7 - Research and Information

In the Early Childhood Development Agreement, governments have agreed to work together on research and knowledge related to early childhood development, share information on effective practices that improve child outcomes and work jointly to disseminate the results of research. The Government of Canada undertakes a number of important information, research and surveillance activities related to young children and their families. This contributes to the foundation of knowledge and understanding of healthy child development, and ultimately to sound public policy. Data obtained from many of the activities identified in this chapter form the foundation of the companion document to this report – The Well-Being of Canada’s Young Children: Government of Canada Report 2002 (as described in the Preface).

Previous

Table of Contents

Next

Français

Activities at a Glance ^{1, 2}

Health Canada

Canadian Childhood Cancer Surveillance and Control Program

The Canadian Childhood Cancer Surveillance and Control Program describes the patterns of health care used by children with cancer, assesses their clinical outcomes and determines the risk factors for developing childhood cancer.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hpb/lcdc/bc/cccscp/index.html

Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP)*

A surveillance system that collects information on childhood injuries in 10 pediatric hospital emergency rooms in Canada and in five general hospital emergency rooms.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/injury-bles/chirpp/

Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect

This is the first national study of the incidence of child abuse and neglect reported to, and investigated by, child welfare services in Canada.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/cm-vee/cis_e.html

Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System*

The Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System (CPSS) is an ongoing system of data collection and analysis for the perinatal period, including both maternal and infant health outcomes.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/rhs-ssg/about_e.html

Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being

The Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being are working to improve understanding of the physical and mental health needs of children, and the critical factors for healthy child development. Three of the five centres include research on issues affecting early childhood development – the Centre for Early Childhood Development, the Centre for Child Welfare, and the Centre for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs.
For more information: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/centres

Family Violence Initiative and National Clearinghouse on Family Violence

With the long-term goal of reducing the occurrence of family violence in Canada, the Family Violence Initiative supports activities to address gaps in knowledge and to develop and disseminate information on the issue of family violence on behalf of 13 federal government departments, agencies and Crown corporations led by Health Canada. Within the Initiative, Health Canada operates the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence.
For more information: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/familyviolence/index.html or call 1 800 267-1291

Mother-Net Pilot Project*

In partnership with the Motherisk Clinic at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Health Canada is developing a system to collect and share information on the safety or risk of pharmaceuticals, non-pharmaceuticals and other exposures during pregnancy and lactation.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/csc-ccs/mothernet_e.html

National Child Day (New)

In 1993, the Government of Canada enacted the Child Day Act to designate November 20 of each year as a national day of the child. The purpose of National Child Day is to promote awareness in Canada of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Health Canada provides leadership for National Child Day through the development and dissemination of educational and promotional materials to encourage schools, community groups, families and others who work with children across the country to mark this day.
For more information: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/english/e_splash.html

National Study on Balancing Work, Family and Lifestyle (New)

This is a multi-year research project which examines critical issues associated with balancing work and family.
For more information: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/publicat/work-travail/index.html

Population Health Fund

The Population Health Fund is a program designed to support time-limited projects, sponsored by Canadian voluntary not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions. Projects must apply a population health approach and address priorities identified by Health Canada for one or more of the three life stages: childhood and adolescence, early to mid-adulthood, and later life.
For more information: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/phdd/funding/index.html

Tobacco Control (New)

The Federal Tobacco Control Strategy (FTCS) is dedicated to reducing tobacco consumption in Canada. Health Canada conducts media awareness campaigns, provides information for professionals and the public and funds community-based projects focusing on harm reduction and cessation. These activities focus particularly on pregnant women and young children.
For more information: www.GoSmokeFree.ca

Human Resources Development Canada

National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth

The National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY) is a long-term study of Canadian children that tracks their development and well-being from birth to early adulthood. Nationally, it surveys more than 30,000 Canadian children every two years. The survey collects information about how a child’s family, friends, schools and community influence his/her physical, behavioural and learning development.
For more information: www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/nlscy-elnej

Social Development Partnerships Program

The Social Development Partnerships Program (SDPP) is a national research and development program. It supports the social non-profit sector to identify, develop and promote nationally significant effective practices and models of service delivery. It also supports activities that build community capacity to meet the social development needs of key populations – including young children. SDPP has a special focus on early childhood learning and care.
For more information: e-mail: childrenspolicy-politiquesenfants@hrdc-drhc.gc.ca

Understanding the Early Years

Understanding the Early Years (UEY) is a national research initiative. It provides communities with information to enable them to make informed decisions about the best policies and most appropriate programs for families with young children. It seeks to provide information about the influence of community factors on children’s early development and to improve the community’s capacity to use these data in monitoring child development and creating effective community-based responses.
For more information: www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/sp-ps/arb-dgra/nlscy-elnej/uey-cpe/uey.shtml

Health Canada – What’s New?

Canadian Childhood Cancer Surveillance and Control Program

Program Improvements

In 2001-2002, a Clinical Research Associates (CRA) Sub-Group of the program was formed. Along with Health Canada staff, the Sub-Group includes CRAs who have been involved with the Treatment and Outcome Study for several years. This group has met to evaluate potential areas of improvement, and has worked on a report on diagnosis and treatment information regarding Canadian children under 15 years of age. The program has developed new technology to enhance data entry and reporting.

Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect

New research

In 2000-2001, a research forum was held to highlight current research on the Canadian Incidence Study of Report Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS) and encourage other interested researchers to apply for and use the data. The forum also provided an opportunity for consultation with research professionals and stakeholders in guiding future iterations of the study. The Forum involved Canadian and American child maltreatment researchers with considerable experience with large and complex maltreatment data sets. Four papers examined the steps involved in analyzing such data sets, looking at:

• methodologies for large child maltreatment data sets;
• longitudinal child maltreatment studies;
• a comparison of the Canadian and American child maltreatment studies; and
• topics that could be answered by the CIS data set.

In Ontario, an Ontario Incidence Study has been undertaken – based on data from the CIS – releasing the second cycle in 2001-2002. In addition, several papers based on the CIS data are currently in process.

Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being

There are three Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being that include research on issues affecting early childhood development – a Centre dedicated to Early Childhood Development, a Centre on Child Welfare and a Centre working on specific issues associated with Children and Adolescents with Special Needs.

The Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development

Program Improvements

Having established a Canadian consortium of researchers, service providers and planners, the Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development (CEECD) worked through 2001-2002 with authoritative international experts to identify, analyze and comment on the latest studies on early childhood development. This work focused on specific themes related to the social and emotional development of children under age 6, focusing in 2001-2002 on the period ranging from pregnancy to 2 years of age. These themes include tobacco and pregnancy; parental leave and stress; low income and pregnancy; fetal alcohol syndrome; nutrition and pregnancy; breastfeeding; and aggression. Each of these themes is examined from three perspectives:

• the best recent research studies on each theme;
• what the research says about current practices and services that have been implemented in relation to the topic; and
• what the research says about Canadian and international policies that impact on early childhood development.

In 2001-2002, the CEECD:

• launched its quarterly newsletter;
• held the first Centres of Excellence national conference, “Linking Research to Policy and Practice – Working Together for Children and Youth,” gathering representatives of the five Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being and more than 400 interested parties from across Canada. The conference provided the opportunity for the Centres to showcase their work and to network with stakeholders from various backgrounds;
• appointed an Advisory Committee to advise the Centre on effective strategies for the coordination and dissemination of research findings and liaison efforts with key Canadian research funding agencies; and
• created a Citizen’s Forum to create an ongoing dialogue with target populations (including planners, service providers, families and children).

Evaluation
Evaluation is an important component of all the Centres’ work. In 2001-2002, CEECD worked with the Program Secretariat and the other Centres to develop a results-based management and accountability framework (RMAF) to help assess its effectiveness relative to the program’s goals and parameters. Data collection will begin in the fall of 2002.

“Human brains are like pension funds – you have to start investing at an early stage in their development. To invest intelligently, you need a good grasp of the factors that affect how that development will occur.”

Richard E. Tremblay, Ph.D., FRSC
Canada Research Chair in Child Development
Director, Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development (CEECD) University of Montréal

The Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare

Program Improvements

The Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare (CECW) operates under the administrative leadership of the Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, in partnership with the Child Welfare League of Canada, the Institut de recherche pour le développement social des jeunes in Montreal, and the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada in Winnipeg.

Focusing on services delivered through the child welfare system, the Centre encourages collaborative projects that integrate prevention and intervention in health, education, justice and recreation. The Centre has developed an inventory of Canadian child welfare research, which is accessible through its website. The Centre also carries out original research to build knowledge that informs child welfare policy and practice.

In 2001, CECW launched its First Nations Research Site at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Manitoba, in association with the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada. An initial analysis of available literature on First Nations child welfare research has been conducted and links have been created with First Nations communities.

The Centre of Excellence for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs.

Program Improvements

The Centre of Excellence for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs operates under the administrative leadership of Lakehead University, in partnership with the Government of Nunavut, the University of Northern British Columbia, Memorial University and Mount Saint Vincent University.

The Centre focuses on children and youth with special needs living in rural and remote communities, with an emphasis on Canada’s North, investigating models for the prevention and early identification of children with special needs in rural and remote communities. It examines the most appropriate ways to diagnose and treat these children, given challenges such as professional availability and cost, geography and distance.

The Centre’s objectives are to:

• ensure that knowledge about children and adolescents with special needs living in rural and remote locations is disseminated effectively to their target audiences, including parents, providers, community groups, researchers and governments;
• improve access to services; and
• augment community capacity to influence policy.

In order to work toward these objectives, the Centre created five subject-specific task forces based on areas of greatest need:

• special needs in nutrition;
• early intervention for special needs;
• special needs associated with substance abuse;
• special needs in learning and communication; and
• special needs in mental health.

Together, the task groups work to develop a range of products, including reports, databases, distance education models and service delivery pilot projects.

During 2001-2002, the Centre of Excellence for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs established three committees to support the Centre in achieving its goals:

• the National Advisory Board, to identify and facilitate strategic alliances; facilitate policy advice; and assist in communication strategies to disseminate the Centre’s work;
• the Emerging Technology Consulting Group, to inform and update Centre participants about emerging technologies and their potential and limitations with respect to augmenting services for special needs professionals, children and families; and
• the International Experts Panel, to assess the internal and external validity of the Centre’s deliverables, including research protocols, reports and other information disseminated by the Centre, link Centre initiatives with complementary initiatives worldwide and facilitate the establishment of an international policy community in special needs.

The Centre’s network has increased significantly since 2000-2001. Many participants are actively engaged in focused research projects while others are involved in the Centre’s efforts to build a “policy community” around special needs.

Family Violence Initiative and National Clearinghouse on Family Violence

Program Improvements

The Family Violence Initiative (FVI) continues to involve 13 departments, agencies and Crown corporations led by Health Canada. Seven of those departments share a yearly allocation of $7 million to address gaps in knowledge and to develop and disseminate information on the issue of family violence prevention. They and the other six partners also use departmental funds to carry out other work related to family violence, including child abuse.

For example, in 2001-2002 RCMP Headquarters used some of its share of the FVI funds to coordinate and facilitate the delivery of Sexual Assault Investigators (SAI) Courses to 90 police officers and social workers. The courses included a range of topics, including team interviews, theory of child development, indicators of child abuse specific to preschoolers, multi-agency response, shaken baby syndrome, family services acts, Crown presentations, investigative techniques, interviewing and interrogation techniques (including interviewing techniques for use with young children), dealing with victims, and pedophiles. The courses were held in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Nunavut and were tailored to meet the specific training needs of the respective RCMP Divisions.

In addition, in June 2001, a one-day multi-disciplinary workshop on shaken baby syndrome was given in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island with the financial support of RCMP Headquarters. The workshop was organized to expand training on the topic to include a broader audience consisting of social workers, early childhood educators, police, Crown prosecutors, nurses, physicians, probation and parole officers, educators, and other related professionals and community organizations. The goal of the workshop was to provide participants with an understanding of how to effectively conduct a child abuse investigation involving shaken baby syndrome, including discussions on the roles and responsibilities of the professionals involved in the investigation. The workshop provided an excellent opportunity for various service providers to work together to increase awareness of risks to children and trained the audience on how best to intervene in cases of shaken baby syndrome. Partners involved in facilitation of the workshop included members of the RCMP in Prince Edward Island, the Child Sexual Abuse Interagency Committee and the Government of Prince Edward Island.

Health Canada continues to operate the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence (including an electronic database and 1 800 telephone line) under the Family Violence Initiative on behalf of participating federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations. Currently, the FVI is undergoing a five-year reporting exercise of all the activities conducted under the Initiative.

Health Transition Fund

Program Changes

The Health Transition Fund was a time-limited funding program established in 1997 with a mandate to support pilot and evaluation projects to generate evidence for health care policy and program decision making. The program ended on March 31, 2002, after having supported over 140 projects in the areas of home care, pharmaceutical issues, primary health care and integrated service delivery. Children’s health was a key theme of the Fund and a number of projects were funded related to early childhood development.

National Child Day (New)

On November 20, 1989, the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Convention spells out the basic human rights to which children everywhere are entitled. It protects these rights by setting minimum standards for the survival, growth and protection of children. Canada ratified the Convention on December 13, 1991.

In 1993, the Government of Canada enacted Bill C 371, otherwise known as the Child Day Act. The purpose of this legislation was to designate November 20 of each year as a national day of the child in order to promote awareness in Canada of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The date was specifically chosen to commemorate two historic events: the adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of the Child on November 20, 1959 and the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child on November 20, 1989.

Since 1994, Health Canada has provided leadership for National Child Day through the development and dissemination of educational and promotional materials encouraging schools, child care centres, community groups, families and others who work with children across the country to mark this day.

For National Child Day 2000, Health Canada developed an interactive website to provide children and adolescents with an opportunity to express their views about their priorities and thoughts on issues related to the United Nations Special Session on Children. This online consultation initiative was carried out from November 20, 2000 to May 1, 2001. The results of the Health Canada National Child Day initiative are presented in a report called Your Voice Matters found at
www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/english/e_splash.html.

Your Voice Matters

Here are some rights that children have:

• Participation: All children have a right to think, feel, do, and say things. Children have a right to give their ideas on things that are important to them. Children need to have others listen to their ideas.
• Fair Treatment: All children have a right to be respected and treated fairly. Everyone is special in their own way. Let’s be fair to everyone and treat them like we want to be treated!
• Food, Clothing and Housing: All children have the right to have enough food to eat, clean water to drink, as well as rest and physical activity to grow. Children also have a right to have clothes to wear and a safe place to live.
• Peace and Safety: All children have a right to live in a peaceful and safe world. Children also have the right to be protected and cared for.
• Environment: All children have a right to learn about the environment. This includes what’s in nature, like water, air, plants, and animals. Everyone can learn how to respect the environment by helping to keep it clean and safe.

Source: National Child Day website:
www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hppb/english/e_child_important_things.html

National Study on Balancing Work, Family and Lifestyle (New)

New Research

The majority of Canadian parents with young children are in the workforce. Balancing responsibilities between work and family is an important part of parents’ providing a healthy family life in which to nurture their children under age 6. Health Canada has contracted researchers to conduct a national study on work–life balance. The study builds upon a previous national study conducted by the researchers from 1990–1992 and is being conducted over multiple fiscal years, beginning in 1999-2000.

As a result of this study, a series of reports is being produced based on data collected from 31,000 Canadians employed in medium- and large-sized organizations in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. They examine critical issues associated with balancing work and family, identify health impacts and costs, and recommend best practices to be adopted by employees, families and organizations.

The 2001 National Work–Life Conflict Study: Report One was the first in the series, released in 2001-2002. It examines how key work–life factors such as time in work, time in home chores and responsibility for child/eldercare have changed over time. The full report is available online at: www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pphb-dgspsp/publicat/work-travail/index.html.

Selected Findings from The 2001 National Work–Life Conflict Study: Report One

Professional women delay having children and have fewer children because of work demands:
“One of the most interesting findings is that female respondents in managerial and professional (62%) and technical (61%) positions were less likely to have children than their counterparts in non-professional positions (67%). Men in managerial and professional (79%) and technical (77%) positions, on the other hand, were more likely to have children than their non-professional counterparts (70%). These data are consistent with other data collected in this study. For example, 40% of the women in managerial and professional positions in this sample agreed that they had not yet started a family because of their career (versus 20% of those in the total sample) and that they have had fewer children because of the demands of their work (versus 22% of the rest of the sample). It would appear from these data that many women managers and professionals working for larger Canadian organizations find that motherhood and career advancement are not compatible goals.” (p. 29)

Employees with dependent care responsibilities have more demands on their time than those without:

“The data are unequivocal – employees with dependent care responsibilities have more demands on their time than their counterparts without child care or elder care. They spent more than twice as much time in non-work activities as those without dependent care responsibilities (23 hours versus 10 hours) and approximately 3 hours less per week in leisure. Families with dependent care responsibilities devoted approximately 110 hours per week to work and non-work activities – a substantially greater time commitment than observed in families without dependent care responsibilities (90 hours per week). In this sample, child care could be seen to generate heavier time demands than elder care. Respondents with elder care responsibilities spent approximately 5.3 hours helping their elderly relatives; parents spent approximately 10.8 hours per week in child care.” (p. 66)

Population Health Fund

Newly Funded Projects

The Population Health Fund continues to support projects that increase community capacity for action relating to the determinants of health. The priorities relating to children and adolescents have not changed – creating optimal conditions for the healthy development of young children; supporting families; creating safe, supportive and violence-free physical and social environments; and fostering healthy adolescent development. A revised Population Health Fund Guide for Applicants and a Request for National Proposals were published and distributed in 2001-2002. Twenty new projects relating to the identified priorities were funded in 2001-2002. Seven projects funded in a previous year were ongoing in 2001-2002.

Project Title: The Implementation and Evaluation of the Baby Friendly Initiative in Canada: 1999–2002

Project Sponsor: Breastfeeding Committee for Canada, care of the University of British Columbia

Contribution amount: $266,380

Duration: 38 months

Project Description: The purpose of this project is to facilitate the implementation and evaluation of the Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) in Canada, a program designed to protect, promote and support breastfeeding. The goals include enhancing coordination at a national level, with strong partnerships with provincial/territorial committees; development of a national program for BFI accreditation; ensuring that material and guidelines supporting BFI accreditation are readily available to agencies and organizations, with continued partnership with Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program projects; and development of mechanisms for tracking, monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the BFI in Canada.

Project funded by the Population Health Fund

Tobacco Control (New)³

Program Improvements

Smoking during pregnancy is associated with known health risks – both to the baby and the mother. Health Canada continues to be involved in a number of activities – new and continuing – to address this critical health issue.

In 2001, the Government of Canada launched the Federal Tobacco Control Strategy (FTCS) – dedicated to reducing tobacco consumption in Canada. This is a major investment of over $560 million (including $58 million in existing funding) over the first five years of the Strategy. ⁴

A new website, www.GoSmokeFree.ca, which was launched in January 2002 provides ‘one-stop shopping for information, resources and activities relating to tobacco control. The website contains information on the Federal Tobacco Control Strategy, research and statistics from the Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey, the latest tobacco news and trends, as well as important resources to help Canadians quit smoking or to help them achieve smoke-free environments.

Newly Funded Projects

In 2001-2002, the Tobacco Control Programme funded some projects which were related to pregnant women, and women with babies and young children. For example:

• Harm Reduction Strategies for Low Income Single Mothers who Smoke is investigating ways in which low-income single women can protect their children from the harmful effects of environmental tobacco smoke. This project was undertaken with the understanding that these young women are not in the “action stage” of quitting smoking; most are thinking about it but have great difficulty quitting. The focus is therefore on reducing harm.
• Pregnets (Network for the Prevention of Gestational and Neonatal Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Community Action Plan) is creating an Ontario network of community practitioners who will collect and share information about the range of treatment options for pregnant women who smoke and their families. There will be educational programs for those involved in the care of pregnant women and children; a website for care providers and consumers; a conference to develop consensus on best practices; and a tool kit for health care providers.
  

Canada’s Tobacco Control Strategy
Media Campaign – Children and Second Hand Smoke

• Second hand smoke is the smoke exhaled by a smoker or released from the end of a burning cigarette, pipe or cigar.
• It is filled with more than 4,000 chemicals, including carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, benzene, chromium, nickel, vinyl chloride and arsenic.
• Children who are exposed to it are more likely to develop ear infections and chronic respiratory illnesses.
• It has been linked to sore throats, croup, asthma, bronchitis, middle ear infections, reduced lung function, pneumonia, leukemia and other cancers in children.
  

Source: Canada’s Tobacco Control Strategy – Children and Second
Hand Smoke: Brochure. (Health Canada)

Human Resources Development Canada – What’s New?

National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth

New Research

The National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY) continues to gather data on Canadian children. Four cycles of data have been collected in the NLSCY, and research based on the first three cycles has been published and disseminated through various means, such as working papers and conferences. In 2001-2002, data collection for the fourth cycle of the survey was completed, and data processing began.

The Applied Research Branch of Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC), in partnership with Statistics Canada, is responsible for the NLSCY. They are active in conducting research using data from the survey. In January 2002, a national dialogue conference was held – “Ready, Set, Go! Improving the Odds through Integrated Research Policy and Practice” – where research findings from the NLSCY were presented and discussed. Several research papers based on Cycle 2 data from the NLSCY were published by the Applied Research Branch of HRDC in 2001-2002. The topics include:

• poverty and immigrant children;
• child hunger;
• children’s adjustment to marital changes;
• economic resources and children’s health and success at school;
• effects of neighbourhood, family and child behaviour on injury;
• the risk and protective factors for delinquency; and
• the effect of income on child development.

A full list of the papers and copies are available for download at the Applied Research Branch website
www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/sp-ps/arb-dgra/publications/research/investing.shtml.

Social Development Partnerships Program

Newly Funded Projects

A special request for proposals (RFP) was issued in 2001 by the Social Development Partnerships Program (SDPP), related to early childhood learning and care. The RFP sought proposals for projects, up to two years in duration, which would provide governments, communities and organizations involved in early childhood learning and care services with knowledge of effective practices. These proposals were received and adjudicated in 2001-2002, and as a response to this RFP, the SDPP funded 37 projects related to early childhood learning and care. The activities funded include research, development of effective practices, community-based approaches, training approaches and capacity building.

Evaluation
An evaluation of the former Child Care Visions Program was also launched in 2001-2002. The purpose of the evaluation was to:

• determine the extent to which the Program achieved its objectives and intended effects; and
• determine the perceived cost-effectiveness of this approach to the federal government’s involvement in research and development activities which support and enhance child care policies and practices in Canada.

A Gaps Analysis Study is being carried out in conjunction with the evaluation to pinpoint gaps in existing knowledge about, and emerging issues in, early childhood learning and care. This will help identify priority issues to be addressed through future program funding.

Understanding the Early Years

New Research

Understanding the Early Years (UEY) projects continue to exist in 13 sites across Canada. The January 2002, conference hosted by HRDC – “Ready, Set, Go! Improving the Odds through Integrated Research Policy and Practice” – included presentations and discussions on research findings from UEY. In addition, a number of papers and reports were published in 2001-2002 – they can be found at www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/sp-ps/arb-dgra/nlscy-elnej/uey-cpe/pub_e.shtml. The papers include the results of the Community Mapping Studies in North York, Ontario; Prince Edward Island; and Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Examples of Some Early Childhood Learning and Care Projects:
Social Development Partnerships Program

• Improving Parenting and Family Supports for New Canadians with Young Children investigates the challenges facing newcomer parents raising young children, their coping strategies, and experiences.
• The Mosaic Centre for the Calgary Immigrant Aid Society is enhancing and expanding its manual A Handbook for Developing a Resource Centre for Immigrant and Refugee Families with Children 0 to 6.
• Child Care Connections Nova Scotia is producing a Best Practices Framework for Licensing Child Care Facilities in Canada which will include training modules and classification rating(s) for licensers.
• The Childcare Resource and Research Unit collects, analyses and disseminates information on Child Care and Early Childhood Education in Canada: Provinces and Territories, bringing together information about the range of early learning and care services across the country.
• The Canadian National Institute for the Blind will create an early intervention training program to be used by parents and professionals working in early intervention for children who are blind or visually impaired.

Understanding the Early Years: How Are Children in PEI Developing?

• Children in Prince Edward Island scored above the national averages on direct assessments of their vocabulary and cognitive development.
• Children in PEI exceeded the national average on each of the five domains of school readiness – physical health and well-being; social competence; emotional maturity; language and cognitive development; and communication skills and general knowledge.
• Parents in PEI had relatively strong parenting skills, and were members of safe, high quality neighbourhoods. The result of positive parenting was by far the highest in the study.
• Despite relatively low levels of socio economic status, PEI had high levels of social support and social capital, along with low levels of transience and stable neighbourhoods.
• Despite good overall development in PEI, cognitive development and positive behaviour could be improved by parents becoming more engaged in their children’s learning – which was the province’s weakest area.
  

Source: KSI Research International Inc. Understanding the Early Years: Early Childhood Development in Prince Edward Island. (Applied Research Branch, Human Resources Development Canada, November 2001)

NOTE: use the footnote number to return to the report.

1. Note: provides an overview of all research and information activities related to young children and their families by the Government of Canada. Detailed descriptions of the mandate, goals and objectives of most of these activities were provided in Federal/Provincial/Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement: Report on Government of Canada Activities and Expenditures 2000-2001. The reader may want to refer to this report at www.socialunion.gc.ca/ecd/.

2. The Federal/Provincial/Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement: Report on Government of Canada Activities and Expenditures 2000-2001 reported on Human Resources Development Canada’s Inter-Country Adoption Services Unit. However, the mandate of the unit has changed, and therefore it will not be reported in this, or future reports. The unit no longer focuses on the management of individual cases of inter-country adoption – adoption falls within the jurisdiction of provincial and territorial governments, which are responsible for all decisions related to adoption matters and licensing of adoption agencies to facilitate adoptions. Inter-Country Adoption Services now focuses on facilitating information coordination among federal departments and provincial, territorial and foreign governments, but does not deal with specific adoption cases.

* This activity did not have any significant changes to report in 2001-2002. As a result, it is not discussed under the “What’s New” section of this chapter. However, updated quantitative information for 2001-2002 is provided in the table at the end of the chapter.

3. The Health Warning Label Initiative, described in the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Early Childhood Development Agreement: Report on Government of Canada Activities and Expenditures 2000-2001, is currently in the implementation stage – therefore, last year’s expenditures are not ongoing. The Infotobacco.com website previously reported has been integrated with the overall Tobacco Control Program website, incurring no cost.

4. Of this amount, Health Canada receives a total of approximately $480 million.

NOTE: use the footnote number to return to the report.

Previous

Table of Contents

Next

Français