Childcare and the Sociological Imagination
In the past, working mothers were basically unheard of. The patriarchal nuclear family was what was viewed on television in shows such as Leave it to Beaver, Mary Tyler Moore, and My Three Sons. A mother’s role was to stay at home with the children, while the father went to work. In today’s society, things have changed very much.
It is not unheard of for a mother to stay at home with the children, but at least half of all mothers’ hold a job outside of the household. This situation raises a question, “Where do the children go before they are of school-age?” Childcare is an industry that is definitely rising from year to year. There are childcare centers, family childcare homes, nannies, etc. A woman is not looked down upon if she chooses to work and leave her children with another source while she is at work. The most popular form of childcare today is the childcare center which is also considered a preschool.
When a mother decides to go back to work after having children there are some concerns that she must have. First of all, the price of childcare is very steep for the average American. A typical week of care in a childcare center runs approximately $150.00 per child. When calculated for the year, for one child, that would cost the family $7,800. If the family has more than one child, they are looking at over $15,000 a year. The mother has to take into consideration the amount of money she will be making to make sure that the price is feasible.
Secondly, the mother has to decide if she wants another person watching her child. If a woman works full time, the person taking care of the child is basically raising them. Some mothers drop their child off from 6:30am until 6:30 pm at night due to their hectic schedule. The first three years of a child’s life are when they develop the most mentally, physically, psychologically, and emotionally. Therefore, the person watching over the child at this stage...