Daycares

The first few years of a child’s life are imperative to their development (Cohn). Putting a young child in the hands of a daycare could be harming them more than one would imagine, and could continue to have detrimental effects in the future. About 13.4% of children under the age of five regularly attend daycare, according to the U.S. census bureau, which means that millions of children are affected by the quality of care that is being received at these centers. Some may argue that daycares are more beneficial to children than detrimental, and it gives young children a social advantage. In opposition to this, evidence will show that there are more harmful aspects to daycares than beneficial. American daycares not only have long term detrimental effects on a child’s mental health, as well as social behavior, but the majority also does not provide high quality care.

In illustration of the quality of care children receive, studies and statistics show just how lacking in quality most American daycares are. Surprisingly, the National Institute of Child Health Development held a survey that showed only 10% of daycares has high quality care. The rest of the daycares were either rated fair or poor (Cohn). According to a federally funded study, children who are four and a half years old or younger receiving low quality care will be more likely to have obedience and academic problems in the future than those who received high quality care (Stein). This means that most young children attending daycare in the United States are prone to having obedience and academic issues as time goes on. In addition to the overall rankings of daycares, the quality of these centers may be questioned by their caregiver-to-infant ration. Only one third of child...

... middle of paper ...

...ver, children who do not fully nurturing environments at daycare will grow up to have less impulse control and struggle in school (Cohn).

In conclusion, American daycares have long term detrimental effects on the mental and social development of children, and mostly do not provide high quality care. Most children attending daycares in America are receiving low quality care, which can be the root for long term obedience and academic problems. Also, if a child feels as if they are being abandoned by their parents when put into daycare, they may form aggressive behavior and develop mental health problems. In order to improve the quality of daycares and reduce their harmful effects, change needs to happen. Making sure the caregivers and licensed and qualified, having enough caregivers, and setting a healthy standard program for daycares would be a good place to start.