Childcare in Canada
Over time, the debate of childcare issue within the Canadian public policy context has been raging. Rise in the media attention of the social issue of childcare policy in Canada concentrates on the relationship and coordination among the federal, provincial, and territorial governments in addressing the social issue (Finkel, 20013). According to Lewis Steven of The Star Canada News Agency, childcare is one of the priorities the Canadian Federal Government need to consider when designing its social policies. According to Lewis (2013), the Canadian Federal Government needs to consider the safety net income as an important factor contributing to affordable childcare services in the country. In Canada, parents or members of extended family have the responsibility of providing childcare services without the consideration of family net income. However, outside the family, there are many childcare providers operating as private individuals or agencies. Such childcare providers operate as private businesses.
The social problem underlying childcare in Canada is the operation of childcare providing agencies. Most agencies in the childcare sector operate illegally without approval of the respective government agencies such as the state or the federal government. The death of a two-year-old girl in Vaughan, Ontario was a revelation on how illegal daycare homes could be of serious consequences to the lives of many children. After the Vaughan incident, it was clear that Canada needed an elaborate childcare policy and universal program that prioritize the safety and well-being of children in childcare agencies. Childcare in Canada is also a social problem in a manner with which families handle the matter. The poor outcomes fr...
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...e Advocacy Association of Canada. (13 December, 2013). Where to get the latest scoop and how take action! Toronto: Rue College. Retrieved 31 May, 2014 from
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Lewis, S. (11 December, 2013). Without a Safety Net: What kind of country do Canadians want?. Retrieved 31 May 2014 from
Hendrick, H. (2005) Child welfare and social policy: an essential reader. Bristol: The Policy Press.
Fostering Nation? Canada Confronts Its History of Childhood Disadvantage written by Veronica String-Boag explores the oversights and the demanded promise of a century and more of child protection efforts by Canadians and their governments. String-Boag draws on a perspective that examines Canada’s marginalized youngsters between the nineteenth to the twenty-first century. The novel examines many different aspects about childhood disadvantage ranging from institutions, birth parents, state policies, and foster parents. This provides the audience with an endless reminder that the welfare of children cannot be separated from institutions and the community. But how well does String-Boag’s novel go about displaying the history of childhood disadvantage
There is a problem in Texas impacting children’s futures; many childcare centers and homes are not providing children with quality care. In an article about cost and quality in Texas childcare, child development experts Susan Eitel and Joyce Nuner quote a study stating “that [nationally] only 10% of infants and toddlers are in high quality [childcare] programs” (34). The term ratio describes the number of children one caregiver is watching. This number is one of the major factors in the quality of a childcare program. Organizations such as the National Association for the Education of Young Children know as NAEYC release recommendations regarding ratios and accredit programs based on their compliance. Childcare centers and homes must comply with certain minimum standards enforced by Texas regarding ratios; however, these standards often set the bar lower than recommendations made by these early childhood experts. The current standards in Texas do not ensure that all young children receive quality care; for this reason, the Texas Department of Family Protective Services should strengthen the minimum standards regarding ratios to better regulate the quality of care children receive.
Following the death of eight-year old Victoria Climbié in 2000, the Government asked Lord Laming to conduct an inquiry (Laming, 2003) to help decide whether to introduce new legislation and guidance to improve the child and young protection system in England.
Ideological, social, political, and economic factors of a given period play key roles in developing and maintaining any social welfare policies in which the area of child welfare is not an exception. Throughout the history of child welfare legislation in Canada, Acts have been passed and modified according to the changing concept of childhood and to the varying degree of societal atmosphere of each period.
Fostering Nation? Canada Confronts It’s History of Childhood Disadvantage, written by Veronica Strong-Boag, discusses the history of children in foster homes and institutions in Anglo-Canada. Strong-Boag examines the phases of fostering procedures being modified due to new polices being presented in Canada during the 1900s. These children would be removed willingly by the parent because of financial issues or by force through the government because of abuse or neglect. She argues that Canadians and their government failed to protect children who were abandoned and underprivileged throughout the 20th century. Even though she argues that Canadians and their government did a poor job of protecting children in the foster system, there was an addition of reforms developing within Canada. These included mothers’ allowances during WW1, unemployment insurance in the 1930s and 1940s and family
Canada, although it was very much alike during the 18th and the 19th century, however, when the 20th century came around equality took place and attitudes towards child labour were changing dramatically.
Canada is viewed as being a very safe and stable place to live because people are lucky enough to have healthcare, benefits for unemployment and family needs, as well as maternity leave. Crime is something that Canadians don’t often think about because people feel as though they are out of harm's way. As Canadians, we’ve watched the world experience different threats and crime, and we’ve seen the world fight back. For example, our neighbors in North America, the United States, have gone through terrorist attacks and issues with guns and violence. Just because we are witnessing these things in other places doesn’t mean that we aren’t at risk as well, and Canada does have certain approaches and regards in place if we are ever in danger. What I wish to address in this paper is how Canada is set up for reacting to crime and jeopardy, as well as an example of where we went wrong in our past. Methods in response to crime, Canada’s legal regime and the issue of Residential schooling for Aboriginals a hundred years ago will be presented.
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Smith, C. (2013, September 1). A Legacy of Canadian Child Care: Surviving the Sixties Scoop.
The history of child care is a universal practice that has been around for centuries that was only at first usually practiced among relatives. However, over the past decades with the increase in women employment, single parent homes, and the economy mothers and families have begun enrolling their children in child care centers regularly. Consequently, childcares became the norm in society and by the 1990’s 6 million infant and toddlers were in regular non parental child care (Phillips & Adams, 2001). Now that a high demand for child care was needed parents were faced with the issue of seeking suitable care facilities that conformed to certain standards, their budget, values, and other factors that were preferred and fit their needs. Since there are so many different child care types, principles, programs, and etc. that parents can choose from it can be difficult to know what to look for and decide what the best fit is for your child. This paper will briefly go over the cost, variety of child care arrangements, childcare regulations, and personnel qualifications among other factors to consider when choosing proper care for your children and their development.
Every day there are children who are either in foster care, or group homes, who have received maltreatment at least once over the duration of their stay. Unfortunately, for most of those children, it hasn’t and will not be a onetime thing. The Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect reported 15,980 child maltreatment investigations across Canada in the fall of 2008, which has increased significantly, whereas in 1988 there were 7,633 investigations. Child Welfare, is a set of government services designed to protect children and encourage family stability. Such services are done through the use of investigations into alleged child abuse, foster care, adoption services, and services to provide support for those families who
The Educational System in Ontario, Canada has been implementing a new curriculum to ensure a successful, practical and functional early education, where children of three, four and five years old could benefit in the short term from a new early intervention educational system. This group of legislators believes that during the following four years with full day educational intervention (FDEL) will bring new changes within the old philosophy that will affect the way young children’ are leaning . (OCDE, 2006).
Childcare has become an essential tool in an ever-changing and growing society. The cost of living in Canada has increased, and society has adapted; women have joined the work-force, and dual income families are necessary to retain a decent standard of living. Hence, there is a demand for adequate childcare. By enrolling a child into a childcare program, there are many benefits, such as allowing parents, single or not, to continue their careers and/or attend school, as well as provide children with a developmental and educational foundation that will benefit them later on in life. With these benefits there are also negatives. The cost of higher-quality childcare is expensive, and lower-income families can often not afford to enroll their children in such programs. If they are enrolled, it is likely to be in a lower-quality facility, where the children will not receive as adequate an education and experience. Additionally, if a child is enrolled in child care he/she may spend too much time away from their family, thereby loosening the familial bond. However, there are possible solutions that have the potential to outweigh the negatives. Overall, the benefits of utilizing child care in Canada outweighs the potential negatives by encouraging children’s developmental growth, giving parents time to work in order to ensure a better quality of life for their family, and provide alternatives to low-income families.
Introduction I have chosen to do my case-study at a childcare center in Framingham. This center is owned by Staples Headquarters and run by childcare company Bright Horizons. They currently have 196 children enrolled which includes the following programs of Infants, Toddlers, Preschool, Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten.