Supporting Quality in Home-Based Child Care

Home-based child care is a common arrangement for many young children in the United States, especially for toddlers and infants from low-income families and families of color. However, information on the quality of home-based care is sparse, and the evidence available presents a mixed picture. Research suggests that while home-based child care environments are relatively safe, and caregivers are affectionate and responsive, some studies have found low levels of quality in home care, as well as not enough time spent on learning activities such as reading.

Although various strategies for supporting quality in home-based child care have been explored, little is known about their effectiveness. Therefore, states have difficulty making policy and program decisions on how to support home-based providers. Mathematica's two-year study is responding to this knowledge gap by reviewing the literature and gathering information about strategies with the greatest potential for supporting quality of care.

The final products will include:

• A comprehensive and up-to-date literature review on quality in home-based child care settings
• A compendium of quality-support strategies that have been designed and implemented to date
• An analytic paper that details criteria and a rationale for selecting strategies with the most potential for effectiveness
• A menu of fully developed strategies with detailed implementation plans
• A plan for rigorously evaluating the effectiveness of the selected strategies

The study is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation. Bank Street College of Education is a subcontractor.

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