This Guide is an annotated bibliography of existing large scale data sets that provide useful information to policymakers, researchers, state administrators, and others in the field of child care and early education. The Guide follows an ecological approach to research and policy in the field: it brings attention not only to children themselves,…

This brief identifies the features of high-quality after-school settings that have emerged from the research and are reflected in program quality tools. It also examines key research linking program quality to positive developmental outcomes; it reviews current practice in program quality assessment; and it offers considerations for policymakers…

The contribution of family, friend, and neighbor caregivers to the overall supply of child care and the care and education of our nation's youngest children is substantial. This brief explores, for policy and other audiences, some of the issues around measuring quality in family, friend, and neighbor care. The purpose is not to provide a…

This paper presents an overview of current efforts to document or evaluate initiatives for family, friend, and neighbor child care. The initiatives are grouped into two categories: those that view these caregivers through the child care lens and aim to improve the quality of care that they provide to children; and those that see these caregivers…

School-age children ages 5 through 12 years spend their out-of-school time in many different types of arrangements. In addition to parental care, these include relative care, non-relative care (either in their own or another family's home), center- or school-based programs, sports and extracurricular activities, summer activities, and self-care.…