eNotes
April 2, 2015In this Issue:
- Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth to Age Eight: A Unifying Foundation Source: Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council - April 1, 2015
- Reducing Health Insurance Inequities Among Underserved Children with Special Health Care Needs Source: Catalyst Center - Retrieved March 31, 2015
- Guide for States on Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization Source: CLASP and the National Women's Law Center - April 1, 2015
- Child Care Assistance in 2013 Source: CLASP - March 30, 2015
- Selected Resources on Dual Language Learners in Pre-K through Third Grade Source: Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes - April 2, 2015
- Comment Request - Study on Sustaining the Positive Effects of Preschool Source: U.S. Department of Education - March 30, 2015
1. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth to Age Eight: A Unifying Foundation
On April 1, 2015, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the National Research Council (NRC) published findings from an important study of the nation's early childhood workforce in a new report, Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth to Age Eight: A Unifying Foundation (April 2015). The report looks at what we currently know about the complexity of health, development, and learning in the early years and provides recommendations for building a high-quality workforce to improve professional care and education for children from birth through age 8. It stresses the need to develop a cohesive plan to put all segments of the workforce (from family child care providers to Pre K teachers) on the pathway to higher education and discusses the need for a unified foundation based on sound child development and early learning principles. See the press release here.
2. Reducing Health Insurance Inequities Among Underserved Children with Special Health Care Needs
The following two new briefs examine barriers to accessing health insurance coverage and health care financing for underserved and vulnerable families of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) and discuss strategies to overcome those barriers:
- Improving Access to Coverage for Children with Special Health Care Needs in the Face of Health Inequities: Strategies Reported by Family Leadership Organizations (2015) - This brief summarizes findings from interviews with family leadership organization staff in five states about the challenges underserved families face and the strategies these organizations use to address health insurance inequities among CSHCN in their communities.
- Reducing Health Insurance Inequities among Latino Families Raising Children with Special Health Care Needs (2015) - This brief highlights policies that can help reduce the uninsurance rate among Latino families as a whole, as well as Latino families of children with complex health care needs, for whom uninsurance may be particularly damaging to health.
These briefs were produced by the Catalyst Center and funded by the U.S. Maternal and Child Health Bureau.
3. Guide for States on Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization
In November 2014 Congress reauthorized the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act for the first time since 1996. The new law strengthens CCDBG's dual role as a major early childhood education program and a work support for low-income families. A new guide, Implementing the Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization: A Guide for States (2015), looks at key sections of the reauthorization and provides recommendations for states. It includes a chart comparing specific provisions of the new law with those of the previous law, an implementation timeline, a checklist indicating state compliance with select provisions of the law, a summary of the law, and state-by-state information on CCDBG funding and children served. It was developed by CLASP and the National Women's Law Center.
4. Child Care Assistance in 2013
Child care assistance helps to increase the sustainability of employment for low-income parents, provides stability for parents working to gain economic security, and allows low-income parents to access higher-quality care than they could otherwise afford. A new analysis of national and state spending on child care assistance finds that in FY 2013, the most recent year for which data are available, overall spending was at historically low levels. The number of children receiving child care assistance was also found to be at a 15-year low. See Child Care Assistance in 2013 for more information.
5. Selected Resources on Dual Language Learners in Pre-K through Third Grade
A new annotated bibliography from the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO), Resources for Supporting Teachers and Administrators to Improve Outcomes for Dual Language Learners in Pre-K through Third Grade (March 2015), identifies selected resources on best practices and policy to support effective teaching and learning for dual language learners (DLL) in early childhood programs and early elementary school.
6. Comment Request - Study on Sustaining the Positive Effects of Preschool
A recent notice in the Federal Register invites input from the public about the Study on Sustaining the Positive Effects of Preschool. This proposed information collection involves five case studies of programs that are designed to sustain the positive effects of preschool. It will include interviews with district officials, principals, kindergarten teachers, preschool teachers, program funders, and program evaluators. Comments must be received by May 29, 2015.