Quality of Care: Local Variations

Conducted in 1991, this study surveyed the quality of day care centers in the province of Pavia, Italy, in order to provide a description of the centers and to trace educational patterns in the infant, young toddler, and toddler sections of the centers. The 32 day care centers located in the province employ a staff of 342 and provide 1,700 places for toddlers and infants. Questionnaires were administered to caregivers in each center. Most centers were organized in three sections, based on children's age. Two patterns of staff organization were: (1) the single role pattern, in which all staff carried out all tasks; and (2) the differentiated roles pattern, in which educational tasks were separated from service tasks. Analysis of questionnaire responses revealed that centers in townships with populations over 30,000 provided a higher quality of care than other centers, and that caregivers in the centers that provided higher quality care had continuous opportunities for in-service training and clearly identified duties. Analysis also showed two basic educational patterns in the day care centers. These were a maternal pattern, centering on the physical needs of the child, and a structured pattern, providing activities and experiences that focused on intellectual learning and the acquisition of social norms. Findings suggested that day care centers in Pavia need a clear social policy to coordinate initiatives in different townships and promote collaboration and exchange between centers.