Quality Child Care Grows Smarter Teens
According to a new study, at age 15, teens who had high-quality child care in their early years performed better academically than did other teens. On top of that they had fewer adolescent behavior problems, says Deborah Lowe Vandell, PhD, professor and chair of education at the University of California, Irvine.
Vandell told WebMD that "children who were in early high-quality child care did better academically and cognitively at age 15, compared to other children in the study." Teens with better child care background broke fewer rules, hung out less with kids who get into trouble, and argued significantly less.The study is published in the journal Child Development.
The new findings was conducted on a group of about 1,300 children, born in 10 cities across the U.S. in 1991 and followed up over the years. The study is the National Institute of Child Health and Development's Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development.
Vandell and her colleagues previously found that children who had early, high-quality child care did better academically and cognitively at grade 5. The researchers rated the quality of a child care program based on the caregivers' behavior with the children, and evaluated how sensitive and responsive they were to the child's needs, among other measures.
Vandell and her team then collected the results of standardized school tests measuring achievement and cognition and collected information from the teens, their families, and school personnel. At the age 15 follow-up, results were obtained for 70% of the original participants. The backgrounds of the children included middle class and low income, two-parent families, and single-parent families.
In the study, Vandell says, "90% had some type of child care experience. It could be preschool, nursery school, child care in the home, home care by babysitters, or nannies. The hours varied, from seven to about 60 [weekly]." However, Only 41% had child care classified as high or moderately high quality.
On a test of academic and cognitive achievement, Vandell says, "the children who had high-quality child care scored 5.3 points higher, on average." Her study participants, overall, scored 106 on average. The teens with high-quality child care scored 5.3 above that, she says. The messages from the new study are clear, says Ellen Galinsky, president of the Families and Work Institute in Washington, D.C. "Quality matters, and the way this study measures quality is to look at the relationship between the child and the child care provider over time. Is it warm, is it caring?"
How can parents decide if a child care setting is high quality?
Vandell suggests getting referrals to child care programs from friends, then selecting two or three programs that sound good. ''Talk to the people on the phone, and then go observe," she says. Stay for several hours or half a day if possible. Don't focus only on the caregiver, she says. Instead, pick a child or two who matches your own in age, behavior, personality, and energy level, if possible. See how each child and the caregivers interact.
Check to see if your state has an evaluation program for guidance.