The Path to Better Child Care

Studies show that 90 percent of a child's brain develops by age 5. The obvious fact that teachers, other children and indoor and outdoor facilities offered my kids far more stimulation and learning opportunities than I (or another single caregiver) could provide at home is one reason I always felt that day care was a great choice. Or should I say good day care was a great choice.

Now a new "state report card" issued by the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) points to "an urgent need in every state to improve standards and oversight of child-care centers." In plain language, a lot of states failed the NACCRRA test, and the association believes substandard day care is a national problem. With children of working mothers spending an average of 36 hours each work week in child care, improving the quality of care nationwide is in everyone's best interest.

Overall, states averaged 70 points out of a possible 150 score. Twenty-one states have no minimum educational requirement for teachers. Only eight states address all 10 of the NACCRRA's basic health and safety benchmarks, basics such as safe playground surfaces, diapering and hand-washing standards, prevention of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and fire drills. Only two states (Nevada and Illinois) require full background checks of child-care staff. Pretty frightening results.

According to a news release sent out yesterday by NACCRRA, here are the top and bottom 10 states (listed alphabetically):

TOP TEN
Illinois
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
New York
North Dakota
Oklahoma
Tennessee
Vermont
Washington (state)

WEAKEST TEN
California
Idaho
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Nebraska
New Hampshire
New Mexico
Utah

This does not mean there aren't fantastic -- and awful -- day-care centers in these states. Statistics can never completely measure safety when it comes to young children. There is no substitute for parents' intuition when it comes to evaluating good and bad child-care situations.

But bravo to the NACCRRA for trying to quantify good child care. The association, which works with more than 800 state and local agencies, also provides several publications, a Childcare Connector referral for local child-care providers and a very useful Average Rates Finder, so that you can see what the going rate for different kinds of care is in your Zip code. Parents -- and kids -- would benefit from even more research to spotlight the quality of our nation's care of our youngest citizens.

By Leslie Morgan Steiner |  March 2, 2007; 6:45 AM ET  | Category:  Childcare
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