Russell Isabella, PhD
Department of Family and Consumer Studies
University of Utah
By now, most parents have
heard about the list of factors that are
important in selecting a daycare setting for
their children. What parents may not know,
however, is why these things matter. The purpose
of this series of articles is to consider a
number of factors commonly viewed as central to
daycare quality, and to examine the reasons
behind this list.
The first item to be considered is the education
level of daycare staff, which is often viewed as
a top priority in the selection game. Basically,
the thinking is that the higher the level of
education of the staff, particularly if that
education is in child development, the better
the care children will receive.
Education in child development is thought to be
important because a person who has taken courses
about children should have a better
understanding of the many different, important
things going on in the life of the average child
of any given age. And this understanding should
make them a better care provider. A caregiver
who knows, for example, that 2- and 3-year-olds
aren't capable of taking another child's point
of view is likely to be patient in helping these
young children learn to share and communicate
with their peers, rather than be frustrated by
what the untrained caregiver might view as
selfish behavior.
Additionally, where education is concerned, it
commonly is believed that more is better, since
the more education a care provider has received,
the more they will have learned about child
development. If they have a college degree in
early childhood education, chances are they have
taken courses in which they have worked with
young children in a daycare setting. You
wouldn't want someone with no knowledge of auto
mechanics working on your car, and children are
most likely to prosper if they are cared for by
persons with knowledge of child development and
experience working with children. Education
cannot guarantee high-quality care, but it can
improve the odds that children will be treated
with the understanding and respect they deserve
and require.
A final reason why amount of education matters
is that a person with a college degree has
demonstrated their ability and willingness to
stick with a challenging and time-consuming
process. It is assumed they would be more likely
to take seriously their work as a child care
provider, and thus stay with the job for a
longer period. Which leads to the importance of
low staff turnover in a daycare setting, the
topic for a later article in this series.
Note:
Just a thought on this article from the staff of
TLC Locators. While education is important and
does play an important part in how well equipped
the child care provider may be: What about
experience? I have known some very loved and
highly respected child care providers who have
had little formal Early Childhood Educational
training, yet the children in their care thrive
and are happy and loved. While I've met some
"educated" care givers, that have a little
trouble living outside of the lines their
education has placed around them.
