The struggle for parents to be able to enroll their children into quality childcare is a struggle that is based on the income in which the family is able to create or earn. The cost of quality childcare across this country is astronomically high. It has been statistically proven by the findings of an ASU professor, Mary Romero, that child can cost more than the average yearly tuition for a public college institution. The problem that many low-income families face is the ability to be able to send their children to childcare, and not be financially burdened. Many families who are labeled low-income receive some sort of financial support from the government to subsidize the cot of childcare. Although many people benefit from these subsides, many still cannot afford to send their children to quality daycare. Therefore, parents are sending their children at the most essential developmental stages of their lives, to childcare centers that are “malnourished.” Meaning, the centers do not have the resources to provide the children the utmost quality care.
When parents have to send their children to these types of institutions, the parents do not have peace of mind while they are away from their children. There is a lack of trust and reliability in the centers itself. Some families have to turn to other resources that maybe do not cost anything but in return, do not provide the childcare learning environment their children may need. Some parents rely on their friends of friends, or elderly family members, neighbors, who they barely know, to provide childcare while they are at work.
The problem that many childcare centers face are, high enrollment and few instructors, instructors are poorly paid and receive little benefits if any, and there is high turnover in regards to the teachers/instructors within the centers. These factors prohibit the children from building the trusting bond with the teachers, and also prohibit the parents from knowing who the people are that are watching their children. Many states have federal funding to help with these matters, and yet small portions if any, are being spent to lower the cost of childcare and improve the resources in which the centers have. By keeping childcare cost high, families who earn little money or just enough to support their families, parents are not able to keep the current jobs they have. In return, the economy is sacrificed, and unemployment begins to rise along with government dependencies from families with children.
Ron, I commend you for your use of the term "malnourished" to describe the condition of the childcare itself. In addition, you finished by making the connection to the impact this has on the economy at large and the increase in dependency on government programs. Why is it that our politicians/policy makers are so far removed from reality?
ReplyDeleteThat is a great question Leah! Many politicians view the working poor which has become increasingly "enriched" with poor mothers, are segregated into two group; the "deserving" poor and the "undeserving" poor. When politicians are creating policies and such, they tend to categorizes the poor into the "undeserving" poor. This classification is then relayed to the public as the poor are lazy, do not want to work, too dependent on government support, and therefore, reform has never been able to take shape to help not only the poor itself but also the working mothers who are poor. Furthermore, our policy makers and politicians are very hedonistic, they tend to pass policies that only benefit the wealthy and themselves!
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