Studies in the News: Children and Family Supplement is a service provided to the California Children and Families Commission (CCFC) by the State Library's Research Bureau and State Information and Reference Center. The service features weekly lists of current articles focusing on Children and Family policy. Prior lists can be viewed from the California State Library's Web Catalog by selecting the Special Resources link on the opening page at www.lib.state.ca.us.

Service to State Employees:

• When available, the URL for the full text of each item is provided.

• Items in the State Library collection can be checked out to state officials and staff.

• Access to all materials listed will be provided by the State Information Reference Center, either by e-mail to cslsirc@library.ca.gov or by calling 654-0261.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE & LAW ENFORCEMENT

FAMILIES

Imprisoned Fathers and their Children. By Gwyneth Boswell and Peter Wedge. (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, England) 2002. 176 p.

["The authors researched a large population of prisoner fathers, their partners/child careers, prison staff and children themselves during the late 1990s.... The findings highlight and exemplify the issues addressed within the justice/welfare paradox that surrounds imprisoned fathers and their children." NOTE: Imprisoned ... is available for 3-day loan.]

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EDUCATION

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

"Changes in Children's Self-Competence and Values: Gender and Domain Differences across Grades One through Twelve." By Janis Jacobs and others. IN: Child Development, Vol. 73, No. 2 (April 2002) pp. 509-527.

["According to numerous theories, children perform better and are more motivated to select increasingly challenging tasks when they believe that they have the ability to accomplish a particular task. The central goal of this present study was to describe the changes in children's ability perceptions and task values in three domains (math, language arts and sports) from first through twelfth grade."]

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A Timely Idea: Rethinking Federal Education Programs for Children with Disabilities. By Thomas Hehir, Lawrence C. Gloeckler and Margaret L. McLaughlin, Center on Education Policy (The Center, Washington, DC) January 2002. 52 p.

Full Text at: www.cep-dc.org/specialeducation/timelyidea2002.pdf

["Three national experts offer suggestions for improving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in this paper. They may disagree on urgency and timing, but they all agree on the areas that need improvement -- a greater emphasis on academic achievement for children with disabilities, a reduction in paperwork and complexity, and better funding." Connect for Kids (May 6, 2002).]

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Early Learning and Care and Public Opinion: A Report on a Survey in Washington State. By the Economic Opportunity Institute (The Institute, Seattle, Washington) March 2002. 4 p.

Full Text at: www.eoionline.org/ELC-PublicOpinion2002.pdf

["There is overwhelming public support for public policies to improve the quality and availability of early learning and care for children, according to this Washington state survey. Three out of four voters favor providing funds to make voluntary, all-day kindergarten available to all 5-year-olds and voluntary, high quality preschool available to all 3 and 4-year-olds." Connect for Kids (April 22, 2002).]

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"PREpared for Success: Wider Access to Preschool Will Help More Kids Succeed in Later Grades, According to a Growing Chorus of Advocates." By Amanda Paulson. IN: Christian Science Monitor (April 30, 2002) [online.]

Full Text at: www.csmonitor.com/2002/0430/p12s03-lepr.htm

["There is a growing effort around the United States to ensure that all children have basic abilities before they ever set foot in a public school classroom. Those at Educare Colorado have settled on a few strategies to improve both the quality of child care and access to top-notch programs, including assessing and rating providers; convincing the state to link its subsidies to a provider's ratings; and getting information to parents about how they can give their children learning opportunities, as well as how to judge quality child care."]

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A Survey of the Status of Equality in Public Education in California; A Survey of a Cross-Section of Public School Teachers. By Louis Harris. Prepared for Public Advocates, Inc., with support from The Rockefeller Foundation. (Public Advocates, San Francisco, California) April 30, 2002. 15 p.; Appendices.

Full Text at: www.publicadvocates.org/equality_article-latest3.pdf

["More than 1,000 teachers statewide were asked about major problems they encountered in schools ... [This study finds that] problems that tend to impede learning ... are clustered on campuses that serve families who receive public assistance ... or who are non-English speaking." Sacramento Bee (May 3, 2002) A3.]

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Challenges of Conflicting School Reforms: Effects of New American Schools in a High-Poverty District. By Mark Berends and others, RAND Education. MR-1483-EDU. (RAND, Santa Monica, California) 2002. 161 p.

Full Text at: www.rand.org/publications/MR/MR1483/

["The purpose of this study is to examine the conditions of New American Schools (NAS) classrooms compared with non-NAS classrooms and to study the relationships between classroom conditions and student achievement in a high-poverty district in San Antonio, Texas. The focus is on the conditions in the district, schools, and classrooms that promote or inhibit design implementation and changes in teaching and learning." NOTE: Challenges... is available for 3-day loan.]

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HEALTH

CHILDREN

Child Mental Health: Exploring Systems of Care in the New Millennium. By David A. Dosser and others. (Haworth Press, New York, New York) 2001. 112 p.

[Includes: "Promoting Family Empowerment Through Multiple Roles;" "In Quest of an Interdisciplinary Helping Process Framework for Collaborative Practice in Systems of Care;" "Words Can Be Powerful; Changing the Words of Helping to Enhance Systems of Care;" "Challenges of Providing Interdisciplinary Mental Health Education;" and others. NOTE: Child Mental ... is available for 3-day loan.]

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Oral Health Status of Children in Santa Clara County: Results of the Health Trust 2001 Needs Assessment. By Kathy Phipps, The Health Trust (The Trust, San Jose, California) December 2001. 31 p.

Full Text at: www.healthtrust.org/pubs/OralHealthStatusofChildreninSantaClaraCounty.PDF

["The primary goal of the needs assessment was to evaluate the oral health status of two primary groups -- Head Start enrollees plus elementary school children (kindergarten and third grade) in Santa Clara County. [Among] key findings: 478 children received a dental screening; 52 percent ... were caries free while 48 percent had a history of dental caries -- at least one tooth with untreated decay and/or a filling."]

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"Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Infant Mortality Rates--60 Largest U.S. Cities, 1995-1998." By V. Haynatzka and others. IN: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 51, No. 15 (April 19, 2002) pp. 329-332, 343.

Full Text at: www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5115a4.htm

["The study focused on racial and ethnic disparities in infant mortality rates in the 60 largest United States cities from 1995-1998. This report finds that Black infants are more likely to die before the age of one than White or Hispanic infants." CDF Children's Health Information Project (April 26, 2002).]

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The Hepatitis A Burden in California’s Latino Children. By David E. Hayes-Bautista and others, Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture, University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine. (The Center, Los Angeles, California) April 16, 2002. 19 p.

Full Text at: www.cesla.med.ucla.edu/html/pdf/hepfinal.pdf

["Hepatitis A Prevention Urged: Inland Hispanic Children Contract the Virus at Higher Rates than Other Groups: A study found that from 1996 to 2000, Hispanic children in Riverside County were nearly seven times as likely to get infected with hepatitis A than non-Hispanic white children.... In San Bernardino County, Hispanic children were more than three times as likely to be infected." Press-Enterprise (April 18, 2002) B1.]

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HUMAN SERVICES

CHILD CARE

Making a Difference: Advocacy and Organizing Pay Off Big for San Francisco's Early Care and Education Workforce. By Joe Wilson, Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth, National Association of Child Advocates (The Association, Washington, DC) February 2002. 2 p.

Full Text at: www.childadvocacy.org/camad0202.pdf

["Turnover has declined among child care workers and the number of those pursuing professional development has increased in the wake of increased local funding in San Francisco's early childhood investment portfolio, which is virtually unmatched by any city of comparable size in the country. This brief tells how advocates worked together to secure public funding for two child care provider wage supplement programs worth over $8 million annually." Connect for Kids (April 29, 2002).]

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Child Care Licensing: Research: It's Time to Improve Licensing Requirements. By the National Center for Early Development and Learning (The Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina) April 2002. 2 p.

Full Text at: www.fpg.unc.edu/~ncedl/PDFs/spot36.pdf

["According to the National Center for Early Development and Learning, research documenting the relatively low quality of child care in the United States suggests that it is time to improve the licensing requirements in many states for both center and family child care, and to use additional strategies that lead to higher quality care and education for our children." Connect for Kids (May 6, 2002).]

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Understanding Family, Friend and Neighbor Care in Washington State: Developing Appropriate Training and Support. By Richard N. Brandon and others, Human Services Policy Center, University of Washington (The Center, Seattle, Washington) February 2002. 162 p.

Full Text at: www.hspc.org/publications/early_ed/FFN_report_2002.pdf

["[The authors] surveyed parents, caregivers, professionals, and policy makers to understand: how many children are in family, friend or neighbor (FFN) care, for how many hours, and for what reasons. This study defined FFN care as any regular, non-parental care other than a licensed center, program, or family child care (DCC) home.... Approximately 480,000 Washington children are cared for by family, friends, or neighbors on a regular basis."]

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Estimating the Size and Components of the U.S. Child Care Workforce and Caregiving Population: Key Findings from the Child Care Workforce Estimate: Preliminary Report. By Alice Burton and others, Center for the Child Care Workforce. (The Center, Washington, DC) May 2002. 52 p.

Full Text at: www.ccw.org/pubs/workforceestimatereport.pdf

["In response to the rising demand for data on the child care workforce, this two-year research project is working to develop a framework and methodology for quantifying the size and characteristics of the U.S. child care workforce, with a focus on the workforce serving children ages 0 through 5 (excluding children enrolled in kindergarten."]

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13 Indicators of Quality Child Care: Research Update. Presented by Richard Fiene, National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care. (The Center, Aurora, Colorado) 2002. 78 p.

Full Text at: aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/ccquality-ind02/

["The National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care utilized the two licensing measurement methodologies (licensing weighting and indicator systems) to develop a user-friendly, shortened assistance tool to protect children from harm in out-of-home childcare. The audiences for this research brief are state administrators and policymakers, childcare providers, and early childhood researchers." HandsNet (April 26, 2002).]

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"Helping Families with Young Children -- A Closer Look at Home Visitation." By Nancy Goodban and Dana Rapoport. IN: California Policy Review. Vol. 1, No. 3 (February 2002). pp. 1-12.

Full Text at: www.sphereinstitute.org/pdf/CPR_v1n3.pdf

["This examines the benefits and challenges of expanding home visitation services, as well as unanswered questions from evaluations of these programs.... Recent literature and reported experiences with home visitation suggest that it can be an effective method to link young families to beneficial resources."]

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Early Childhood Poverty: A Statistical Profile. By Younghwan Song and Hsien-Hen Lu. National Center for Children in Poverty. (The Center, New York, New York) March 2002. 6 p.

Full Text at: cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/nccp/ECPprofile302.pdf

["The 2.1 million children under age three who are poor face a greater likelihood of impaired development because of their increased exposure to a number of factors associated with poverty. These risk factors include: inadequate nutrition; environmental toxins; diminished interaction due to maternal depression; trauma and abuse; lower quality child care; [and ] parental substance abuse."]

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The Unfinished Business of Welfare Reform: Improving Prospects for Children and Youth. By Kristin Anderson Moore and Martha J. Zaslow, Child Trends. (Child Trends,Washington, DC) April 2002. 21 p.

Full Text at: www.childtrends.org/PDF/UnfinishedBusinessofWR.pdf

["Outcomes for children affected by welfare reform remain largely unchanged. Moreover, these children generally remain disadvantaged and at risk. The authors base these conclusions on analysis of both indicator data measuring child well-being during the years following the implementation of the 1996 law and results from experimental evaluations of welfare-to-work programs. To illuminate this evidence, insights are derived from the extensive body of knowledge on child development and the factors that influence child outcomes."]

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