Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/raising-quality-through-training/5017618/
There are 1.2 million child care providers working in child care programs in the United States. These individuals are responsible for the health, safety, and well-being of millions of American children each day. Child Care Resource and Referral agencies (CCR&Rs) are one of the major vehicles in the United States for providing training to this largely untrained workforce. The quality of care children receive in child care settings is due, in large part, to the effectiveness of the training child care providers receive from CCR&Rs and other community organizations. The child care systems of both Head Start/Early Head Start and the United States military service have shown that a systematic training program can result in higher quality care.Although research has linked preparation of the early childhood workforce to higher levels of child care quality, little is being done to ensure that those providing care are receiving training. Most states do not require child care providers to have any training before beginning to work with children. Only 12 states require providers working in centers to have pre-service training in early childhood education. Most (46 states for center-based providers) require ongoing training in early childhood education, but in some states, the requirements ...