The benefits and costs of good child care: The economic rationale for public investment in young children

by Gordon Cleveland and Michael Krashinsky, Department of Economics, University of Toronto at Scarborough.
Childcare Resource and Research Unit, 1998.

This study examines the economic argument concerning the investment of public funds in the education and care of young children across the economic spectrum. Using traditional economic analysis, it concludes that the developmental benefits to children in high quality early childhood education and child care programs and the benefits of employment to parents significantly exceed the costs. Thus, publicly-funded, high quality early childhood education and care would represent a prudent and productive use of scarce public funds.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements
Foreword

Executive Summary

Chapter 1 What does economic theory tell us about the potential benefits of good child care?

Chapter 2 The long-term beneficial effects of good child care on children’s development and learning

Chapter 3 The effect of child care on mothers

Chapter 4 Employment provided by government child care assistance

Chapter 5 Adding up the benefits and costs of good child care

Chapter 6

Conclusions

Appendix A
Appendix B
References

		»  Publications list
		»  Order form

			The benefits and costs of good child care: The economic rationale for public investment in young children. [103pp, 374KB]

		This publication is available for purchase. Cost: $18 CDN, $12.90 USD. Use our online order form or contact CRRU

PDF files require Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Get Acrobat Reader.