![\"News](\"http:\/\/ionenewsone.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/05\/newsone.png\")
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Apr 27, 2011<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ireland was second (24.3 percent), followed by New Zealand (23.7 percent). Greece, Spain, Italy and Luxemborg had among the lowest percentages of children in single-parent homes.<\/span><\/p>\n Experts point to a variety of factors to explain the high U.S. figure, including a cultural shift toward greater acceptance of single-parent child rearing. The U.S. also lacks policies to help support families, including childcare at work and national paid maternity leave, which are commonplace in other countries.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen our parents married, there was a sense that you were marrying for life,\u201d said Edward Zigler, founder and director of Yale\u2019s Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy. \u201cThat sense is not as prevalent.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Single parents in the U.S. were more likely to be employed \u2014 35.8 percent compared to a 21.3 percent average \u2014 but they also had higher rates of poverty, the report found.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe in-work poverty is higher in the U.S. than other OECD countries, because at the bottom end of the labor market, earnings are very low,\u201d said Willem Adema, a senior economist in the group\u2019s social policy division. \u201cFor parents, the risk is higher because they have to make expenditures on childcare costs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The Paris-based organization looked at a broad sector of indicators that affected families and children, including childhood poverty, early education and amount of time spent on parental care.<\/span><\/p>\n Across the nations examined, preschool enrollment has grown from 30 to 50 percent between 1998 and 2007. The average enrollment was 58.2 percent, while in the U.S. it was lower.<\/span><\/p>\n The report noted that public spending on child welfare and education is higher in the U.S. than in other countries \u2014 $160,000 per child compared to $149,000. However, the authors say most of that money is spent after the crucial early childhood years.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThis means early investment \u2014 including childcare and support for families around the time of birth \u2014 could be strengthened,\u201d the authors wrote in a separate paper examining the United States.<\/span><\/p>\n The study pointed out that the U.S. is the only OECD country that does not have a national paid parental leave policy. Some states have started to adopt such policies, but most parents are offered 12 weeks of unpaid leave. This is particularly difficult for unwed mothers, who may not be able to afford to take time off, Zigler said.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe have not built in the kind of national support systems for families and children that other countries have,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n Childhood poverty rates in the U.S. are also expected to climb \u2014 23.5 percent from 20 percent. Adema said the rise is a direct result of the financial crisis and higher unemployment rates.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe financial strain causes all sorts of other strain, so ultimately it might contribute to family dissolution,\u201d Adema said. \u201cAt the same time, it might bring some families together. I suspect that the response differs across families.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/section>\n <\/p>\n72 Percent Of Black Kids <\/span><\/h1>\n
Raised By Single Parent, <\/span><\/h1>\n
25% Overall In\u00a0U.S.<\/span><\/h1>\n
\n\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\nBy\u00a0NewsOne Staff<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"single_20parent_20072709\"](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/single_20parent_20072709.jpg\")
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\nOne in four children in the United States is being raised by a single parent \u2014 a percentage that has been on the rise and is higher than other developed countries, according to a report released Wednesday.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n