Facts In Action

The majority of low-income children in non-parent care are in family child care homes. In Massachusetts, family child care providers can choose to work independently or to contract with a family child care system. The Institute for Family Day Care Systems at Acre Family Day Care in Lowell, MA contracted with the Center for Research on Women at Wellesley College to study family child care providers in Massachusetts, comparing system-based and non-system-based providers and the children they serve.

Family child care providers surveyed self-identified in one of three groups: all system providers—caring only for children referred through a family child care system; some system providers—caring for both children referred by systems and those independent of systems; and no system providers—those working exclusively without a system. In comparing these groups, the study found some major differences:

• While the majority of all providers had more than a high school diploma, the all system providers had the largest percentage of providers who had not completed high school — 16% as compared to 3% of the no system and 3% of the some system providers.
  
  
• Sixty-nine percent of the some system group and 65% of the all system providers accepted subsidized children, while only 29% of the no system providers did. Given that subsidy reimbursement rates are only 55% of the market rate for child care, this finding has significant implications for providers' potential earnings.
  
  
• Providers who work with family child care systems, either exclusively or as part of their practice, were more likely to serve the most vulnerable children — those from low income, non-English speaking and single-parent families.
  
  
• Systems tended to be a major source of training for all system (83%) and some system providers (71%). In addition, 25% of the no system providers also listed systems as a training resource they used.

The study highlights the importance of family child care systems in the early care and education field in Massachusetts. System providers serve the most at-risk children and these are the children that benefit the most from a high quality early care and education setting. In addition, the study indicates that systems play a significant role in assuring that providers are meeting regulations and receiving training. The training and support they offer can have a crucial positive effect on the quality of family child care, and thus children's school readiness.

Source: Massachusetts Family Child Care Survey, W. Wagner Robeson and J. Roberts. For more information see: www.wcwonline.org

Facts in Action, November/December 2003