Identifies underlying paradoxical bases for expansion and replication of early childhood care and education (ECCE) programs. Presents history of ECCE in the United States. Proposes typology of expansion and replication processes, and considers paradoxes associated with replication process. Offers recommendations for funders, policymakers, and…

Used data from a family child care study and a licensing study to identify dimensions best predicting global day care quality in over 300 child care homes. Found that caregiver training most consistently predicted global quality. Found no reliable association between care quality and child-caregiver ratio or age-weighted group size recommendations…

Maintains that Tabors' edited work is the most comprehensive and practical book on the topic available and an essential part of the knowledge base for early care and education professionals. Highlights the book's practical suggestions, concrete examples to illustrate language principles, and recommendations for teachers. Asserts that the content…

Examined whether data on child care quality obtained from a telephone interview with the provider could serve as an adequate proxy for data obtained from direct observation of 89 child care homes and 92 centers. Found that a 25-item interview predicted accurately the quality classification of 92 percent of homes and 89 percent of centers.…

Examined associations between reasons for selecting care arrangements and type and quality of care received. Found that mothers who chose care based on quality were least likely to use relative-provided care and more likely to place children in higher quality care than others. Mothers selecting care because of preference for a particular type of…

Explored 122 children's perceptions of their child care experiences in classrooms of varied quality. Found that children verbalized accurate understanding of procedures, events, and activities, but responses differed by classroom quality. Play was the favorite activity of all children in all classrooms. Mean behaviors, circle time, and nap time…

Discusses the need for child care quality assessment by regulatory agencies, researchers, and parents. Examines the usefulness of telephone interviews for assessing child care quality, focusing on research usage, the inclusion of family child care, and generating items for telephone interviews. (Author/KB)

Discusses findings that child care quality can be measured effectively and efficiently through telephone interview. Notes that interview items were more highly correlated to the materials composite than to the interaction composite of the Environment Ratings Scales. Describes situations where on-site observation is necessary. Suggests that one…

Surveyed parents of children attending an Australian day care center about attitudes toward the different roles of care and education in day care services. Found that parents of both older and younger children expected a substantial component of education in the day care program and a reasonable level of professionalism and qualifications in the…

Analyzed sleep-wake schedules and nap times in multiage infant-toddler groups through three case studies in Finnish day care centers. Found complex interactions among family daily patterns, day care patterns, and young children's sleep disturbances. Identified major differences in day care practices regarding sleep quality related to timing,…

Links family income, ethnicity, and child's age to child care characteristics. Finds that children from families with incomes at least twice the poverty threshold were more likely than others to be in nonparental care and spent more hours in care. Ethnicity, not poverty, related to relative-care use. Few income, ethnicity, or age differences…

Investigated effects of program auspice (nonprofit versus profit child care), adult-to-child ratios, and class age span on teaching and on preschoolers' social and cognitive development. Found that age, gender, social background, and age span were significant predictors of children's social and cognitive development; adult-to-child ratio and…

Maintains that "Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care" is the most far-reaching exploration to date of the implications of postmodern thinking for early childhood education. Notes that the book's great strength is its careful construction of an alternative way of thinking about early childhood and its institutions, and about viable…

Used discrete-time survival analysis technique to examine whether, and at what age, a national sample of 3,624 children first entered a childcare center. Found that after controlling for household-economic factors, the household's social structure and mother's language, childrearing beliefs, and practices predicted probability of selecting…

Discusses family selection issues that should be considered in child care research, and evidence demonstrating why each should be considered. Issues include whether causal inferences can be made from observational studies and the impact on conclusions from regression analyses that include highly correlated measures of child care experiences,…