Quality Child Care: what does it really mean?
Karen DeBord, Ph.D. / Child Development Specialist North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Quality child care may be defined as child care services that provide a responsive, developmentally appropriate environment for young children. This quality care, added to a quality home environment, leads to the best possible physical, intellectual, and social-emotional development in the child. Parents who know that their child is receiving quality child care can be assured that their child is safe, nurtured, and challenged to learn. Quality child care programs create positive environments and provide children with life skills that help in formal schooling. A poor start in early years often leads to frustration and failure later on in school. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) suggests that a “high quality early childhood program provides a safe, nurturing environment that promotes the physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of young childre
