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The aim of this essay is to present a discussion about the positive and negative effects of child day care, it will consider if children are harmed by day-care, or how it can positively affect their development. We will also discuss how the effects of day care are measured, and discuss how we need to use day care of a consistent level for research.
In order to establish the affects day care can have upon a child, we firstly need to define day-care it's self, there are many different types of day care, and according to Clarke Stewart et al (1994), there are five different types of care available, firstly the child being at home with the mother, or at home with the caregiver the care giver may be a childminder for example, or the child may go to the caregiver's home, the child may attend a part time day care centre, or full time day care, or the parents may use a range of these different day care settings for their child.
It has been noted that there has been a steady increase in the past 30 years in the amount of children that are now being cared for in a day care centres, instead of being at home with a parent or childminder (Hofferth, 1996). As David Putwain (2003) points out, children are often placed into day care once the mother returns to work following maternity leave; the affect of daycare is directly related to maternal employment. Lerner and Galambos (1986) followed 133 children, whose mothers were working, and so the child was in daycare, using a range of methods they found that by the age of five there were no differences in IQ, educational achievement, adjustment at home and mother and child interactions, between the children in daycare, and the control group of children who were being cared for by their mothers at home. This would support the idea that if the mother was happy, it would influence the child, whether the child is at home with the mother or in daycare. This may indicate to us that by the mother working, and placing the child into daycare, she is able to go to work and receive psychological benefits, thus making her happier when she spends time with her child, Moorhouse (1991) looked at a sample of a 100 working mothers, and found that they compensated for the lost time with their children, by spending more quality time, doing activities such as playing, reading stories, and these type of activities are very important to developing the child's cognitive and social skills. This would also support the belief that it is not the amount of time the parent spends with the child that is important, but the quality of the time that matters.
Sometimes, it may be more difficult for children from lower social backgrounds to attend daycare of a high standard, thus placing them at a lower level academically, and socially, as they have not had the chance to interact with peers of a similar age. Ramney, Orval and Baker-Ward, followed children from a low income family, who attended a day care centre that was designed to provide educational support, and help the children to develop socially, fifty four children were placed in the daycare group, or in the control group who received care at home. The children were assessed at the age of one, which revealed very few differences between the two groups in the IQ tests, but when next tested, the home care group started to significantly decline, by 42 months, the group who received daycare, were on a significantly higher level, on a range of cognitive measures, and social factors. These results indicate to us that if children from lower social backgrounds receive high quality daycare, it may stop them having a deteriation in their social and intellectual development that happens if they receive homecare.
Sarah
The aim of this essay is to present a discussion about the positive and negative effects of child day care, it will consider if children are harmed by day-care, or how it can positively affect their development. We will also discuss how the effects of day care are measured, and discuss how we need to use day care of a consistent level for research.
In order to establish the affects day care can have upon a child, we firstly need to define day-care it's self, there are many different types of day care, and according to Clarke Stewart et al (1994), there are five different types of care available, firstly the child being at home with the mother, or at home with the caregiver the care giver may be a childminder for example, or the child may go to the caregiver's home, the child may attend a part time day care centre, or full time day care, or the parents may use a range of these different day care settings for their child.
It has been noted that there has been a steady increase in the past 30 years in the amount of children that are now being cared for in a day care centres, instead of being at home with a parent or childminder (Hofferth, 1996). As David Putwain (2003) points out, children are often placed into day care once the mother returns to work following maternity leave; the affect of daycare is directly related to maternal employment. Lerner and Galambos (1986) followed 133 children, whose mothers were working, and so the child was in daycare, using a range of methods they found that by the age of five there were no differences in IQ, educational achievement, adjustment at home and mother and child interactions, between the children in daycare, and the control group of children who were being cared for by their mothers at home. This would support the idea that if the mother was happy, it would influence the child, whether the child is at home with the mother or in daycare. This may indicate to us that by the mother working, and placing the child into daycare, she is able to go to work and receive psychological benefits, thus making her happier when she spends time with her child, Moorhouse (1991) looked at a sample of a 100 working mothers, and found that they compensated for the lost time with their children, by spending more quality time, doing activities such as playing, reading stories, and these type of activities are very important to developing the child's cognitive and social skills. This would also support the belief that it is not the amount of time the parent spends with the child that is important, but the quality of the time that matters.
Sometimes, it may be more difficult for children from lower social backgrounds to attend daycare of a high standard, thus placing them at a lower level academically, and socially, as they have not had the chance to interact with peers of a similar age. Ramney, Orval and Baker-Ward, followed children from a low income family, who attended a day care centre that was designed to provide educational support, and help the children to develop socially, fifty four children were placed in the daycare group, or in the control group who received care at home. The children were assessed at the age of one, which revealed very few differences between the two groups in the IQ tests, but when next tested, the home care group started to significantly decline, by 42 months, the group who received daycare, were on a significantly higher level, on a range of cognitive measures, and social factors. These results indicate to us that if children from lower social backgrounds receive high quality daycare, it may stop them having a deteriation in their social and intellectual development that happens if they receive homecare.
Sarah