Early Care and Education for Children in Immigrant Families

A substantial and growing share of the population, immigrant children are more likely than children with native-born parents to face a variety of circumstances, such as low family income, low parental education and language barriers that place them at risk of developmental delay and poor academic performance once they enter school.

The authors examine the current role of and future potential for early care and education (ECE) programs in promoting healthy development for immigrant children. Participation in center-based care and preschool programs has been shown to have substantial short-term benefits and may also lead to long-term gains as children go through school and enter adulthood. Yet, overall, immigrant children have lower rates of participation in nonparental care of any type, including center-based ECE programs, than their native counterparts.

Thus the authors suggest that policy makers follow a two-pronged approach for improving ECE participation rates among immigrant children. 

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