Why Quality Childcare is Important in These Modern Days?

In our modern-day, it can be challenging to know what is best for our children with regard to childcare and parenting, especially since every child and family system is unique. Despite the differences, there is something the majority of families have in common and are wondering why quality child care is so important. We always thought we understood what it takes to raise a child. Like many first-time parents, we did our homework in the months leading up to our child’s birth, feeling confident in my pursuit of a well-laid plan.

And then came the search for child care.

Nothing could have prepared us for this reality we have found ourselves in. It is natural for us to have questions and to feel confused because we have never lived through this before. We all want our children to have quality childcare, but we often don’t know where to begin. We want the best for our children, but when it comes to the hours spent away from them, what exactly does that look like? 

Why quality childcare so important in these modern days?

Some parents would agree that they should not cut corners to save money because high-quality care is important for kids. And when we say high-quality care, we don’t mean we only wanted to hire a nanny or enrol our youngest in the most expensive Montessori childcare with a two-year waiting list. The fact that very few families can actually afford to pay the true cost of child care. For so many families, that’s not even a decision. They’re putting their child in whatever child care they can afford, which doesn’t have all of the developmental, high-quality, well-skilled and well-paid teachers. It’s a really fundamental issue in our society right now.

The main reasons why quality childcare should be prioritised.

• Nurturing brain development

A good start in life for their new babies includes child care. When heading off to work, all parents deserve to be confident that their babies are receiving the best quality care possible. This is because affordable, high-quality early childhood programs such as childcare can make the difference between success and failure. The early years of a child are important because the experiences young children have and the relationships they have with the important people in their lives literally shape the development of their brain. 

The nature of these relationships grow between caregivers and children are huge factors in a child’s healthy physical, social-emotional and cognitive growth, and they are at the heart of child care quality. Most often than not, babies learn from the interactions they have with the adults who care for them whether at home with their parents or in child care with their caregiver. Hence, quality childcare not only helps infants and toddlers to benefit from caregivers who understand how to respond to their social and emotional needs and are trained in facilitating the play and exploration that are the basis for baby learning. A quality child care centre e should be a place where a nurturing staff provides an environment rich in language and activities.

• Health and safety measures.

Child care is a necessity for most working families, and millions of parents across Malaysia rely on it each day. In fact, parents do expect that providers have successfully passed a background check, are well-trained, and are recipients of regular inspections that ensure that the children in their care remain safe.  However,  health and safety measures that are taken by child care are the major contributing factor to the variation in the quality child care. Family child care settings have different regulations than centre-based care. With quality childcare, there are few points that would be taken by the child care centre. Among these are background checks, training for child care providers, and maintaining certain teacher-child ratios. These practices ensure that teachers are qualified and prepared to care for young children as well as give parents peace of mind that their children will be in a safe and enriching environment while they are at work.

• Getting ready for future

As a matter of fact, infant and toddler should be ensuring access to high-quality child care because today’s babies will be the core of our mid-century workforce and investing in them now gives us the greatest chance for impact. Right from the beginning, babies’ brains are exploding with activity and are hungry for input. Quality childcare helps to actively engage your child through everyday activities like playing, reading and being there when they feel stress. With high-quality childcare, they not only provide the benefit of socialization where your child can learn and grow with other children. They are also stimulated by other kids and develop social skills through their daily experiences in daycare. Meeting and playing with other children will help your child to learn lots of new skills, overcome shyness, as well as helping them to develop empathy and their emotional literacy when they socialize with their peers. In fact, they have lots of opportunities to socialize with other children and adults in the nursery. This experience complements the child’s home life and promotes their emotional and intellectual development.

Are you ready to find high-quality childcare?

After all, children who receive quality child care are more likely to develop social and learning skills at a younger age. These skills provide your child with the opportunity to develop their language, communication and social skills. Kids make friends and learn how to interact with others, solve conflicts, empathise, express their thoughts and feelings, regulate emotions, share, solve problems and be team players as well as leaders. Learning these communication skills prepares infant and toddler for preschool and beyond. Nevertheless, childcare is a key caregiving setting, where learning how to relate to others and deal with emotions and behaviours takes place. And children who experienced higher-quality relationships and activities in formal childcare were are attentive. But we believe that education doesn’t end when the child goes home after school. We do encourage parents to spend time bonding with their children in an extension of what they learn in school. This will not only help reinforce positive messages and skills but also help create a strong parent-child attachment.