Parents are always the best caregivers in a child’s life. With the increasing economic levels and having most parents especially mothers working, parents are forced to seek alternative caregiving services which majorly involve taking their children to daycare centers. Parents are obligated to choose the best provider depending on the age of the child and the needs of that child. These day care providers provide substitute caregiving and hence impact greatly on the development of the child. Children tend to spend most of the time in the day care centers and what that provider invests in the child can impact positively or negatively to the development of the child (Banks and Lamb, 2016). This paper will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of day care to child development and further give the importance of fostering early learning skills and empathy.
Day care centers help in the mental and language development of a child. According to a study conducted by Early Child Care and Youth Development (ECCYD), children in daycare centers were found to have significant mental functioning and with a wide variety of new words or vocabulary. Another study conducted by the National Institute of Health (NIH) found out that children who spent adequate time on a weekly basis in the daycare centers had great grasp of new words and used these vocabularies once they join school (Banks and Lamb, 2016).
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Day care also helps in nurturing the social growth of a child. Daycare centers have children from different backgrounds and the caregivers should ensure that they get along with each other. This process helps children associate closely with others. Furthermore, the children have a chance to interact closely with their peers and adults in the later years as compared to children who did not go to daycare centers. A study conducted by ECCYD indicated that children in daycare centers had better relationships with their parents and other adults as compared to other children who did not attend the daycare centers (Banks and Lamb, 2016).
The children who receive daycare services stand a better chance of adapting to school life easier. Daycare providers teach children on how to behave when around other people and how to interact with new people. From the centers, these children join schools and they meet different pupils and teachers. They have a better chance of getting along with their teachers and other pupils as compared to children who did not attend the centers (Ahnert, 2011).
Despite the discussed advantages, daycare has it is negative impacts to the development of a child. The separation the child gets from it is parents brings about negative emotions and social behaviors. This separation breaks the attachment that the child has with the parents which theorists say is detrimental to the development of a child (Ahnert, 2011). Banks and Lamb (2016), state that, children left in the hands of daycare providers develop negative emotions like frequent crying, aggression, hiding from the provider one’s the parents leave and screaming at the sight of the provider. Such reactions make a child develop insecure attachments and have difficult time joining up with their peers or interacting with other people.
Banks and Lamb (2016) further say that children who spent most of their early years in daycare centers have the inability to regulate their emotions. They tend to have a hard time switching between positive emotions and negative emotions. A study conducted by NIH established that students who were in daycare centers did not have respect towards their teachers and disagreed with the other students easily.
Ahnert (2011) says daycare providers tend to be less committed to the needs of a child as compared to the parents. The relation a provider creates with the child gives room for them to understand the child and get to know what suits them best. Parents have a better chance to do this as compared to daycare providers because they concentrate on one child. Daycare providers have several children to take care of and the needs of a child can be of less concern to them. The author further argues that according to biologists, providers who do not create better relationships with the children provide the poorest quality of care and hence a parent should consider taking a child to a daycare provider who offers quality services.Daycare centers also pose as a threat to the health of a child. Children are exposed to different diseases in the centers. The amount of time a child spends in a daycare center is directly related to the number of new infections the child is exposed to (Banks and Lamb, 2016).
In conclusion, daycare centers help foster learning skills and other positive emotions during the early years. From the discussion above, children have the ability to develop a new language and vocabularies while at the centers. In addition, a child has a better chance to relate with the other children and the adults at the center. This process helps them to adapt to school easily as compared to other children. There are several challenges associated to daycare like poor emotional and behavior regulation, insecure attachments and contraction of illnesses. To do away with the negative impacts of daycare, parents have a duty to take their child to a daycare center that offers the best quality of services. Daycare providers also have the obligation of offering quality services as their care significantly affects the development of a child.
References
Ahnert, L. & Lamb, M. (2011). Child Care and Its Impact on Young Children (2-5). Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development . Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/child-care-early-childhood-education-and-care/according-experts/child-care-and-its-impact-young-0
Banks, K.L. (2016). Effects of Daycare on Child Development . Retrieved November 29, 2016 from http://www.livestrong.com/article/101674-daycare-effects-child-development/
