Wednesday, September 27, 2000

Online day care grows up

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Web cam services help working parents feel more secure, involved in child's life

By Cindy Kranz
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        Donita Jackson knows the guilt of leaving her baby at a day-care center for the first time. So when she logged onto the Internet at work to check on her son, it was as comforting as her child's favorite blanket.

        “The first time I saw him, he was in the rocking chair,” she says. “The worker was holding him and rocking him. Oh, my God, I started crying. I knew he was being held, that he wasn't just in the crib all day.”

Myles Jackson, 15 months, looks through a book with teacherıs assistant Kati Richardson at Creative Kidıs World. (Enquirer photos) | ZOOM |

        The Forest Park woman's day-care provider, Creative Kid's World in Springdale, was the first center in Hamilton County to offer KinderCam, an Internet viewing system, when it opened a year ago. Now, about 10 centers in Greater Cincinnati offer Web cams, mirroring a national trend.

        Parents can log onto the Internet, and using a secure password, check images transported to a Web site via closed-circuit television cameras mounted in day-care centers. Although initially touted as offering peace of mind for parents, use of the technology has evolved.

        “Parents absolutely like the fact that they can go in and see their child during the day and not for the reasons people expect,” says Anthony Sparrow, executive vice president of sales and marketing for KinderCam in Atlanta.

        “This allows parents to participate in the development of the child,” he says. “They can see how their child interacts with other children, how they respond to the teacher and what they're learning. They're staying connected to their growth and development at a time when they can't be with them all day, every day, because of the fact they're working.”

Myles' mother, Donita Jackson, watches him from her job. | ZOOM |

        Childtime Children's Center, downtown, installed ParentWatch, another Internet monitoring system, last December. “It is such a nice opportunity for parents to get a chance to see, more than anything else, the learning their child is doing throughout the course of the day,” says Kathy Haught, center director.

        “I've had some parents mention they get ideas for activities to do with their child at home through what they see here. Or, they see their child sitting at a high chair with the food in front of them. They say, “My child can do that. My child can feed himself. I can try this at home.”
       

For grandparents, too

        And its not just parents who are logging on to check on the kids. Grandparents are, too.

RESOURCES

For more information on Internet child-care viewing systems, visit:     • www.kindercam.com.     • www.parentwatch.com.     • www.kinderview.com.

        Stacy Durr-Stainton signed up for ParentWatch so her mother, who lives in Springfield, Ill., could check on her grandchild. “She doesn't get to see Sam very often. Right away, when we heard about it, I thought this will be great for her to look at Sam.”

        Her mother, 62-year-old June Paul, visits 15-month-old Sam every two months — not nearly enough when it's your only grandchild. She hardly misses a day on the Internet.

        “I'm thrilled,” Mrs. Paul says. “They grow so quickly. It's nice to watch him to see how he's interacting with other children and see what toys he's playing with . . . It's a wonderful opportunity to stay in contact with him and feel like you're part of his life, even though you're not there.”
       

Cost for service
        Creative Kid's World has found KinderCam to be a helpful marketing tool. “We literally have people call on the phone and ask, "Are you the one with KinderCam?' I'm sure half of our parents signed up because of the KinderCam,” says Tammy Barnett, center director.

        “It gives them peace of mind. Subconsciously, they feel if the center is going to take those measures, then we must be doing something right. It's certainly worth the investment that we made.”

        The cost to parents depends on the day-care center and the company that provides the service. Childtime clients, for example, can subscribe for $24 a month. Creative Kid's World offers the service to everyone for no additional charge as part of the center's amenities.
       

Some skepticism

        Not everyone is sold on Web cams in day-care centers. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC),the largest organization of early childhood educators, considers itself on the fence.

        “There's certainly a lot of other important things that a child-care program could be investing in,” says Alan Simpson, NAEYC spokesman. “Are there other needs that are going unmet at the center? Could you improve the curriculum instead? Could you improve the ratio of teachers to children?

        “The other big worry is, "What's behind this?' If it's just being done for surveillance, it's probably not a good idea. We encourage parents and child-care teachers to focus on collaboration. It should be a relationship in which you work together with the child-care program — that you trust them to care for your children.”

        It's better, he says, if parents use a Web cam to get more involved in their children's early education. “Maybe you can get connected with what your son or daughter is doing during the day so you can build on that when you get home,” Mr. Simpson says.
       

Calming the jitters
        Although parents are starting to use Web cam services to stay connected, some still talk about how valuable it was in calming their child-care jitters. Parents say they reduced the number of visits to the site dramatically after they witnessed quality care.

        Felicia Bell, a Procter & Gamble purchasing assistant from Springdale, chose Creative Kid's World mostly because of KinderCam last February. A friend had cared for her son, Swede, now 2 1/2, for two years.

        “I was a nervous wreck. Being able to log on and see him in the center, pretty much what was going on any time of day, made the transition a lot easier,” she says.

        “When I first started using KinderCam and Creative Kids' World, I was literally looking at it 50 times a day. That helped my trust level, with all the horror stories you hear and he's my only child, that was definitely a relief. I'm probably down to 10 to 15 times a day.”

        Another plus is that Swede's dad, Swede Moorman, can check on him using his laptop. Mr. Moorman's job requires him to travel often.

        Meanwhile, Mrs. Jackson, a middle school teacher, can log on during her lunch and planning periods to see 15-month-old son, Myles.

        “Now that I'm so comfortable with the center, I don't look nearly as much as I did when he was first there,” Mrs. Jackson says. At first, she'd log on daily for 10-15 minutes during lunch. Now, she checks the site two to three times a week for a few minutes.

        “Just from speaking to other parents, it is so reassuring that you can look in and see what's going on with your child, and the workers know someone could be watching them,” Mrs. Jackson says. “If you're good, you know that's not going to change what you do. For people who are borderline, they might think twice.”

       

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