ECONOMIC REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

Hours per Week
24
22
20
Figure 4-9
Mother's Time Spent on Child Care
by Educational Attainment, 1965—2008
College-
Educated
2008
18
16
Less-Educated
14
12
10
1965 1975 1985 1995 2005 2015
Note: Estimates are for mothers aged 25-34.
Source: Ramey and Ramey (2010).
tion and communication skills (National Research Council and Institute of
Medicine 2000; Tamis-LeMonda et al. 2004). This inequality during early
childhood creates an income-based advantage in educational outcomes early
in life and leads to inequality in adult outcomes, one reason suggested for the
persistence of income levels across generations (Solon 1992). For instance,
when mothers obtain more education, it improves birth outcomes for their
children (Currie and Moretti 2003). This may be due to the increases in
marriage, use of prenatal care, lower fertility, reduction in smoking, or other
factors that are correlated with higher levels of maternal education.
The gap is also reflected in the total time spent with children and in
activities that engage children. In particular, high-income parents spend
more time on educational activities with their children (Figure 4-10), creating
an income-based advantage in educational outcomes in the first few
years of life.
Highly educated parents are also spending more time on child-care
activities, such as playing with young children and helping with children’s
activities (Ramey and Ramey 2010). For example, highly educated parents
spend more time on developing their children’s reading and problem-solving
skills in preschool, and on extra-curricular activities for older children
(Kalil 2014). In contrast, less-educated parents are less likely to adapt their
time-use patterns with children to developmental stages (Kalil, Ryan, and
Corey 2012). Gaps in children’s vocabulary can reflect these differences in
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