The Correlation between Early Childcare and Language Development and Problem Behavior - Essay Example

The Correlation between Early Childcare and Language Development and Problem Behavior An article, Early Child Care Linked to Increase in Vocabulary, Some Problem Behaviors in Fifth and Sixth Grades, argues about the relationship between quality of childcare before kindergarten and language development as well as the correlation between the quality and quantity of childcare before kindergarten, in other words, the relation between more time spent in childcare centers and problem behavior. This article analyzes the findings of a study conducted by Jay Belskey, a psychology professor at Birkbeck University of London. A total of 1364 children were selected for this study in which the quality and quantity of childcare these children received, from their birth to 54 months of age, were measured. The study also evaluates the vocabulary level of these children from kindergarten through fifth grade and behavioral problems, if any, through sixth grade. Moreover, the study focuses on whether the developmental patterns observed in these children from kindergarten to third grade are still found in their fifth or sixth grade. The results showed that children who received higher quality childcare displayed better vocabulary skills than those who received lower quality childcare. Additionally, children who spent more time in childcare centers are more likely to show behavioral problems, as reported by their sixth grade teachers. The study shows that children who received higher quality childcare do better on the Picture Vocabulary subtest of the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery in their fifth grades than those who received childcare of a lower quality. It should be noted here that childcare, as defined in this study, is the care given to children by childcare centers, father, grandparents, and/or relatives. The results of the study can be explained with the aid of the lessons we have learned in class. Several factors play key roles in language acquisition; one of these factors is interaction with other people. It is noted that exposure to adult language is crucial to language development. The story of “Genie” from the lecture is a good example in this context; Genie is a 13-year-old girl who was never exposed to adult language. She was isolated in a place where she did not have the opportunity to interact with other people. Resultantly, she missed a sensitive period in her language development, which affected her subsequent language development. However, in her case, there are possible reasons other than no interaction with others for her poor language development. One of these possible reasons is punishment for making noise. Genie was also punished for making noise. It is to be noted that when a child learns a new word, practice and repeating the word is important in making it part of her/his vocabulary. However, if the parents or caregivers punish the child excessively for making noise, the child will not only stop producing noise, s/he will also stop any speech sound. Children who received lower quality of childcare might be caught up in such bad situations where punishment for making noises is a norm, thus discouraging them from developing their language skills. Compared to lower quality of childcare, higher quality of childcare provides an environment where children can interact with others sufficiently and are also exposed to adult language, thus enabling children to practice adequately for language acquisition. The study also finds that time spent in childcare centers is directly related to problem behavior in sixth grade. Sixth-grade teachers of the children involved in the study rated the problem behavior of these children. It was indicated that the children who spent more time in childcare centers showed more problem behavior than those who spent less time in center-based care and had home based care. It should be noted that these problem behaviors are not clinical problem. These problem behaviors include getting into fights, disobedience at school, lying, cheating etc. A statement from The Development of Children supports this finding. It states that children who attend childcare centers also tend to be less polite, less agreeable, less compliant with adults, and more aggressive than those who do not (Cole 427). In childcare centers, it is impossible to pay individual attention to every child. Not only that, it is extremely difficult to address aggressive or problem behaviors of a child individually. Thus, a child with problem behavior has no chance of being corrected and/or his or her aggressive behavior to be addressed by these caregivers. Subsequently, his or her problem behavior, which is established before kindergarten, persists and is observed later as well, something that is clearly shown in the study. Additionally, the article states that this increase in vocabulary scores and problem behaviors is very small. It should be noted that the most important factor in child development is the quality of parenting. “Betty Hart and Todd Risley recorded the language spoken in the homes of welfare families, working- class families, and professional families. The differences were quite marked: the 1 to 3-year-old children in welfare homes heard only 33 percent as much language as the children in working-class families, and only 20 percent as much language as children from professional families” (Cole, 314). This clearly proves the statement that the primary factor in the language developmental skills of children is the home environment and the parenting quality. Since children learn new language from the speech of adults, it should be marked that the quality of parents’ language, as well as motherese is important in the language development of the children. The more the parents’ use of appropriate and clear speech, the more likely it is for the children also to use a higher level of speech. Furthermore, more time spent with children provides them with more chances of language acquisition. Moreover, spending more time with children enables parents to pay more attention to their children’s behavior and correct any problematic behavior that might occur. It is quite obvious that parents from professional families tend to use a higher quality of speech and focus more on the education of their children than parents from non-professional families. Not only that, such parents have more time to spend with their children than other parents. Overall, the study finds three important factors that influence the language and behavior development of children. These three factors are (a) the quality of childcare, (b) the quantity of childcare, and (c) parenting quality. These factors are also correlated with the subsequent development of children. In other words, the characteristics of children (including any behavior problems) before kindergarten, strongly influences their development throughout the rest of their childhood. The article further states that the quality of parenting is more important than the other two factors, i.e. the quality and quantity of childcare. However, I feel that all three factors are equally important to children’s cognitive and social development. I believe that a healthy mix of parenting quality, quality and quantity of childcare is the best in the language development of children, as well as in curbing any behavior problems that might occur. Moreover, if there is a healthy combination of these three factors in the children’s life, the lack in one field/factor, can be overcome by the other two factors. However, I also believe that if any of these factors is absent completely or is very low in quality, then it is extremely hard, if not impossible, for the other two factors to overcome this lapse. In my opinion, this article distinctly supports lessons we have learned in class. However, the article leaves me curious as to whether the effects of early childcare last until high school and college or not. Since the study finds that parenting quality is the most important factor of the development of children, I would like to know more about what sort of parenting qualities affect the development of children directly, and what specific parenting techniques are helpful and/or harmful in this process. This study only provides information about the correlation between quality and quantity of childcare and the cognitive and social development of children. I thing that the study should have also specified the criteria they used in distinguishing between good and poor quality of childcare, so that parents can use it as reference for parenting, as well as checking whether the childcare their children are getting outside the home, i.e. through childcare centers, is of good quality or not, and if it is lacking in any way, then how to deal with it at home. Read More