In the last two decades, a myriad of political and social factors have converged and had a dramatic impact on Early Childhood Education (EC) and Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE). There have been sweeping changes in policy and shifts in society that have resulted in greater numbers of programs serving young children of all abilities and…

Mobile Creche ("creche" means "day nursery") was founded on one woman's determination to change life for India's most vulnerable children. Within its first decade, Mobile Creches' network of child care centers spread from construction sites to urban slums and from the capital city of Delhi to the commercial and cultural centers…

Background: The purpose of this study was to develop a measure of engagement that could be used in practice with children with disabilities, including children with severe intellectual disabilities. Method: The "Individual Child Engagement Record" (ICER) was designed to observe and record the engagement of individual children in order to identify…

Parents are children's first and foremost teachers. In today's world, a second significant influence on children ages 0 to 5 is the teachers or caregivers who provide child care and early education. Wisconsin's young children typically spend significant amounts of time in early care and education (ECE) programs, like family child care homes, child…

Of interest in this study were the factors that lead to quality child care centers. The Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scale-Revised (ECERS-R) was examined for its utility as an effective training device to enlighten directors and classroom teachers of what constitutes quality classrooms. An experimental design was employed for this study.…

The psychometric properties of the revised Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS-R) were examined using 202 Colorado child care centers. A factor analysis revealed that the ECERS-R does not measure seven distinct aspects of quality, as asserted by the developers of the ECERS-R, but instead measures one global aspect of quality. This…

This article presents the findings of an exploratory study designed to look at the issue of removal of children from childcare due to behavior problems. A survey was sent to a random sample of nonresidential licensed day care centers (DCCs) in Texas. Results from the survey indicate that 50% of DCCs have removed a child from care due to behavior…

Managing cash flow is an incredibly important skill for a center director. Even a center with an annual budget showing a healthy surplus may experience brief periods where funds in the checkbook are insufficient to pay all the bills. To discover how successful directors manage cash flow in tight times, the author surveyed members of the "Exchange…

Providing benefits to the employees are well-proven motivators. Many child care center owners and directors have discovered that employee benefits can eliminate the need for incentive compensation. This article discusses the importance of fringe benefits to find, attract, and retain workers in a company. It also discusses benefits that employees…

Staffing and scheduling are just one part of a center director's job. Most do not give it the time and attention it needs. It is a task that requires organizational skills and interpersonal skills to put together a staffing pattern that works for the people and the center. In this article, the author shares some of the discoveries she has learned…

This article identifies problems, issues and insights through critical reflection on the rules, written and unwritten, which encroach on the research process in the "Both Ways" project. The project investigates the development and sustainability of remote Aboriginal children's services in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia.…

Published annually since 1997, Newark Kids Count tracks key trends in child health and well-being in New Jersey's largest city with the latest statistics available. Newark Kids Count includes the latest statistics, along with five-year trend data, in the following areas: population and demographics, family economic security, affordable housing,…

In this article the author describes how she and her partners started The Learning Tree Montessori Child Care, a Montessori program with a different approach in Seattle in 1979. The author also relates that the other area Montessori schools then offered half-day programs, and as a result the children who attended were, for the most part,…

This colloquium discusses recent trends where early childhood education and care has shifted from being a community service to that of big business. Years of neo-liberal reform have created market conditions favourable for large corporations to provide childcare within Australia. This situation raises some issues and concerns, particularly in…

The age of child care building on a wide scale really began in the 1970s. Before that, there had been a history of day nurseries going back to the turn of the century and Lanham Act centers during World War II to provide care for "Rosie the Riveter" mothers in the work force. The "purpose built" child care center was an economical box with almost…