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.