More then just stimulating minds

24 October 2011
Shonkoff, Director of the Centre for Child Development at Harvard University, points to research indicating that many staff who provide early years care and education have high levels of depression, limited education, and constrained work experience, along with other indications of burn out.These highly stressed staff may be passing along their stress to the children in their care.

Similar to interventions with high-risk parents, professional development should seek to improve the emotional and regulatory capacity of these service providers, improving the stability of children’s out-of-home environment, and in turn reducing the risk that toxic stress will damage young children’s developing brains.

References:
Shonkoff, J. (2011). Protecting Brains, Not Simply Stimulating Minds. Science, 333(6045), 982-3.

http://www.preventionaction.org/prevention-news/more-then-just-stimulating-minds/5710