Parental perceptions of quality in center-based care for toddlers

This study investigated parents' perceptions of the quality of the daycare setting in which they had placed their child. One classroom serving children aged 14 to 30 months in each of twenty-six daycare centers in Knox County was assessed by trained observers using the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS). One hundred and eleven parents of the children in these classrooms completed questionnaires derived from the ITERS, rating both the quality of the classroom and the relative importance of the various aspects of quality included in the questionnaire. Results indicated that parents rated the quality of the classrooms significantly higher than the observers, who rated most of the classrooms as being of poor to mediocre quality. Parents placed the highest value on caregiver-child interactions, health, and safety aspects of quality. Parents' value ratings were not related to parent demographic characteristics of age, education, or income. Discussion includes various reasons why parents may not be well-informed consumers of child care, and implications for licensing regulations, parent education, and caregiver training.