and experience’ barriers, there is a significant difference between personnel in regular schools and special schools as parents and teachers in regular schools perceive that there is a lack of opportunity for training. The last category of barriers evaluated is ‘understanding’ (referring to ‘lack of understanding by classmates,’ ‘lack of understanding by parents of children with disabilities,’ ‘lack of understanding by parents of children without disabilities’ and ‘lack of understanding by teachers’). Teachers in regular schools significantly feel strongest about the lack of understanding while parents in special schools significantly feel this least among all the groups. Qualitative data from interviews aligns with the statistical results and identifies that teacher training is unlikely to be effective without an appropriate teaching environment. Based on the results of both statistical and interviewed data, the study highlights the needs for a comprehensive approach to strengthening coordination and collaboration with stakeholders and donor communities, which may eventually bring benefits to all children by improving the quality of schooling

International differences in gradients in early childhood overweight and obesity: the role of maternal employment and formal childcare attendance

Socio-economic differences in BMI/overweight can already be observed from early childhood. There are important cross-country differences in such gradients in later childhood and adulthood, but few studies have assessed whether such international variation is already evident from early childhood. To explain gradients in childhood BMI/overweight, most research has focused on parental behaviours and characteristics, while ignoring other important spheres of a child’s early environment such as their mode of childcare. Access to childcare often varies by socio-economic background, and formal collective childcare appears to be positive for some, but not all, child outcomes; we know less about its role in children’s physical well-being, and especially BMI/overweight. The role of childcare in explaining BMI/overweight gaps might vary widely across countries, given differences in access, quality of care, heterogeneity in quality across groups, etc. In this paper, we explore the variation in gaps in children’s BMI and overweight by parental education across six high income countries, at 3 years old; and assess whether differential attendance to childcare in early life accounts for some of these gaps Preliminary results for France suggest that only the most disadvantaged groups (as measured by the parents’ combined educational level) have an increased risk of overweight at age 3, compared to the most advantaged. Socio-demographic household characteristics (income, family structure, nativity, mother’s age), parental behaviour (smoking during pregnancy, ever breastfed), and child characteristics (birthweight, prematurity) decrease coefficients by about a quarter, while remaining statistically significant. For France, childcare attendance and intensity do not appear to explain observed gaps in BMI/overweight. Substantive results were similar whether a linear BMI variable or a dummy for overweight/obesity is used. Harmonized analyses from the UK, Netherlands, Germany, US, and Japan will assess to what extent these results are generalizable across rich countries

National context and socioeconomic inequalities in educational achievement

Empirical research repeatedly shows cross-country differences in the extent and distribution of socioeconomic inequalities in educational achievement. This observation is the starting point for the comparative DICE-project (Development of Inequalities in Child Educational Achievement: A Six-Country Study). It aims to improve the understanding of child development by socioeconomic status, operationalised in terms of parental education in six countries: France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The project moves beyond cross-sectional and single country snapshots and examines the development of inequalities from 3 years of age up to the end of lower secondary schooling. In this contribution, we introduce the six countries. First, by synthesizing data from a range of international databases we provide a rich and multidimensional characterisation of macrostructural conditions in each country. Linking the contextual situation in the DICE-countries to general theoretical assumptions about the effects of macrostructural conditions, we highlight the implications for cross-national differences in inequalities in educational achievement. Second, we analyse PISA data providing information about achievement test scores at age 15. We study how the different packages of macrostructural characteristics described in the contextual section are reflected in terms of educational inequalities by the end of lower secondary schooling in each country