Qualität der Kindertageseinrichtung beeinflusst kindliche Gesundheit

Bisherige Untersuchungen zur Bedeutung des Besuchs einer Kindertageseinrichtung (Kita) für die kindliche Entwicklung analysieren vorrangig den Einfluss quantitativer Aspekte (beispielsweise des Platzangebots). Wichtig sind aber auch qualitative Aspekte, die aktuell im Zug des Kita-Ausbaus vermehrt diskutiert werden. Die Diskussion beschränkt sich jedoch häufig auf eine Förderung der Fähigkeiten von Kindern und adressiert kaum ihre Gesundheit. Die kindliche Gesundheit ist ein zentraler Faktor für die altersgerechte Entwicklung. Eine Untersuchung des DIW Berlin auf Basis von Daten des Sozio-oekonomischen Panels (SOEP) und amtlicher Daten der Kinder- und Jugendhilfestatistik (KJH- Statistik) zeigt, dass regionale Qualitätsunterschiede in der Kindertagesbetreuung die Entwicklung der kindlichen Gesundheit beeinflussen. Vorschulkinder, die im Alter von drei bis sechs Jahren eine Kindertageseinrichtung mit einem hohen Kind-Betreuer- Schlüssel besuchen, erkranken eher im Alter von fünf und sechs Jahren. Darüber hinaus zeigt die Studie, dass der Eintritt in frühkindliche Betreuung ab vier Jahren die Wahrscheinlichkeit einer Erkrankung im Alter von fünf und sechs Jahren gegenüber einem früheren Beginn erhöhen kann.Previous studies on the impact of day care center attendance on child development have focused on quantitative aspects (e. g., capacity of the center). Yet the quality of a day care center is also relevant and is increasingly being discussed in the context of day care expansion. The discussion is often limited, however, to improving children?s skills and rarely addresses their health, although this is a key factor in their age-appropriate development. A study by DIW Berlin using data from the Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) and official child and youth services data (KJH-Statistik) shows that regional differences in the quality of day care centers affect the development of children?s health. Preschool children attending a day care center with a high child-staff-ratio are more likely to be sick at the age of five and six. The study also demonstrates that entering early childhood care at four years of age or later increases the probability of illness at the ages of five or six, compared to children attending at a younger ag

The Bigger the Children, the Bigger the Worries: Are Preschoolers and Adolescents Affected Differently by Family Instability with Regard to Non-cognitive Skills?

Substantial research on the relationship between family structures and child outcomes represents a considerable part of the literature. However, family structure provides a rather static view of the relationship of children's living arrangements and their well-being, revealing hardly anything about the stability of a family for a longer period. This paper focuses on the impact of family instability on children. In light of human capital accumulation, we hypothesize that a stable family (either a two parent or a single parent family) might be beneficial for child outcomes, in particular for non-cognitive skills. We use skills, such as socio-emotional behavior or locus of control, as our primary measure of child outcomes. The paper focuses on the potential impact of family instability occurring at different childhood stages on non-cognitive skills of preschoolers (aged five to six) and of adolescents (aged seventeen). Our analysis is based on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP). Family instability is defined by yearly observed maternal partnership variations. Our results suggest that differences in family stability account for some of the gradient in social-behavioral difficulties for preschool children. By using sibling differences for our adolescents' sample, we find that multiple partnership transitions experienced early in life are negatively correlated with non-cognitive skills in adolescence, e.g., such adolescents are less likely to be active or self-determined in life.Child development, family dynamics, locus of control, non-cognitive skills

Automorphisms of Harbater-Katz-Gabber curves

Let k be a perfect field of characteristic p > 0, and let G be a finite group. We consider the pointed G-curves over k associated by Harbater, Katz, and Gabber to faithful actions of G on k[[t]] over k. We use such "HKG G-curves" to classify the automorphisms of k[[t]] of p-power order that can be expressed by particularly explicit formulas, namely those mapping t to a power series lying in a Z/pZ Artin-Schreier extension of k(t). In addition, we give necessary and sufficient criteria to decide when an HKG G-curve with an action of a larger finite group J is also an HKG J-curve.Comment: 25 pages. The introduction was rewritten. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00208-016-1490-

Maternal Labour Supply and All-Day Primary Schools in Germany

The economic literature provides vast evidence of how public provision of day care for children below school age increases the labour force participation of mothers. The causal effect of all-day schooling in primary school on maternal supply has been examined less since morning-only schooling is less common in developed countries. The present article summarises the findings of (mostly) economic studies on the impact of all-day schooling (Ganztagsschulen) on maternal employment, with a special focus on Germany

Personality traits affect young people's intention to study

Although in recent years the number of new students has been growing constantly, socio-economic differences remain an issue in the transition from school to college: those eligible for higher education whose parents do not have a college degree are less likely to take up higher education than their peers from academic parental homes. This means that they may not be fully utilizing their educational potential. A study by DIW Berlin examines how personality traits for both groups play a role in creating the intention to go to college. The present study is based on data from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) study and shows that personality traits do indeed affect the intention to study of adolescents aged 17. The probability of taking up tertiary education increases among students taking their Abitur (school-leaving certificate that serves as a qualification for German university entrance) when they are more open to new experiences or are less anxious and insecure. This applies to young people with the same academic performance and in particular to students from non-academic parental homes

Child Care Choices in Western Germany Also Correlated with Mother's Personality

The expansion of formal child care, particularly for children under the age of three, has resulted in more and more children from this age group attending day care facilities. This formal child care setting is frequently combined with care provided by grandparents or other individuals. The combination and number of child care settings made use of is influenced by a variety of socio-economic factors and the range of options available. Maternal personality can also explain differences in child care choices, if only to a relatively limited extent and predominantly in families residing in western Germany. Analyses based on the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) show that mothers in western Germany who are very open to new experiences are more likely to combine the use of formal with informal child care. Mothers, who classify themselves as conscientious, in line with personality research, are less likely to use this setting as the sole additional type of child care alongside parental care. The analyses emphasize just how different parental preferences are. A policy that is focused on freedom of choice and on creating the conditions for this by expanding the child care infrastructure should take these differences into account.Child care, personality factors, maternal employment

Wer studiert, ist informiert?: Studienentscheidungen und Informationsdefizite

Immer wieder wird die soziale Ungleichheit beim Übergang in die Hochschule thematisiert. Diese Debatte wird überwiegend aus der Perspektive der Chancengerechtigkeit geführt. Weniger diskutiert werden die ökonomische Fehlallokation von Ressourcen und die damit verbundene Ineffizienz. Dass Studienberechtigte aus nicht-akademischen Familien, bei gleicher Leistung, signifikant seltener ein Studium aufnehmen als ihre Mitschüler aus Elternhäusern mit akademischem Abschluss, ist keine optimale Nutzung von Bildungspotenzialen. Im Hinblick auf den demographischen Wandel und den damit verbundenen Rückgang im Erwerbspersonenpotenzial benötigen wir ein tieferes Verständnis über die Wirkungszusammenhänge bei Bildungsentscheidungen, um alle Bildungspotenziale auszuschöpfen. Dabei sollte die Rolle von Informationen stärker berücksichtigt und untersucht werden

Intended college enrollment and educational inequality: Do students lack information?

Despite increasing access to university education, students from disadvantaged or non-academic family backgrounds are still underrepresented at universities. In this regard, the economic literature mainly studies the effect of financial constraints on post-secondary educational decisions. Our knowledge on potential effects of other constraints regarding university education is more limited. We investigate the causal relationship between information and educational expectations using data from a German randomized controlled trial in which students in high schools were treated with information on the benefits as well as on different funding possibilities for university education. We find that the provision of information increases intended college enrollment for students from a non-academic family background, while it leads students from academic backgrounds to lower their enrollment intentions. Our results suggest that educational inequality can be reduced by providing students with relevant information, while simultaneously improving post-secondary education matches