Examined the interrelationships between day care teachers' job satisfaction, stability, and their interaction with children in 25 classrooms of 3- and 4-year-olds. Found that teachers who were higher on quality of interactions with children were more likely to consider their work a long-term career, to return to their job in the fall, and to take…

Surveyed over 300 child care directors, teachers, and children regarding their favorite place at the child care center. Found that all respondents listed favorite physical areas that nurture needs for socialization, independence, emotional well-being, and physical well-being. Includes list of questions to stimulate reflection on how well the…

Focuses attention on the experiences and needs of substitute caregivers in early childhood child care programs. Personal experiences and insights of several substitute caregivers highlight the discussion. (BB)

This study identified developmental and behavior problems Canadian child care providers find most challenging, strategies used to cope with these behavior problems, and how providers evaluate the effectiveness of their interventions. Interview responses indicated that externalizing problems were the most frequent difficulty, involving more than…

This report reviews the literature pertaining to parent and caregiver attitudes, values, and practices, and their effects on children. Topics include: (1) child care selection; (2) assessment of continuity between the home and day care; (3) communication between parents and caregivers; (4) variables which affect communication; (5) parent and…

This report details a qualitative study undertaken to add to the knowledge base about care provided by relatives, friends, and neighbors. Focus group discussions were organized with African American, Puerto Rican, and Dominican women who care for other people's children in three low-income communities in New York City. There were a total of 45…

This case study illustrates how a highly trained and experienced early childhood educator thinks about her interactions with preschoolers. Verbal and nonverbal patterns emerging from videotaped observations demonstrated how the teacher integrated information about specific children into these interactions. Although children's conceptions of time…

This study examined the experiences of students in the six New Zealand colleges of education who undertook a 3-year course of training to work in early childhood centers. The study aimed to find out students' expected employment following their training among child care, kindergarten, or other early childhood services, monitor any changes in the…

The frame analytical approach was used to explore the frames through which nine Finnish educators in early childhood programs interpret their working situations. Findings indicated that the educators interpreted their work through five different frames: educational, caring, managing, practical, and personal. Frames provided the rules and…

Child care in a provider's home is the most prevalent form of child care for young children with employed mothers in the United States today. The quality of family care and relative care is of concern partly because of growing public recognition that child care experiences are children's education before school. As the first in-depth,…

A central component of the Children Act 1989 in Great Britain is sponsored care, the purchase by local authorities of places for individual children in voluntary and private day care facilities. The book details a study examining how private and voluntary day care services such as childminders, preschools, and day nurseries are used by local…

Staff members working in early childhood services have enormous potential to influence young children's developing attitudes toward cultural diversity and gender equity. This issue of the Australian Early Childhood Association Research in Practice Series focuses on how early childhood staff can work productively through the challenges of achieving…

This study examined the effects of child day care, evening care, and night care on the development and adaptation of young children in Japan. Caregivers completed a survey on the home childrearing environment, their feelings of self-efficacy, and the presence of child care support. Results of the discriminant analysis indicated that factors in the…

Understanding the Early Years (UEY) is a national research initiative. It provides communities with information to enable them to make informed decisions about the best policies and most appropriate programs for Canadian families with young children. This report is based on one of seven communities studied in 2001-2002. Children's outcomes were…

Understanding the Early Years (UEY) is a national research initiative. It provides communities with information to enable them to make informed decisions about the best policies and most appropriate programs for families with young children. It seeks to provide information about the influence of community factors on children's early development…