Child Care

Quality Of Child Care in The United States 3

Last Updated Oct 6, 2008 05:01 PM

A third source of evidence pertaining to structural and caregiver characteristics is the NICHD Study of Early Child Care (NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, 1999a).

In that study, child:adult ratios were observed at regular intervals and caregivers reported their educational background and specialized training. The percentage of center classrooms that met the AAP and APHA recommendations for child:adult ratio and group size is shown on Table 12.

Also shown are the percentage of classrooms in which caregivers had at least some college and specialized training. As indicated, 36 percent of the infant classrooms were observed to have the recommended child:adult ratios of 3:1. Fifty-six percent of caregivers in infant classrooms had received specialized training during the preceding year; 65 percent of infant caregivers had some college courses. Proportions were similar for toddler care (the 15- and 24-month-olds).

When compared to figures reported in the Profile of Child Care Settings, the NICHD figures suggest that there has been some decline in the educational background and training of child care staff during the 1990s.

The decrease in caregiver education and training may be related to the generally low wages in the child care field (see Figure 3).

In 1997, child care teachers averaged $7.50–$10.85 per hour, or $13,125–$18,988 per year, when they were employed for a 35-hour week and a 50-week year. Wages for assistant teachers were $6.00 to $7.00 an hour (or $10,500–$12,250 per year). Figure 1 shows salaries for lower-paid and higher-paid child care workers relative to the median salaries of women 25+ by level of education for both 1992 and 1997. The figure shows the low salaries of child care workers relative to other occupations and indicates that there has not been any improvement in terms of the relative salaries over the 1992–1997 time period for most levels of education. While high school graduates who were child care teachers or assistants could only earn between 73 and 85 percent of the salaries they might expect to receive elsewhere, the relative salaries were far lower relative to the median for women with more schooling. A child care teacher with a B.A. degree could expect to earn between 52 and 75 percent of the median salaries across all occupations. Current child care salaries are not consistent with attracting and keeping providers who have the level of education and training that research suggests is needed to structure emotionally supportive and cognitively stimulating learning environments.
The generally low salaries earned by child care staff also appear to be a factor contributing to high staff turnover in the child care field (see Figure 4).


In 1997, 27 percent of teachers and 39 percent of assistants left their jobs during the previous year (Figure 5 and Whitebook, Howes, and Phillips, 1998).

Twenty percent of centers reported losing half or more of their staff. Centers that offer higher wages have lower turnover rates than centers that offer lower wages (Whitebook et al., 1998).

See also Child Care 629 1 - 3