Early Childhood Professional Well-Being as an Issue of Quality in Head Start

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 5
  In Poster Session: Early Childhood Workforce Issues

Abstract

Nationally, in 2015, Head Start experienced a mid-year turnover rate of 16.5%. Turnover is known to negatively impact quality. Continuity is disrupted when teachers leave, severing important relationships among teachers, children and families. Professionals considering leaving may be unhappy and distracted to the point that capacity to care mindfully and appropriately for young children is diminished. This quantitative nationwide study used the Early Childhood Professional Well-being Questionnaire (ECPW-Q) in a nationwide sample of Head Start caregivers/teachers and administrators to study whether well-being is predictive of ‘risk of turnover.’ SEM was used to examine mediators and moderators including demographic characteristics, along with three factors of well-being identified in exploratory factor analysis including Supportive Structures, Collegial Relationships, and Professional Beliefs and Values.

Authors

• Mary Benson McMullen, Indiana University

• Kate McCormick, SUNY - College at Cortland

• Melissa S. C. Lee, Indiana University - Bloomington