These latest findings from the Early Child Care Research Network — a federally funded research project into American childcare that was launched in 1991 — expand on those from an earlier study that examined the impact of childcare quality on 4½-year-olds about to enter kindergarten. As lead author Deborah Lowe Vandell, chairwoman of the department of education at the UC Irvine told the Journal:
"The effects didn't fade away… Lots of things change after [age] four and a half. We would have expected [the effects] went away."
The early benefit seen by age 4½ seems to persist through adolescence, the researchers found. Yet, in addition to tracking long-term academic benefits of high-quality care, the study also revealed that children who spent time in childcare were more slightly likely to engage in impulsive or risky behavior than those who did not attend childcare outside of the home. As the Los Angeles Times explains:
"In terms of risk-taking, the link to time spent in day care was more marginal: Ten more hours a week in day care prompted the average teen to answer one out of 30 questions with an admission of more risky behavior."
The value of quality parenting and child care
Two studies prepared by the Society for Research in Child Development underscore the value of quality parenting and child care in the early life of a child.
One study followed 1,300 children from their births in 1991 till the time they turned 15.
It found teens that attended child-care centres with higher-quality programs scored better on tests of cognitive and academic achievement than those who attended programs with lower-quality care.
The teens in higher quality daycare centres also had fewer behavioural problems such as rule breaking, arguing and hanging out with peers who get into trouble.
The finding was consistent among children from middle-class, low-income, two-parent as well as single-parent families.
"This evidence of long-term effects of early child-care quality is noteworthy because it occurred in a large economically and geographically diverse group of children," notes study author Deborah Lowe Vandell, a professor and chair of education at the University of California, Irvine.
However, teens that spent the most hours in child care during their first 4½ years reported more risk-taking behaviour and greater impulsivity than those who spent less time in child care.
The second study followed 1,300 children from birth to the fifth grade.
It found parents who visited their child's school and encouraged educational progress in the home had children with fewer behavioural and emotional problems.
The study shows those children had fewer aggressive and disruptive behaviours, and less anxiety and depression.
At the same time so-called pro-social skills such as co-operation and self-control were higher.
However, the high rate of parental involvement didn't seem to improve a child's academic achievement.
The second study was conducted at the University of Pittsburgh.
Both studies are published in the May/June issue of the journal Child Development.
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