Child, Youth, and Family Studies, Department of
Child Care for Children with Disabilities in Four Midwestern States
Document Type Article
This document is superceded by the published article "Child care for children with and without disabilities: The provider, observer, and parent perspectives," Early Childhood Research Quarterly 21 (2006) 93–109. That article is available in the UNL Digital Commons at http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/famconfacpub/35/
Abstract
•This study is part of a larger investigation, Midwest Child Care Research Consortium http://ccfl.unl.edu/projects/cprojects/ecp/wcrc.html •Four states participated (IA, KS, MO, NE) •Goals are to consider effects of regulation change and quality enhancement efforts, to establish collaborative relationships, & to develop instruments and procedures •The investigation has 3 phases: provider survey, program observation, parent survey.
•Inclusion is a widely embraced goal •U.S. Dept. Education targeted having 90% of children with disabilities enrolled in general education classes for 80% or more of school day (U.S. Department of Education, 1998) •60% of children under age 6 now in out-of-home care (U.S. Census Bureau, 2002) •Child-care quality in general is mediocre •Inclusive services are generally higher quality than segregated settings (Buysse et al., 1999; La Paro, Sexton & Snyder, 1998) •Provider training a key means of improving quality •Quality care choices are limited in availability •Parent characteristics guide child care choices (income, education level) •Different parent groups have unique perspectives on quality