Book |
Quote/Comment |
Early Childcare: Infants
and Nations at Risk by Dr. Peter Cook, ©1996,
Part Three, Research into Outcomes of Early child
Care; Chapter 5, Six Subsequent Studies Showing Risks, P102 |
A Swedish study of infants' reactions in child
care.
...Dr Ingrid Harsman (1984, 1994) studied the reactions of infants
before and after placement in day care centres in Stockholm. Her study is
important because it may be unique in its scope and qualities and it was
done in the capital of the country with the world's best day care (Sweden).
...52 per cent of the day-care infants...were assessed as
sad and depressed
in the day-care setting.
..."after seven weeks of day-care attendance, the day-care infants showed a
significant drop in speech development...
P105
Category =
Behavior, Development |
Early Childcare: Infants
and Nations at Risk by Dr. Peter Cook, ©1996, P106 |
The author concluded that "the
results also indicate that prolonged maternal separations may negatively
influence the infants' cognitive development and the process of adjustment.
Taken together the results imply that many of the infants in this
study were vulnerable during the first five months in day care".
Since the study concluded after five months there is no reason to assume
this "vulnerability" ceased after that period.
Category =
Development |
Early Childcare: Infants
and Nations at Risk by Dr. Peter Cook, ©1996,
Chapter 6,
A Critique of a Review of Research into Child Care Outcomes; P121
|
It seems that, except perhaps in Sweden, many
child care workers are not well paid and there is a view that their pay
should increase. But if one tries to improve quality by increasing staff
pay, and by increasing staff-child ratios to provide care comparable with
that which an ordinary devoted parent would give,
any economies of scale are reversed as salaries and staff ratios are
improved and it ceases to be cost-effective. Yet this was the
economic rationale for day care in the first place.
Category =
Economics |
Early Childcare: Infants
and Nations at Risk by Dr. Peter Cook, ©1996, P121 |
...for the very things which improve the
possibility of high quality care - decent wages and conditions, good
staff-child ratios, incentives for stability of tenure - cost money, and a
great deal of it. If we are to increase funding, why fund centres and not
parental leave?"
Category =
Politics |