The number of family child care (FCC) providers in the United States, or providers who are licensed, certified, or registered to provide care in their home, fell by nearly half between 2005 and 2017 (NCEQA, 2020a). This has implications for families who prefer FCC settings. Understanding providers' motivations for starting their program may…

Families commonly make decisions about child care and early education (CCEE). CCEE supports children's learning and parents' work and education. Families may use CCEE in a child care center, home, or school setting. They may use a licensed program or relatives, friends, or neighbors to provide care. To support families who are looking for CCEE,…

Demand for child care in the United States outpaces supply. Understanding access issues is critical for addressing them and supporting children, families, and the economy. However, the most widely available proxy for child care supply--authorized capacity--likely overestimates care availability. Authorized capacity represents the maximum children…

In recent years, limited research attention has been directed to what happens in science education before the age of 3 years. We present the findings of a study that followed 13 infant-toddlers aged 0.1-2.2 years (mean 1.8 years) and their educators from a childcare centre. Under the conditions of an educational experiment, the results of our…

Family engagement in childcare is important to ensure the optimal growth, development, and safety of children. Previous research has explored family engagement practices, but limited research is available on the application of theory to explain the uptake of family engagement principles. The purpose of this study was to explore the use and…

Leadership development in early education and care is one of the most pressing priorities in the field today. Since 2017, the Whole Leadership Framework has provided a conceptual model for national competencies for early childhood program leaders. This report discusses some of the many contributors and their significant contributions to the…

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) contracted with Child Trends in 2022 to conduct an independent evaluation of Parent Aware to explore its effectiveness in supporting the state's children, families, and early care and education (ECE) workforce. As part of this evaluation, the team at Child Trends conducted an analysis of Rating and…

In Flanders, we are searching to implement inclusion in our educational systems, knowing that we have a strong focus on segregation and specialisation. Parents are often missing in the debate, while they are confronted with experiences of exclusion and discrimination. Our aim was to hear the parents' voices on high-quality childcare for children…

Given the substantial increase in children attending center-based childcare over the past decades, the consequences of center-based childcare for children's development have gained more attention in developmental research. However, the relation between center-based childcare and children's neurocognitive development remains relatively…

The Arkansas Office of Early Childhood is collaborating with SRI International, the National Center for Children in Poverty, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences to learn about the supply, quality, and stability of early care and education (ECE) for children in foster care, as well as the facilitators and barriers to children in…

This article investigates Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus is on ECEC leaders' perceptions of team leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. The purpose of the study is to increase understanding of the team-related challenges ECEC leaders have been confronted with, how they have…

There is increasing pressure on Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) settings to align their practices and values to that of schools, with the notion that a quality education in ECEC consists of providing care whilst also ensuring strong learning outcomes. This paper employs the constructs of structural and process quality to theorise the…

The Arkansas Office of Early Childhood is collaborating with SRI International, the National Center for Children in Poverty, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences to learn about the supply, quality, and stability of early care and education (ECE) for children in foster care, as well as factors that promote or reduce access to…

Parents play a vital role in identifying children's needs for support and Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) features that support children's well-being. This study examined parental perspectives on features of ECEC that foster young children's well-being under and above the age of 3 years by interviewing 359 parents across nine European…

In this brief, authors Jess Carson and Sarah Boege describe changes in the early childhood education and care landscape of Grafton and Sullivan Counties in New Hampshire and Orange and Windsor Counties in Vermont, collectively known as the Upper Valley. The authors find that the Upper Valley lost 25 regulated child care providers serving children…