Hispanic Children’s Participation in Early Care and Education: Amount and Timing of Hours by Household Nativity Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Child Age

In this brief, we use publicly available data from the 2012 National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) to describe the amount and timing of hours that young Hispanic children from low-income households spend in ECE settings, distinguishing care that takes place during standard weekday hours from care that occurs during nonstandard times (i.e., evening, nighttime, and weekend hours). We focus on low-income households because the challenges of coordinating parental employment and the care of young children are most acute for families with limited economic resources. Low-income families are therefore the primary target of policy efforts and public investments to improve ECE access, use, and quality. Hispanic families represent a growing policy-relevant population, with more than two thirds of young Hispanic children living in low-income households.