AFT: Publications: American Teacher: November 2002: Special Report A Common Vision

AFT Home > Publications > American Teacher

	November 2002 Index Page
	Current Issue
	Previous Issues

American Teacher
November 2002--Special Report

A common vision

The AFT and Center for the Child Care Workforce hope to use their collective muscle to increase access to quality preschool programs and improve the jobs of those who teach and care for our youngest children

Few things are more important than preparing our nation's children for the future, and the sooner this process begins, the better. Ensuring that all families have access to high-quality, affordable child care services is a crucial starting point on the path to our nation's future. Studies show that children who have a productive and positive early childhood education experience are better prepared for school--both socially and academically. Current research also suggests that quality preschool education improves a child's likelihood of success and achievement into early adulthood.

In October, the Center for the Child Care Workforce (CCW), a national organization with which the AFT shares a common vision of accessible, quality child care services and early childhood education for all children, affiliated with the AFT. Both organizations recognize that the cornerstone of early childhood services is the presence of a stable, well-trained and well-compensated work force.

"Joining forces with the Center for the Child Care Workforce opens tremendous possibilities for advancing our goal of securing quality, accessible prekindergarten and child care services for families everywhere," AFT president Sandra Feldman says. "CCW has done groundbreaking work, most notably establishing the link between the quality of care children receive and the working conditions of their teachers and providers."

As part of the AFT, "CCW will provide crucial expertise, new allies, and enthusiasm as we organize for decent compensation, opportunities for professional development and eliminating barriers to access for children with the greatest need," she adds.

The AFT and CCW hope to use their collective muscle to advocate for public policy designed to increase access to quality early learning environments for all families. They also will work in tandem to develop an organizing model that would provide a unified voice for child care workers. This includes creating opportunities for professionals in different types of child care settings to join together to improve jobs for this work force.

The new AFT affiliate will work with the union's educational issues and legislative departments "to look at ways in which early childhood education providers and K-12 teachers can work together to bring continuity to the education of young children," says former CCW executive director Marci Young, who will direct the operations of the new affiliate.

Founded in 1978, CCW has been the leading voice for child care teachers and providers in local, state and national efforts to improve their working conditions as a vehicle for improving the quality of child care services.

"CCW's affiliation with the AFT is a natural progression of our work," says Young. Because CCW and AFT share a history of advocacy to improve jobs for those who teach children, "we expect this affiliation to strengthen the capacity of those who teach and care for our youngest children to influence public policy and organize to improve wages, benefits, and training and advancement opportunities."

Report shows child care centers
plagued by low pay, high turnover

One strength of the Center for the Child Care Workforce is its solid body of research and reporting on a range of child care-related issues. A major report released last year, for example, was the first longitudinal study based on observations of quality in child care settings at three different points--1994, 1996 and 2000. Unfortunately--but not surprisingly--the center found that low pay and high turnover rates are taking their toll on child care centers.

The researchers found that only 24 percent of teaching staff employed in 1996 were still on the job in 2000. In addition, two-thirds of the centers reported having two or more directors in that same period. Low wages are an obvious concern, with California child care workers in the study earning a 12-month full-time equivalent salary of about $24,600.

In addition, the study showed that new staff hired to replace those who left their centers or left the profession entirely were significantly less educated. Almost half of those who left had a bachelor's degree, compared to only one-third of those hired to replace them.

Marci Young, a deputy director in the office of the AFT executive vice president and the former executive director of CCW, says that while teacher shortages at the K-12 level are a matter of national concern, "the other teacher shortage"--among pre-K staff--"seldom registers in the public consciousness."

The study's authors urge policymakers to take steps to close the "economic and status gap" between teachers who work with different age levels. "Services for young children, like those for elementary, secondary and college students, must be seen as a public good, rather than a service underwritten primarily by families," Young says.

The full report, "Then and Now: Changes in Child Care Staffing, 1994-2000"--as well as lots of other resources--is available online at www.ccw.org. In addition, a new CCW report, "Inside the Pre-K Classroom: A Study of Staffing and Stability in State-Funded Prekindergarten Programs," was scheduled to be released in October. The report is a study of staff qualifications, stability, turnover and compensation in state-funded prekindergarten programs in five states. For a copy of "Inside the Pre-K Classroom," contact Teresa Valcarce at 202/879-4400 or bye-mail at tvalcarc@aft.org.

American Federation of Teachers, AFL•CIO - 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW - Washington, DC 20001