Access to quality child care is essential for working parents. Early care and education settings — including homes, child care centers and out-of-school programs — help Nebraska communities thrive by contributing to a strong workforce, while also providing children with safe and nurturing environments that foster their learning and development.
Research teams from four universities gathered May 4 and 5 at the Nebraska Union to discuss expanding knowledge and support of Early Head Start and other early care and education programs.
During the two-day Early Head Start University Research Partnership Data Camp, researchers collaborated in-person and virtually on a variety of topics, including parent-teacher relationships, infant/toddler well-being in Early Head Start center-based care and provider professional development.
Creating connections among early childhood research, practice and policy — and how each can enhance the lives of young children and their families — provided the central theme of the 2022 CYFS Summit on Research in Early Childhood.
Nearly 200 attendees, including researchers from across the University of Nebraska system, practitioners, administrators, community partners and policymakers, gathered April 13 at Nebraska Innovation Campus for the daylong, sixth biennial summit, which highlighted the latest research to advance early childhood education and development, and implications for practice and policy.
Given the speed at which technology changes and evolves, one can only imagine what media will look like in five years — and beyond.
But Nebraska researchers are collaborating with the state’s K-12 educators, artists and administrators to do just that.
It may seem obvious, but the emotional bond babies develop with their parents is crucial — not only for their survival, but also to ensure positive outcomes throughout life.
Less-obvious, however, is how this bond — known as attachment — develops.
With the world becoming more complex each day, the importance of civic knowledge and community engagement is on the rise — especially among younger generations.
Nebraska researchers are leading a project designed to provide civics, entrepreneurship and leadership education to underserved youth through an innovative learning program based on interactive online games and simulations.
With the pandemic-fueled anxiety of the past year and a half, workplace stress has become more common among much of the workforce.
Even under less-tumultuous conditions, job stress is a big contributor employee turnover. In early childhood settings, turnover can negatively impact educator relationships with children and families, and compromise children’s learning and development.
Early childhood obesity is a major U.S. public health problem, afflicting children from low-income and minority families in rural areas disproportionately with an increased risk for long-term health disparities, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
