Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Since 9/11 Many Parents Have Focused More on Family Time
Aired February 05, 2002 - 08:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Ever since 9/11 many parents have focused more on family time and how they can spend more time with their children. If you're one of those parents, and you're worried about the quality and the long-term effects of your child's care, you might want to consider an alternative.
Our Kathy Slobogin has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So are we all set?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You meet at a certain parking lot ...
KATHY SLOBOGIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's the biweekly hand-off.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I kind of give him the rundown. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) hot dogs, there's hot dog buns in the freezer.
SLOBOGIN: It's mid afternoon, and Kevin is heading home with the kids. His wife Ann is going off to work. The parking lost is midway.
ANN: I'm Ann. How are you doing? I'm one of the nurses here.
SLOBOGIN: Ann has spent the day caring for her three children. Now she'll work the late shift as a critical care nurse.
ANN: I feel like a lot of times I've put a whole day in at work at home, and I should be punching out, not punching in.
SLOBOGIN: Kevin, who has worked the 6:00 a.m. to 2:00 shift at IBM is now at home making dinner. Ann and Kevin are part of the four- thirds solution. Parents who have rearranged their schedules with a combination of full, part and flex-time work so the kids are never in daycare.
ANN: I love being home with my kids. Let's put your shoes on. Kids are worth it. I have great kids.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you're a girl.
ANN: I am a girl. I'm a mommy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. SLOBOGIN: The four-thirds solution was coined by a child psychiatrist and author who has long been critical of daycare, saying 90 percent of it is below standard.
DR. STAN GREENSPAN, AUTHOR, FOUR-THIRDS SOLUTION: The bottom line is that if you're a parent who can provide high-quality care yourself, provide it.
SLOBOGIN: Dr. Stan Greenspan's new book was written, he says, for working parents who feel their only option is daycare.
GREENSPAN: I recommend the four-thirds solution, which is if there's two parents, share the care of the children and share work.
SLOBOGIN: Ann admits the schedule is tough and time with her husband at a premium. But there are also advantages for the marriage. Kevin is not one of those husbands who can't find his way around his kitchen.
ANN: He sees how hard it is to stay at home with three kids by yourself.
KEVIN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
SLOBOGIN: And for Kevin, the payoff is well worth it.
KEVIN: I want my kids to look back one of these days and say, you know, daddy was there a lot, and to me that's very important and I mean life is way too short.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good night.
KEVIN: Good night.
SLOBOGIN: Kathy Slobogin, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CAFFERTY: Joining us now from Washington, Dr. Stan Greenspan is the author of :The Four-Thirds Solution". Dr. Greenspan, welcome, nice to have you with us.
GREENSPAN: Nice to be with you.
CAFFERTY: Is this one of those things that looks pretty good on paper, but when you try to put it into practice, you can hit some pretty serious roadblocks unless you happen to have the kind of career or employer that buys into this. I mean for a lot of people this is not a very practical idea, is it?
GREENSPAN: It's very, very hard for many people and that's why we need government and industry working together. Government needs to provide tax incentives for industries for to provide flexible work schedules because the future of our nation depends on having children who are reared and healthy family environments and healthy situations. Having healthy employees, intellectually healthy, emotionally healthy, socially healthy depends on the early nurturing experience in the early years of life, and with 90 percent of daycare not considered high-quality, a parent who can provide high-quality care has to consider other options. So we're going to have to stretch as a country individually and collectively.
CAFFERTY: Well you suggest that putting a child in daycare is - can be harmful to the child. I've got four kids, they all spent time in daycare because quite frankly when they were young, my wife and I were too busy trying to pay the rent, and we both had to work. And you know, they don't seem to show any ill effects from it all. Actually in some ways we thought it was a good idea. It taught them some socialization skills and how to interact with other kids, and you know, some experiences outside the home that they're going to have to learn at some point anyway.
GREENSPAN: You put your finger on it. Some experiences, part- time care outside the home seems to be very helpful for many children. As you point out, it can help you socialize. It's a little bit like preschool, and it is preschool for many kids. But full-time care, 30 plus hours for infants and toddlers seems to be stressful for infants and toddlers. And with 90 percent of such care not considered high- quality, if a parent can provide high-quality care themselves, that seems to be a much better option.
So parents have to rethink the options. Daycare full-time, 30 plus hours a week is a massive social experiment that began in the 1970s and from all accounts that we can see now, has not been a success. So a little bit of care outside the home, very good. Full-time care for infants and toddlers, I would recommend against it, particularly if you can provide high-quality care yourselves.
CAFFERTY: What about the - just the harsh economics of living in today's society? For many, many families they need two paychecks to buy the groceries and pay the rent and do the other things that are necessary to sustain life. And there are also a huge number of single parent households in this country. Are there answers for those people?
GREENSPAN: There are answers. If you're a single parent who must work to put food on the table full-time, if you're a two-parent family and you have to both work full-time to put food on the table and a roof over your heads, then make good use of that evening time. Have the kids with you in the kitchen. Take them with you on errands. Also, politic and lobby to make sure you have onsite daycare at your place of employment so you can monitor it, and the government and industry has to subsidize daycare so we have high-quality care. If we have high-quality care for those who need it, it provides a viable option.
CAFFERTY: All right Dr. Greenspan, we're going to have to leave it there. I appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you.
GREENSPAN: Thank you for having me.
CAFFERTY: Dr. Stan Greenspan from Washington, the author of "The Four-Thirds Solution". One other minor point, spending a lot of time crawling around on the floor with a 18-month old is sometimes overrated - just kidding.
COOPER: Kind of hope your kids aren't watching there Jack.
CAFFERTY: They're all beyond 18 months.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
