Abstract
Although they were probably the first form of day care for the youngest children, family day care (FDC) providers have long been mistrusted by governments and the leading bourgeoisie in Belgium, France and Germany (see for instance N.W.K., 1922 for Belgium). It is not until the 1980s that family day care provisions gained momentum in several countries (see for instance Mooney A, Statham J (ed), Family day care. International perspectives on policy, practice and quality. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London, 2003) in a period of economic downturn, as a cheap way to deal with the increasing demand for child care for the under-threes. Under the veil of a “home as haven” ideology (Rapp G, Lloyd S, Fam Relat 38(4):426–430. http://www.jstor.org/stable/585748, p. 426, 1989) or under the political assertion of “what women naturally do” (Urban M, Dalli C. A profession speaking and thinking for itself. In: L Miller, C Dalli, M Urban (eds) Early childhood grows up. Towards a critical ecology of the profession. Springer, Dordrecht/Heidelberg/London/New York, p. 519, 2012), childminders were brought to the forefront of early child care policies, despite earlier criticisms of the “home away from home” thesis that childminders did not need qualifications as they were mothers (Mayall B, Petrie P. Minder, mother and child. Institute of Education, London, 1977). As a result, two to three decades later, in another period of economic austerity, many regions and countries are faced with high attrition rates with over 3000 childminders stopping work in Flanders in the last 5 years and the percentage of early child care services in family-based provision in Sweden diminishing from 30 to hardly 5 % (e.g., Kind en Gezin. Jaarverslag 2014. Kind en Gezin, Brussel Jaarverslag 2014. Kind en Gezin, Brussel, 2015 (Korpi BM. The politics of preschool. Intentions and decisions underlying the emergence and growth of Swedish preschool. Ministry of Education and Research, Stockholm, 2007) The politics of preschool. Intentions and decisions underlying the emergence and growth of Swedish preschool. Ministry of Education and Research, Stockholm). Questions of professionalisation, sustainability and fairness are also gaining increasing political attention (Layland J, Smith A. N Z J Educ Stud 50(1):71–86, 2015) as it becomes clearer that qualifications matter more for the educational quality of FDC than years of experience (Fukkink RG, Lont A. Early Child Res Q 22:294–311, 2007). As a result, countries face quantitative and qualitative challenges (see for instance the European Qualification Framework in Working Group on Early Childhood Education and Care. Proposal for key principles of a quality framework for early childhood education and care. European Commission, Brussels, 2014) and it is far from evident that a new generation of family day care providers will emerge to fill this gap. In this chapter, we discuss this trilemma of professionalisation, sustainability and fairness in general and focus also on these issues within three non-English speaking regions – Flanders, France and Germany – which are regions where these issues have hardly been documented in the English language literature. We look at how the issue of working conditions, both financially and socially (and thus the issue of fairness) increases the tensions in the discussions of professionalisation and sustainability. We discuss these tensions and document how they are shaped in policy and practice
References
Aballéa, F. (2005). La professionnalisation inachevée des assistantes maternelles. Recherches et Prévisions, 80, 55–65.
Alberola, E. (2009). La professionnalisation des assistants maternels. Cahier de recherche, 263.
Ball, S., & Vincent, C. (2005). The ‘Childcare Champion’? New labour, social justice and the childcare market. British Educational Research Journal, 31(5), 557–750.
Bouve, C., & Sellenet, C. (2011). Confier son enfant. L’univers des assistantes maternelles. Paris: Editions autrement.
Bowlby, J. (1965). Child care and the growth of love. London: Pelican Books.
Burman, E. (1994). Deconstructing developmental psychology. London: Routledge.
Cameron, C., & Moss, P. (2007). Care work in Europe: Current understandings and future directions. London /New York: Routledge.
Champlong, F. (2011). Accompagner la professionnalisation des assistantes maternelles. Lyon: Chronique Sociale.
Cooke, G., & Lawton, K. (2008). For love or money: Pay, progression and professionalisation in the ‘early years’ workforce. London: Institute for Public Policy Research.
Cresson, G., Delforge, S., & Lemaire, D. (2012). La ‘qualité’ du travail dans le métier d’assistante maternelle. Le point de vue des ‘régulateurs’ de ce métier. Politiques sociales et familiales, 109, 79–86.
Dalli, C., Miller, L., & Urban, M. (2012). Early childhood grows up: Towards a critical ecology of the profession. In L. Miller, C. Dalli, & M. Urban (Eds.), Early childhood grows up: Towards a critical ecology of the profession. London: Springer.
Davies, E., Freeman, R., Doherty, G., Karlsson, M., Everiss, L.. …, & Hinke-Rahnau, J. (2012). An international perspective on regulated family day care systems. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(4), 127–138.
Deglorie, K. (2009). Professionalisering en duurzaamheid: een onderzoek bij stoppende onthaalouders. Onuitgegeven masterproef. Vakgroep Sociale Agogiek. Universiteit Gent.
Eurofound. (2015). Working conditions, training of early childhood care workers and quality of services – A systematic review. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
European Commission. (2014). Proposal for key principles of a quality framework for early childhood education and care. Report of the working group on early childhood education and care under the auspices of the European Commission. European Commission.
Everiss, E., & Dalli, C. (2003). Family day care in New Zealand: Training, quality and professional status. In A. Mooney & J. Statham (Eds.), Family day care. International perspectives on policy, practice and quality (pp. 59–77). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Fagnani, J., & Math, A. (2012). Des assistantes maternelles mieux formées et plus qualifiées. Les parents consentiraient-ils à augmenter la rémunération? Politiques sociales et familiales, 109, 59–73.
Fukkink, R. G., & Lont, A. (2007). Does training matter? A meta-analysis and review of caregiver training studies. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 22, 294–311.
Garrity, S., & Grath, B. (2011). “It’s not like a job now; it’s part of me”: Exploring African women’s experiences in the Irish childcare sector. Childcare in Practice, 17(1), 69–86.
Gelder, U. (2003). Carving out a niche? The work of a Tagesmutter in the New Germany. In A. Mooney & J. Statham (Eds.), Family day care. International perspectives on policy, practice and quality (pp. 41–58). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Heitkötter, M., Brüll, M., Kerl-Wienecke, A., & Schoyerer, G. (2010). Qualifizierung und Berufsperspektive in der Kindertagespflege. Status quo, Herausforderungen und Impulse des Aktionprogramms Kindertagespflege. München: Deutsches Jugendinstitut.
Jones, L., & Osgood, L. (2007). Mapping the fabricated identity of childminders: Pride and prejudice? Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 8(4), 289–300.
Kerl-Wienecke, A., Schoyerer, G., & Schuhegger, L. (2013). Kompetenzprofil Kindertagespflege in den ersten drei Lebensjahren. Berlin: Cornelsen.
Kind en Gezin. (2015). Jaarverslag 2014. Brussel: Kind en Gezin.
Kind & Gezin. (2014). Vergunningsbesluit van 22 November 2013. Bijlage competenties. Brussel: Kind & Gezin.
Korpi, B. M. (2007). The politics of preschool. Intentions and decisions underlying the emergence and growth of Swedish preschool. Stockholm: Ministry of Education and Research.
Layland, J. (2015). Quality in home-base child care for under-two-year old children in Aotearoa New Zealand: Conceptualising quality from stakeholder perspectives. New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies, 50(2), 269–284.
Layland, J., & Smith, A. (2015). Can home-based care offer high quality early childhood education? New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies, 50(1), 71–86.
Lloyd, E. (2012). Childcare markets: An introduction. In E. Lloyd & H. Penn (Eds.), Childcare markets. Can they deliver an equitable service? pp. 3–18. Bristol: Policy Press.
Mayall, B., & Petrie, P. (1977). Minder, mother and child. London: Institute of Education.
Mooney, A., & Statham, J. (Eds.). (2003). Family day care. International perspectives on policy, practice and quality. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Morabito, C., & Vandenbroeck, M. (2014). Equality of opportunities, divergent conceptualisations and their implications for early childhood care and education policies. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 49(3), 456–472.
Morel, N. (2007). From subsidiarity to ‘Free Choice’: Child- and elder-care policy reforms in France, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. Social Policy & Administration, 41(6), 618–637.
Moss, P. (2007). Bringing politics into the nursery: Early childhood education as a democratic practice (Working paper 43). The Hague: Bernard van Leer Foundation.
Moss, P. (2012). Foreword. In L. Miller, C. Dalli, & M. Urban (Eds.), Early childhood grows up. Towards a critical ecology of the profession (pp. v–viii). Dordrecht/Heidelberg/London/New York: Springer.
Moss, P., Cameron, C., & Boddy, J. (2006). The future of care work. In J. Boddy, C. Cameron, & P. Moss (Eds.), Care work. Present and future (pp. 163–174). London: Routledge.
Mouffe, C. (2005). On the political. London: Routledge.
Nationaal Werk voor Kinderwelzijn. (N.W.K.) (1922). Zitting van den Hoogeren Raad der Werken voor Kinderwelzijn van 14 februari 1920. Brussel: NWK.
Oberhuemer, P. (2011). The early childhood education workforce in Europe. Between divergences and emergencies? International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy, 5(1), 55–63.
Oberhuemer, P., Schreyer, I., & Neuman, M. J. (2010a). France. In P. Oberhuemer, I. Schreyer, & M. J. Neuman (Eds.), Professionals in early childhood education and care systems: European profiles and perspectives (pp. 147–166). Leverkusen Opladen: Barbara Budrich Publishers.
Oberhuemer, P., Schreyer, I., & Neuman, M. J. (2010b). Germany. In P. Oberhuemer, I. Schreyer, & M. J. Neuman (Eds.), Professionals in early childhood education and care systems: European profiles and perspectives (pp. 167–190). Leverkusen Opladen: Barbara Budrich Publishers.
OECD. (2006). Starting strong II. Early childhood education and care. In OECD (Ed.). Paris: OECD.
OECD. (2012). Education at a glance, 2012. Paris: OECD.
Peeters, J. (2008). De warme professional. Begeleid(st)ers kinderopvang construeren professionaliteit. Gent: Academia Press.
Peeters, J. (2012). De neerwaartse spiraal doorbroken: de professionaliteitsdiscussie in de kinderopvang. In K. Van Leeuwen & H. Van Crombrugge (Eds.), Gezinnen in soorten (Vol. 83–109). Antwerpen: Garant.
Peeters, J., Rohrmann, T., & Emilsen, K. (2015). Gender balance in ECEC: Why is there so little progress? European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 23(3), 302–314.
Penn, H. (2009). Early childhood education and care. Key lessons from research for policy makers. Brussels: NESSE.
Penn, H. (2014). The business of childcare in Europe. European Early Childhood Education and Research Journal, 22(4), 432–456. doi:10.1080/1350293X.2013.783300.
Rapp, G, & Lloyd, S. (1989). The role of “Home as haven” ideology in child care use. Family Relations, 38(4), 426–430. http://www.jstor.org/stable/585748
Stempinski, S. (2006). Kooperation zwischen Kindertageseinrichtungen und Kindertagespflege. Expertise im Auftrag der Bertelmanns Stiftung. München: Deutsches Jugendinstitut.
Sylva, K., Melhuish, E., Sammons, P., Siraj-Blatchford, I., & Taggart, B. (2004). The final report: Effective pre-school education (Technical paper 12). London: Institute of Education and DfES.
Urban, M. (2008). Dealing with uncertainty: Challenges and possibilities for the early childhood profession. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, special edition, 16, 2.
Urban, M., & Dalli, C. (2012). A profession speaking and thinking for itself. In L. Miller, C. Dalli, & M. Urban (Eds.), Early childhood grows up. Towards a critical ecology of the profession. Dordrecht/Heidelberg/London/New York: Springer.
Urban, M., Vandenbroeck, M., Van Laere, K., Lazzari, A., & Peeters, J. (2011). CoRe – Competence requirements in early childhood education and care. Final report. London & Ghent.
Urban, M., Vandenbroeck, M., Van Laere, K., Lazzari, A., & Peeters, J. (2012). Towards competent systems in early childhood education and care. Implications for policy and practice. European Journal of Education, 47(4), 508–526.
Van der Mespel, S. (2011). De onthaalouderacademie: groeikansen voor onthaalouders. Tijdschrift voor Welzijnswerk, 35(313), 26–36.
Vandenbroeck, M. (2009). In verzekerde bewaring. Honderdvijftig jaar kinderen, ouders en kinderopvang. Amsterdam: SWP.
Vandenbroeck, M., & Lazzari, A. (2014). Accessibility of early childhood education and care: A state of affairs. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 22(3), 327–335.
Vandenbroeck, M., Coussée, F., & Bradt, L. (2010). The social and political construction of early childhood education. British Journal of Educational Studies, 58(2), 139–153.
Vandenbroeck, M., Peeters, J., & Bouverne-De Bie, M. (2013). Lifelong learning and the counter/professionalisation of childcare: A case study of local hybridizations of global European discourses. European Early Childhood Education and Research Journal, 21(1), 109–124.
Wiemert, H., & Heeg, S. (2012). Kindertagespflege: Tätigkeitsfeld und Betreuungsform mit Potenzial. Ansätze einer qualitätsorientierten Weiterentwicklung. Handreichung zum Projekt. München: Deutsches Jugendinstitut.
Working Group on Early Childhood Education and Care. (2014). Proposal for key principles of a quality framework for early childhood education and care. Brussels: European Commission.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Vandenbroeck, M., Bauters, V. (2017). Family Day Care: The Trilemma of Professionalisation, Sustainability and Fairness in Flanders, France and Germany. In: White, E.J., Dalli, C. (eds) Under-three Year Olds in Policy and Practice. Policy and Pedagogy with Under-three Year Olds: Cross-disciplinary Insights and Innovations. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2275-3_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2275-3_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-10-2274-6
Online ISBN: 978-981-10-2275-3
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)