Child Care Teachers - More Bad News

Here's a series of reports from every corner of the country about a problem that can't seem to be solved.

Report: Child Care Teachers Lack Training and Education
By Dana Hull
Mercury News, California

A national report jointly published by three research institutes has found that early childhood educators -- the people who take care of our nation's youngest children -- often earn less than $10 an hour, lack college degrees, and have no specialized training in childhood development.

The ``Losing Ground in Early Childhood Education'' report largely focuses on ``center-based'' child care, as opposed to individuals who care for children in their own homes. It includes for-profit and not-for-profit child care centers, Head Start programs, and stand-alone preschools and nursery schools.

Among the findings for California:

• The median hourly wage for teachers and directors is $11.33.

• Only 25 percent of center-based teachers and administrators have a college degree.

``There is more and more research that shows the benefits of investment in quality preschools,'' said Stephen Herzenberg, executive director of the Keystone Research Center and one of the report's authors. ``We hope our report drives home that we're not making enough public investment now.''

The report's release comes as supporters of California's Preschool for All initiative gather signatures to qualify the measure for the June 2006 ballot. Spearheaded by Rob Reiner, the initiative would fund voluntary preschool for all California children in the year before kindergarten by taxing state residents who earn more than $400,000 a year.

The initiative would require preschool teachers, over time, to earn credentials comparable to those in the K-12 system, and to be similarly compensated. It would provide financial aid so that preschoolteachers could get bachelor's degrees and additional training in early childhood development.