Validating North Carolina's 5-star child care licensing system - Page 1 |
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Summary and Discussion W e conclude from these results that the 5- star licensing system does accurately reflect the overall quality of a child care center. Par-ents can be assured that there are meaningful pro-gram differences among centers that have a 3- star, 4- star, or 5- star rating. Because on- site observations of the quality of the child care classes are a partial requirement for a center to obtain higher star ratings, it is not surprising that our observations show a positive relationship with the license level. However, these observations were made by an independent group not involved in star ratings. In addition, the observers had no knowl-edge of the centers’ future license levels. This study adds independent validation that the star- system does reflect quality. A limitation of this study is that none of the centers in the existing sample received a 1- star license and only one center had received a 2- star rating. This limits our conclusions about quality to the middle- to-upper range of the star license system; however, we believe that the relation with quality holds across the range of 1 to 5 stars. Our conclusion about the validity of the star license system applies only to center- based child care. Fam-ily child care homes, which provide care for about 28% of children under age 6, are rated with a similar system, but this study just included centers. The Smart Start evaluation team visited 154 family child care homes before the star license system was imple-mented. We may be able to conduct a similar validity study once enough of the homes have received their star rating. The new license system poses a challenge to longitu-dinal evaluators of quality improvement. Since 1994, Smart Start’s effects on child care quality have been documented by showing steady increases in the proportion of centers that received the highest child care license rating, an AA license. Now that the state has changed the licensing system, evaluations can no longer use A to AA increases as a sign of progress. The state essentially has a new baseline— the distri-bution of license levels from 1- 5 stars in 2001. Progress can be charted from this point forward using license level but cannot be compared to years past. To document progress since the inception of Smart Start in 1993, the state must continue to collect periodic, independent observations of child care— using the same measures from year to year— on samples of NC child care. The data collected by the Smart Start evaluation team allows a long- term pic-ture of quality improvement across the state through-out the entire existence of Smart Start. Harms, T., & Clifford, R. M. ( 1980). The Early Child-hood Environment Rating Scale. New York: Teachers College Press. This report was prepared by Donna Bryant, Kathleen Bernier, Kelly Maxwell, and Ellen Peisner- Feinberg and data assistance from Steve Magers, Karen Taylor, and Marvin Yeager. The FPG UNC- CH Smart Start Ealuation study is funded by a contract from the Division of Child Development in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. For more information about the Smart Start Evaluation, visit the project Web site at www. fpg. unc. edu/~ smartstart To receive additional copies, contact Marie Butts at ( 919) 966- 4295 or email: marie_ butts@ unc. edu © 2000 by Donna Bryant Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center UNC- Chapel Hill Validating North Carolina’s 5- Star Child Care Licensing System FPG UNC- CH Smart Start Evaluation Team February 2001 1,000 copies of this report were printed at a cost of $ 555.95, or 55¢ per copy.
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Title | Validating North Carolina's 5-star child care licensing system - Page 1 |
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Full Text | Summary and Discussion W e conclude from these results that the 5- star licensing system does accurately reflect the overall quality of a child care center. Par-ents can be assured that there are meaningful pro-gram differences among centers that have a 3- star, 4- star, or 5- star rating. Because on- site observations of the quality of the child care classes are a partial requirement for a center to obtain higher star ratings, it is not surprising that our observations show a positive relationship with the license level. However, these observations were made by an independent group not involved in star ratings. In addition, the observers had no knowl-edge of the centers’ future license levels. This study adds independent validation that the star- system does reflect quality. A limitation of this study is that none of the centers in the existing sample received a 1- star license and only one center had received a 2- star rating. This limits our conclusions about quality to the middle- to-upper range of the star license system; however, we believe that the relation with quality holds across the range of 1 to 5 stars. Our conclusion about the validity of the star license system applies only to center- based child care. Fam-ily child care homes, which provide care for about 28% of children under age 6, are rated with a similar system, but this study just included centers. The Smart Start evaluation team visited 154 family child care homes before the star license system was imple-mented. We may be able to conduct a similar validity study once enough of the homes have received their star rating. The new license system poses a challenge to longitu-dinal evaluators of quality improvement. Since 1994, Smart Start’s effects on child care quality have been documented by showing steady increases in the proportion of centers that received the highest child care license rating, an AA license. Now that the state has changed the licensing system, evaluations can no longer use A to AA increases as a sign of progress. The state essentially has a new baseline— the distri-bution of license levels from 1- 5 stars in 2001. Progress can be charted from this point forward using license level but cannot be compared to years past. To document progress since the inception of Smart Start in 1993, the state must continue to collect periodic, independent observations of child care— using the same measures from year to year— on samples of NC child care. The data collected by the Smart Start evaluation team allows a long- term pic-ture of quality improvement across the state through-out the entire existence of Smart Start. Harms, T., & Clifford, R. M. ( 1980). The Early Child-hood Environment Rating Scale. New York: Teachers College Press. This report was prepared by Donna Bryant, Kathleen Bernier, Kelly Maxwell, and Ellen Peisner- Feinberg and data assistance from Steve Magers, Karen Taylor, and Marvin Yeager. The FPG UNC- CH Smart Start Ealuation study is funded by a contract from the Division of Child Development in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. For more information about the Smart Start Evaluation, visit the project Web site at www. fpg. unc. edu/~ smartstart To receive additional copies, contact Marie Butts at ( 919) 966- 4295 or email: marie_ butts@ unc. edu © 2000 by Donna Bryant Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center UNC- Chapel Hill Validating North Carolina’s 5- Star Child Care Licensing System FPG UNC- CH Smart Start Evaluation Team February 2001 1,000 copies of this report were printed at a cost of $ 555.95, or 55¢ per copy. |