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CHILD CARE QUALITY: PROCEDURAL QUALITY
NATIONAL STUDY OF CHILD CARE FOR LOW-INCOME FAMILIES
Measure: Procedural Child Care Quality Questions from the Parent Interview and the In-Depth Study of Family Child Care Observation Measures
Source
The National Study of Child Care for Low-Income Families is funded by the
Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The study is being conducted by Abt Associates in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the National Center for Children in Poverty at Columbia University’s Joseph Mailman School of Public Health in New York City.
Population Assessed
“Information for the study is collected at three levels, with nested samples of communities within states and families and providers within communities. The first level is a sample of 17 states containing 25 communities that were selected from a national sampling frame to be as close as possible to a representative sample of counties with child poverty rates above 14 percent. At the family level, the study includes several samples: a random sample of 2,500 low-income families (with incomes under 200% of federal poverty guidelines) with working parents and at least one child under age thirteen for whom they use non-parental child care in the 25 communities (100 per community); a sample of 650 low-income parents who are receiving, or are eligible for, child care subsidies, and who are using family child care at the start of the study; and a sample of the 650 family child care providers linked to these 650 families” (DHHS, 2000, p. 9). The sample is not representative of all 50 states.
Periodicity
The study began in September 1997 and ended in June 2003. Information for the study was collected twice for the states, once in 1999, and again in 2001. Information about the communities was collected three times from 1999 to 2001. Information about the family child care setting was collected once.
Subscales/Components
The parent interview includes procedural quality questions in Section L: Attitudes Towards Current Arrangement and Relationship with Provider. The questions address the parent’s perception of the arrangement, including the activities the child participates in, the training of the caregiver, the supervision in the care arrangements, and the overall experience in the arrangement.
The In-Depth Study of Family Child Care observation measures include various forms an observer fills out during the course of the observation. The Environment Checklist includes information about the number of appropriate toys and activities available to children of different ages. The Primary Provider Rating System addresses the way the teaching and/or care is occurring in the arrangement, including the opportunities children have to learn and explore their environment. The Secondary Provider Rating System addresses the same components as the Primary Provider Rating System for the secondary caregiver.
Procedures for Administration
This information is not readily available.
Psychometrics/Data Quality
This information is not readily available.
Languages Available
This information is not readily available.
Items Included
The interviews can be requested by contacting the National Study of Low Income Child Care Project Director (Jean Layzer, jean_layzer@abtassoc.com).
PARENT INTERVIEW
I’d like to read a list of statements about your current child care provider and your child’s experience in her home. For each item, tell me if it is always true, often true, sometimes true, or never true.
Now we’ll talk about the caregiver’s ability and the richness of activities for your child: It’s an interesting place for my child.
There are a lot of creative activities going on.
There are plenty of toys, books, pictures, and music for my child.
The caregiver provides activities that are just right for my child.
I feel my child is getting too old for the activities.
My child gets a lot of individual attention.
The caregiver helps children to make their own decisions.
The caregiver changes activities in response to my child’s needs.
My caregiver has good training and education.
OBSERVATION MEASURES
The responses to the following questions are:
- Usually true, consistent evidence
- Partially/sometimes true, some evidence
- Not true, little/no evidence
- Not applicable
For children one year or under, there are enough toys and materials to engage children in developmentally appropriate ways.
For children one+ to three years of age, there are enough toys and materials to engage children in developmentally appropriate ways.
For children three+ to five years of age, there are enough toys and materials to engage children in developmentally appropriate ways.
For children older than five years, there are enough toys and materials to engage children in developmentally appropriate ways.
Household items are used by children in learning/play activities.
There are at least 10 books appropriate in level for each age of child enrolled.
Some books are accessible to children.
Besides books there are some materials to promote language and dramatic play (e.g., telephones, puppets, interactive games, audio materials, dolls, blocks, human/animal figures, props, costumes)
FROM PRIMARY PROVIDER RATING SYSTEM
The provider gives children opportunities to make choices and explore their interests in a variety of activities, for at least 60 minutes during each half-day period.
The provider actively supports children’s play by simply observing, offering materials, joining in, or making gentle suggestions as needed.
There is time for active physical play, either indoors or outdoors.
The provider takes advantage of and builds upon the many natural learning experiences and “teachable moments” as they arise.
All children have activities in which they can engage at all times. If children are discouraged from participating in one activity (due to age or safety reasons), the provider engages them in something else.
The provider reads at least one book to the children, or all of the children are able to read.
The provider encourages children to look at or read books on their own.
The provider gives children opportunities to learn about shapes and sounds of letters and words in their environment. The provider encourages children to use math in everyday context.
The provider gives children opportunities to explore the natural and physical environment.
Creative activities are open ended and child directed.
Evidence of children’s art and other work products is visible or readily available and does not show preference for work that looks realistic or pretty.
The provider gives children opportunities to make their own music, chants, or finger plays with their voices or instruments (purchased or homemade).
The provider gives children opportunities to dance or move creatively.
If children watch television or videos or use a computer, the time is limited to no more than one hour or one full-length movie during observation. Alternate activities are available for children.
Any television program, video, computer program, video game, or music used with children is not inappropriate (violent, stereotyped, sexually explicit, or otherwise inappropriate).
References and Source Documents
The interviews can be requested by contacting the National Study of Low Income Child
Care Project Director (Jean Layzer, jean_layzer@abtassoc.com).
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2000, November). National Study of Child Care
for Low-Income Families: State and community substudy interim report. Washington,
DC: Author. Available at http://www.abtassoc.com/reports/NSCCLIF.pdf
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