Nov 28 2008
Research re: educated single moms
According to an article in yesterday’s Toronto Star written by Trish Crawford, the more education single mothers have, the more likely they are to spend quality time with their children.
Higher education = less time at work required to make decent income = more time for children.
The research was conducted at the University of Maryland, and involved studying the time diaries of more than 6,000 mothers. It was published in the December Journal of Marriage and the Family
Trying to do the school thing while you are a single mom is not easy. Been there, done that. My kids were old enough that they didn’t need the mommy all of the time… I can’t imagine how I would have managed it when they were little - but I do know quite a few who have manged it.
Would love to hear what you think… or, if you’re a single mom that’s doing the back to school thing, how you’re finding it.
I did it when for five years when my youngest turned five and started school. It was tough trying to fit in all the mothering and housekeeping with the studying. The most difficult times were school half term holidays, and when they were sick. They both had chickenpox when I took a set of final exams for one course. Fortunately another student with a different timetable volunteered to stay with them for me.
I was a single mother for a few years when Marriage #1 went down the tubes–but wasn’t in school then. Didn’t return to school until well into Marriage #2 with child #2 and it’s hard to return to school after a long absence–even if you have a spouse at home to help with child care. I don’t know how single moms do it, frankly.