Families andWork: The JugglingActThe Daycare Dilemma
Whoismindingthechildren?The
daycareprogram isa by-product of WW
II,when theLanghamAct of 1941
providedmoney for construction and
operation of childcarecentersfor children
of defenseworkers.WhiletheLangham
Act expiredat theendof WW II,a
precedent hadbeen set regardingcareof
children (Zylan,2000).With theincrease
in workingmothersin theyearswhich
followed,daycarecenterssprangupacross
America.Parentsthought their children
wouldbewell-servedby such“learning
centers,”asthey wereoften called.Thisisa
clear exampleof howfamily lifeis
sometimesshapedby thepoliticalsystem
andthepeoplein power.In 1962,Congress
approveddaycarefundingfor poor
mothers,andexpectedthem toenter the
workforceandleavetheir children with
others,which bolsteredthegrowth of
daycarecenters—another exampleof
peoplein power shapingfamily life(How
Welfare,2001).Many of thoseoriginal
daycarecentershavesinceclosed,andthe
institutionaloption for daycareisused
much lessfrequently today.Instead,most
children of workingmothersarecaredfor
by another family member.Accordingtoa
2008census,66%of children under age5
receivecarefrom a relative.About one
thirdof thesechildren arecaredfor by a
grandparent,onefourth by their father,
andabout onetenth by another relative.
Just over 30%of children in thesameage
grouparetaken careof at an organized
carefacility (U.S.CensusBureau,2008a).
Therehasbeen a lot of negativepublicity
about infant mistreatment in somedaycare
centers,promptingpublic concern andan
increasein stateregulationsof such centers
(Knox&Schacht,2004).Thenew
governmentalrestrictions,coupledwith
thedifficulty in findingqualifiedpeopleto
work at thesecenters,placedfinancial
hardshipson thedaycareindustry,
promptingmany toclose.A growing
number of children of workingmothers
arereceivingcarefrom an in-home
daycareor family-carehome,which isa
privatefamily homeprovidingcarefor
about 12children.Thesehomesarealso
licensed,providingparentswith a safe
alternativetoa daycarecenter.Daycare can be a place where children learn
socialization skills, as well as academic skills.©iStockphoto.com/njgphoto