Day Care

Question 1

AO1

Answer 1

• Many parents need to go back to work after the birth of a child so need to put them in day care
• Day care can consist of other family members looking after the child, sending them to child minders or nursery
• Family members looking after the child has the advantage of the child knowing who is looking after them and developing a relationship
• Child minder and nursery workers have to be qualified and inspected unlike family members
• Parents may worry about quality of care and if it’s the best for their child

Question 2

AO2

Answer 2

• Parents need to consider staff to child ratios, smaller ratios ensure the child’s emotional, social and physical needs are met
• Highly qualified staff, able to teach children and deal with situations in a better way
• Duration in care can have negative effects
• Key workers provide temporary attachment for child when away from primary caregiver

Question 3

Andersson (1992)

Answer 3

Found children who went to high quality day care before the age of one were more socially and cognitively advanced by the age of 8

Question 4

The EPPE (2004)

Answer 4

Also found that children in high quality day care benefited cognitively and socially

Question 5

Belsky and Rovine (1988)

Answer 5

Children who were put in day care for 20 hours a week, before the age of 1, had an insecure avoidant attachment with mother and >35 hrs had an insecure attachment with father

Question 6

Belsky and Rovine (1988) criticism

Answer 6

Used strange situation
children in day care used to being left by their parents so doesnt accurately reflect atttachment type

Question 7

NICHD

Answer 7

Found day care can lead to children having behavioural problems, especially if the day care was low quality

Question 8

Christopher J Rune (2000)

Answer 8

It is worse for children to be in day care if you come from an economically advantaged household
If you aren’t there was no real variation

Question 9

What advice should you give to the parents

Answer 9

1) Ensure staff to child ratio is low
2) Ensure it’s good quality care, if you can’t have both Li et al found it most beneficial to have high quality pre-adolescent day care over infant-toddler as no benefits last
3) Emotionally to ensure they keep a good relationship with the parents don’t put them in day care for more than 20 hours a week
4) Andersson (1992) Start early as it was found to have good outcomes on them emotionally and cognitively, but if you are economically advantaged Christopher J Rune (2000) found it is better cognitively if you stay at home