Early Care and Education for Children in Low-Income Families: Patterns of Use, Quality, and Potential Policy Implications

This report assesses low-income families’ patterns of Early Child Care and Education (ECE) use, the implications of the extent and quality of ECE, the evidence on the quality of ECE, and key policy considerations. Of particular relevance to those working with immigrant families is the information on relative care and other home-based settings with unregulated caregivers, which is a common practice among foreign-born families.