Parents are the first line of defense against poor quality child care.
They need to claim that power. National studies and research have shown that few child-care settings serve the intellectual, social and emotional needs of young children. Yet more and more children are being entrusted to child-care providers for long hours at ever younger ages. Many parents think that's as unavoidable as dirty diapers. But this mind-set can lead to a feeling of impotence and a shrugging acceptance of poor quality.