Professional Hopes and Goals

When I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds, one hope that I have is that I have become aware of my own cultural influences and biases and how they may have influences over my beliefs, values, and the behavior that I may portray towards people.  One goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to actively address diversity. All teachers must create an environment where all cultural backgrounds are supported and provide the best opportunity for learning.

To all of my colleagues, I would like to that you all for your encouragements, experiences, and feedback. I appreciate all the help and support that was given and I feel that I am fortunate to have this opportunity to work with you and have professors, such as Dr.Parrish whom have shared and pushed me to dig deeper into myself. Thanks and I wish you all the best.

Welcoming Families From Around the World

If I were working in an early childhood center and was expecting a child from a family that had recently emigrated from India, I would prepare to welcome the child as follows:

1.    Have the parent and child fill out a questionnaire to get to know the family a little better. By doing so I can find out the child’s likes and dislikes. Also I will be able to know more about the family’s educational values, language, traditions, and first-hand more about their culture.

2.      Provide the families with a biography about myself and things that their child will be doing in the classroom.

3.      Have all the children in the class do an “All About Me” bag or a “Family Treasure Box” activity. The children will have to fill the bag or box up with family customs, traditions, artifacts, pictures, etc. and share with one another in the classroom. By doing so the new child will not fill singled out and we would get to know about not only the new student’s culture but the student will also be able to get a little more familiar with the other children’s culture.

4.      I would make sure the classroom is diverse with different books, pictures, and include Indian clothing in centers. I would also label things around the classroom in both English and in the child’s native language.

5.      Make sure that I am offering a welcomed environment towards the family. Inform them that we will always have an open door policy, invite them to volunteer, and also make sure that I communicated with them on a regular basis.

I think that each of these preparations will benefit both me and the family because it will help to build a relationship with me, the child, and the parent(s). I will be able to accommodate both the similarities and differences of the child’s culture which will help the child recognize that their culture too is just as important as the other children.  This will also help the child socially in the classroom. 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

In my opinion, I think that everyone of any culture or social identity has experienced some type of bias or prejudice. I myself can remember an incident about 2 years ago where I was a victim of prejudice.

One evening I was visiting my mother to help me prepare for my baby shower. An African American young man in her neighborhood was shot twice in the head and died. About an hour after this incident there were policeman and detectives in the neighborhood, because this was the third homicide that month in that same neighborhood.

My brother and I left the house to get something from the grocery store up the street. As we drove off, a police car and a detective car begin to follow us. We then turned in the store which was our destination and the policeman blue lighted us so we pulled over. A white male officer approached the window and was very rude and asked for license, registration, and also for us to step put the car. His partner then begins to chastise my younger brother asking him where the marijuana was and that they knew he sold and smoked drugs.

First, I would like to explain that both my brothers and I was sort of sheltered compared to the children in our neighborhoods. We all have clean records, great academic records, and always kept a legal job. Also my brother, who is now 23 years old has never smoked any type of drug, let a one a cigarette, in his life. My brother began to become very angry because he has never experienced this before and he started to ask questions of why they were doing him the way they were such as rough handling him and throwing him against the car.

Watching this hurt me to my heart because I knew that my brother was incident and me being of the African culture, and having a lot of experience with the police automatically thinking that all African American young men are guilty, I already knew that they were going to treat him as if he had done something wrong because of his race.

As they searched as threw everything all over my car, I kept calm even though I was boiling inside. I mentioned to the policeman that my brother worked and that they could drug test him and find that he was clean they finally saw his work id and saw that we had no warrants. The detective stepped in, spoke with me calmly, and shook his head at the policeman to stop. They then apologized, tried to straighten up the car a little, and said that we could go.

 As we walked to the store I explained to my brother that he had done nothing wrong and because of whom he was, him claiming his innocence in the angry way that he did would just make tings worst for him with the police. I told him that he would understand a little more a he grew older and the way they treated him was not right but it will understand it a little later on.

In order for this incident to change into an opportunity for greater equity for be for not only the police but for people to see everyone as an individual and not a group. A stereotype was what led this situation. What the police did to my brother would create a stereotype for themselves which he now sees is that they are not there to protect him but they are against him. Now two years later this situation has not yet seem to change but has gotten worst. I try to think of the saying, “It has to get worse before it gets better.” In my heart I hope that what is currently happening will be the worst it gets.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggression

In the media segment, Dr. Sue defined microaggressions as verbal behaviors usually containing an insulting message to women, people of color, gay or lesbians intentionally or unintentionally that may cause severe or psychological stress and harm. (Laureate Education 2011). 

I am employed at a non-profit organization where mostly African Americans and sometimes homeless children attend. Despite how some people my just see us as daycare, we do a lot more than normal childcare centers. We have 2 Georgia Funded Pre-K programs, a community outreach team, health coordinators, parent social committee coordinators, and a safety committee. Most of the committees are filled with teachers within the program whom all work together to make out program a success.

About two weeks ago the speech therapist, whom is a white female that, comes regularly to our school maybe twice a week and who also knows all about our program complemented us on how awesome of a job she thinks we are doing. She stated, “I’ve never been into a low income school that is as dedicated as you ladies are. I am so stunned at how much you all value education and also how the parents in this area participate. You don’t usually find that in a lot of rural neighborhoods.”

The only thing I could do was to say thank you, smile, and walk away.

 I feel as though this was a microinsult. Even though she was consciously giving us compliments I feel as she was unconsciously saying that most African Americans do not value education and that the teachers of these schools are lazy and aren’t passionate into teaching these kids because there is not hope. As an education professional I feel that we should take our job seriously and to not have biases towards children because we are there to help them and no matter of the economic status they all have a chance.

Gaining the knowledge of microaggressions effected my perception that stereotypes have a huge influence on the way we discriminate and also the prejudices we have against each other because it has an impact how we perceive one another. We often treat people unfair and think that it’s justified because of a specific stereotype that we may believe about them. We must overcome stereotypes by becoming aware of thoughts and feelings that we have about one another and the behavior it may bring about. It is important to get the facts on the individual and not look at them as a group.

Reference

Laureate Education (Producer). (2011). Microaggressions in everyday life [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

This week we were asked to interview three people, at least one in which was culturally different, and their views on the definitions of culture and diversity. I interviewed the following:

·         25 year old African American female with a Muslim religion

o   Culture: Family traditions, values, morals, gender roles within families, as well as beliefs including religion and old wives tales even.

o   Diversity: The difference between an individual’s families and cultures.

·         28 year old Caucasian female

o   Culture: A person values, traditions, surroundings. Everything from their past generations, language, the way they dress, and the way they think.

o   Diversity: Difference in language, dress, thinking, and appearance.

·         52 year old African American female

o   Culture: Family traditions. How you were brought up.

o   Diversity: A variety of ideas and groups.

  

“Culture is like an iceberg, the part of the iceberg that is celebrated is the tip sticking out of the water, but the ninety percent that is lurking beneath is where the tension comes in. (Laureate Education 2011).

            When defining culture people usually only realize what is visible. By my surprise after interviewing these three ladies they all have shared their knowledge on deep culture such as stating culture being based on language, how people were brought up (historic events),or their traditions (old wives tales). All of the ladies I interviewed are colleagues of mine. Even though we work with a diversity of children whom are from different cultures when asked these questions, each said, “Let me think about it.” This gave me the impression that they thought of culture being deeper than just what we see.

After studying the aspects of culture and diversity, when I think of the word culture I think of a family’s values, religions, morals, beliefs, and customs the customs they live by. Culture is the traditions within a family that they feel are important enough to pass along from generation to generation. Culture can be as specific as someone’s race, the way they dress, how they speak, the type of language they speak, what they may or may not believe, or may or may not eat. The word diversity makes me think of the way we define people based on their unique characteristics. This can be a person’s race, gender, abilities, religions, or culture. All in all, culture is what we make it.

Reference 

Laureate Education (Producer). (2011). Culture and diversity [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

My Family Culture

In the event of a major catastrophe devastating the infrastructure of my country and as a result having to evacuate, three things that I would choose to take that represents my families culture would be an embroidered baby blanket, a ring, and an old journal.

The blanket is handcrafted with the letter S embroidered in the middle to symbolize the Smith family. This blanket is passed from generation to generation. It is said that the baby blanket covers the baby with angels, including the family members who have passed on to the afterlife, to protect them from evil spirits.

The ring was worn by the first woman of the Smith family. This ring is passed from generation to generation from mother to her first born daughter on her 16^th birthday. Unfortunately, I will never be an owner of this ring being that my mother or grandmother is not the first born.

The journal is more than 120 years old. It’s full of recorded stories of past events of things from our family history. The writer of the journal was not very educated but I don’t know if they were an adult or a child but it is very interesting reading direct experiences of some traditions of our family from a family member.

If upon arrival I was told that I could only bring one out of the three things I would be devastated because I would feel as though I would be losing some of my families’ culture. I think that I would be torn between the journal and the blanket but I think that I would choose to bring the blanket. The reason being is that the blanket protects the babies which are the future of our family’s name. Being that I would not have any else but stories to tell the future generations, the blanket will protect those who will carry on a start new traditions for the Smith Family.

When I Think About Research

Taking this course has given me a new outlook on research. Research is used in every aspect of our lives. We must analyze ideas and data to better understand the mysteries of life. Before taking this course I did not realize how important research was. I now realize the importance of thoroughly gathering an extensive amount of data to determine a course of action. It is critical to plan,design, and conduct research in early childhood.

My goal is to enhance my knowledge of the minds of the youth to enable me to creative innovative ideas and methods of teaching. There are challenges with everything in life. It is important to not let road blocks discourage me. There is simply confirmation of researching something new. I realize this role requires hard work and dedication. You must be able to embrace a challenge. The reward of enhancing children;' minds and changing the way they think makes all the hard work worth it.

Research Around the World

European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA) is an independent, self-governing, international association that promotes multi-disciplinary research on early childhood’s policy and practice. EECERA’s Annual Conference is the largest early childhood research conference in Europe which provides networking for scholars, policy makers, researchers and practitioners. The Journal of the Association (EECERJ) is the only European early childhood research cited in the prestigious Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) and is issued 5 times per year. (http://www.eecera.org/)

While researching the EECERJ I found several current international early childhood topics such as:

·         Breaking the cycle of poverty: challenges for European early childhood education and care.

·         A special challenge for Europe: the inclusion of Roma children in early years education and care.

·         Learning, assessment and equality in Early Childhood Education (ECE) settings in England

·         The early childhood education of disadvantaged children in China

·         The public-private partnership in ECEC provision in Norway

·         Childcare in the Netherlands: Lessons in privatization

These criteria’s of topics are chosen for the advancement of knowledge within a focused area of childhood studies that aims and promotes to high quality services for young children and families. (http://www.eecera.org/)

While exploring this website I surprisingly found that EECERA looks for different like-minded organizations for mutual support and information sharing. Before becoming a partner, the Board of Trustees has to ensure that they have similar aims and values by meeting certain criteria. Current links include:

·         The Korea Institute of Child Care and Education

·         Pacific Early Childhood Education Research Association

These different links gives information that is beneficial to help us learn about their approaches, perspectives, and solutions to many similar situations that we may face. It also helps us to avoid different situations in general and promotes cultural diversity. (http://www.eecera.org/)

Reference

European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA
http://www.eecera.org/

Research that Benefits Children and Families-Uplifting Stories

If I was able to pick any topic to research about childcare I would choose Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder because so many children are being diagnosed with this disorder. Most teachers do not recognize this disorder or how to teach or support children with it. Researching ADHD will be very beneficial for teachers because it will help them to meet each child’s individual needs. Subtopics would include:

• The different types of ADHD and symptoms.
• Alternatives of treatments taken other than medication
• Causes of ADHD.

Your Personal Research Journey

My general topic that I chose is “Effective Family Engagement”.  The reason I chose this topic is because as we all know a child’s first teachers are their parents. When parents become engaged it shows that they are committed to their child’s education and more than likely they make sure that their child is completing assignments, attending school, and parents feel more comfortable volunteering. Families and schools that work together create children that are successful learners.

Out of the 22 students in my classroom I noticed about 4-5 parents who do not show much interest in what’s going in the classroom. I have come to think that maybe there are some reasons for their actions. The subtopic I chose to focus more on is “Ways to Help Families Overcome Barriers to Become Engaged”. Getting families to become involved may be difficult but there may be some families that are facing difficulties or barriers that are enabling them from being involved such as different educational views, language barriers, or not feeling welcomed. I think that my findings on this topic can be very beneficial to me professionally.

Final Blog Assignment

When beginning this course we were to connect and collaborate with a specific group of internal educators but some of us, like myself, we not able to get feedback from our resources which forced us to research a little further which is one consequence I gained from learning about the international early childhood field. Research and awareness of other countries with the same issue is beneficial because you learn about their approaches, perspectives, and solutions to the situation. You may also learn how to avoid the situation or others in general.

Other consequences that I have gained are cultural diversity and equality and excellence. Researching and collaborating internationally gives you more knowledge on cultural diversity. You have to stay open minded and have the mindset that as a teacher it is a learning experience for you also. When being culturally responsive there are both benefits and challenges but by understanding others you tend to respect their beliefs, culture, and morals.

Lastly, equality and excellence of professionals varies around the world. In the States we want more teachers who are educationally and experience ready when it comes to teaching our children in order to have better success. When viewing issues internationally in Africa they are in the need of 1.6 million teachers. They are more focused on developing policies that will establish efficient teacher policies to improve not only the quality but the quantity of teachers.

My goal as an educator is to not only educate children and their families but to also educate myself in having the skills and knowledge of working with all families of different cultural backgrounds. As an advocate I must be objective to things and act as a support system for our families, for instance being familiar with different services, resources, and referrals to helping assist them in their time of need. I must be able to help them to identify their strengths and needs by also encouraging and providing parents with different ways to help their children grow through emerging in a positive and healthy manner while providing emotional support and concrete assistance.

Through collaboration we are able to better contribute and benefit from increased knowledge which creates a better cultural understanding, improved communication, and the building of better professional relationships.

Getting to Know Your International Contacts- Part 3

Unfortunately, I have still not yet received a response so as an alternative I chose to explore UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education” webpage. While exploring this site there were three insights that I gained which included child marriage in Africa, the challenge of teachers in African, and mobile learning.

In sub-Sahara Africa and South and West Asia about 2.9 million girls are marriage by the age of 15 which robs them of their childhood and education. One of the most effective ways to prevent childhood marriage is for girls to stay in school. Females who are educated overcome discrimination because they are aware of their rights and have greater confidence in making decisions that affect their lives. Given that all girls completed primary schools, the number of girls getting married would drop by 14%. Even if girls stay in school longer they make better choices of health risks of early births and births in quick succession.

The lack of teachers in sub-Saharan Africa is the most worrying in the world. There is a teacher shortage of 46% which represents nearly half of the demand of teachers in the global level. Africa needs 1.6 million teachers by 2015. To end this, an understanding of issues and needs of teachers in a specific country to develop well-adapted policies is needed. Also, prospects for establishing efficient teacher policies will help improve the quantity and quality of teachers needs to be explored.

In South Africa, there are over 25,000 learners that have improved their math skills through interactive exercise and quizzes on mobile phones such as Nokia. Teachers in Mali are able to access lesson plans and curricular materials through internet portal. The program, UNESCO Working Paper Series on Mobile Learning, scans the globe to provide concrete examples of how mobile technologies can respond to different educational challenges in different contexts, enrich formal schooling, and make learning everywhere more accessible, and personalized. This is helping to improve educational access and quality around the world.

In conclusion, education makes a great difference.

Reference:

UNESCO Early Childhood Care and Education. Retrieved from (http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood/).

Sharing Web Resources

When exploring the Harlem Kids Zone website there is many outside informational links that lead to other sources to further your knowledge on topics. Some include, biennial reports, highlights, newsletters, paper and reports, poems, and financials pertaining to the program. One of the links that I took interest in was “Healthy Harlem”.

The Healthy Harlem program ensures that kids grow up to be happy, self-sustaining adults and combat the perilous rise of obesity through nutrition education, fun fitness activities, and parent engagement. Sites serve only healthy snacks and water to keep our kids fueled, while inspiring, educational posters help keep them motivated. Last week, nearly 4,000 youth from the Pre-k Gems to college students completed in HCZ’s annual Summer Games. This is an event that is one of the ways they are helping kids stay safe and engaged all summer long, while developing lifelong healthy habits.

Living healthy is a habit that educators can teach children but it is also beneficial and important to educate parents. To help reinforce the Healthy Harlem message at home and promote widespread wellness, Health Harlem is also working with 1,500 parents and members of the local community through cooking classes, a farmers market with free fruits and vegetables, fun exercise classes, such as Zumba and kickboxing, and Weight Watchers classes.

Reference

Harlem Children's Zone
http://www.hcz.org/

Getting to Know Your International Contacts-Part 2

Unfortunately, I am one of the unlikely ones who have not yet received a response so I chose to explore Harvard University’s “Global Children’s Initiative” website. This serves as a centerpiece of global child health and development agenda to build an integrated international approach to child survival, health, and development in the earliest years of life. There were three articles that I found to be interesting and informational.

            

First, the article “Zambian Early Childhood Development Project” confers how there are a large number of studies that have evidence on the impact of early childhood experiences on children’s developmental health and educational outcomes but little is known or available on early childhood development in Saharan Africa. This knowledge gap was addresses by different centers and projects collaborating together to measure the full impact of anti-malaria by using the first assessment tool in Zambia  call the Zambian Child Assessment Test assessing children’s physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development before and throughout their schooling careers. The early stages of the project demonstrate that comprehensive child assessments are feasible within standard population-based household surveys. 

 

Secondly, the article “Un Buen Comienzo” explains the “A Good Start” collaborative project in Santiago, Chile that began in 2007 to improve childhood education through teacher professional development. The project is designed to intervene in critical health areas that improves school attendance, social emotional development, and encourages family involvement in the child’s education. This project’s idea is to improve the quality of educational offerings for four-to-six-year olds in particularly the area of language and it will eventually encompass 60 schools.

Lastly, the article “Studying the Effects of Global Adversity, Two Generations at a Time” elaborates on focusing on urgent survival needs by Combining short-term survival efforts with attention to children’s developmental needs only magnifies the long-range benefits for individuals and societies. The focus is not on just keeping children alive but the focus is giving the leveragable opportunities that exist to invest in their social capital and to maximize that next generation of young people.

Reference

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/initiatives/global_initiative/

Sharing Web Resources

We always here that the preschool years of a child life is the most critical and we usually have preschools that educate children birth through five, but I took much interest in The Baby College which is a program from the Harlem Kids Zone website. This program ensures that from the time children are born they are immersed in a healthy and supportive environment so that they are able to thrive and are capable of being set on the path to school and college readiness which I see as building a very strong foundation.

There are workshops given to not only the parents with infants but also to expectant mothers to help prepare and guide them into raising happy and healthy babies which include workshops and at home visits for 9 weeks where parents gain the knowledge of things such as child behavior, safety, communication, intellectual stimulation, linguistic and brain development, and health, and nutrition. The classes are all offered in English, French, and Spanish. This made me think that some parents may be interested in workshops and gaining knowledge pertaining to raising kids but they may not have transportation in doing so. It is awesome that this program makes home visits for parents who may be experiencing this conflict.

This program also helps parents to learn how to build strong interactions with their children, create a literacy-rich environment, and foster early language skills. This is especially beneficial for young teenage parents. Politicians are supporting the early childhood field and recognizing how important early learning is for each individual child. In January of this year Obama spoke on the 5 promise zones. He believes in changing the odds for every American child to have a chance to succeed in the economy no matter whom they are or where they are from. His plan is to create a better bargain for the middle-class by partnering with local communities and businesses to create jobs, increase economic security, expand educational opportunities, increase access to quality, affordable housing and improve public safety. 

Just this week alone has made me think about all the different aspects that people may have when it comes to the issues of childcare and education. Many of decisions that are being made about childcare or the education of children have big effects on their future being either negative or positive.

Reference

Harlem Children's Zone http://www.hcz.org/

Getting to Know Your International Contacts

Childhood Poverty

Unfortunately, I have not yet received any responses and most of my emails came back as failure to delivery and using the Childhood Poverty Research Policy Centre’s page as an alternative was not a success either being that the website would come up as not available. Luckily I was a able to find an interesting article on childhood poverty Senegal.

            First, the author compares the definition of poverty between the United Nations and Dakar, Senegal. In the article he states that in the United Nations poverty is defined as a denial of choices and opportunities or as being a violation of human dignity. On the other hand in Dakar it is defined as the lack of basic needs and not being able to participate in society such as not having enough to feed and clothe a family, no access to schools or health clinics, and not having enough land to grow food or a job for a living, or having no access to credit. In return this leads to susceptibility to violence, having to live in marginal and fragile environments, and also having no access to clean water or sanitation.  (Otoo 2012).

            Secondly, poverty in Senegal sometimes forces children to be separated from their families. They have to sometimes be supported by their extended family but  children being mostly girls are failed by this support and usually become victims to sexual and physical abuse by family member, guardians, or institutions that they rely on to take care of them. As a result, these children tend to run away to escape these horrors but end up on the streets and them become vulnerable to alcohol, drugs, crime, or sexual and physical violence. (Otoo 2012).

Thirdly, many of the poor children are not able to get an education because they are forced to take care of themselves or have to help their households and work for extra income. Others become victims to forms of exploitation such as child trafficking. Children turn to stealing and street begging because they sometimes become orphans and head of the household. Others just have to do what they can to survive on the streets. This cycle of poverty then continues on to the next generation. (Otoo 2012).

In conclusion, The Global Fund for Children is supporting programs in Senegal that work with families, communities, government agencies, and the children themselves in order to fight against children having to beg and to destroy the root causes. (Otoo 2012). In my opinion, I think that poverty is defined based on where you live. In America, poverty does lead to violence, bullying, children dropping out of school, and it creates a cycle but you rarely hear about children actually being exposed to child trafficking for extra money or having to survive on the streets the best they can. This story has really touched my heart because it goes out to those children that have to suffer from this on a daily basis.

Reference

Otoo, E. (2012, May 31). Caring for street children means tackling poverty at its roots. Retrived from https://www.globalfundforchildren.org/caring-for-street-children-means-tackling-poverty-at-its-roots/

Sharing Web Resources

Harlem Children's Zone
http://www.hcz.org/
(Newsletter: https://donate.hcz.org/signup )

The main focus of Harlem Children’s Zone is to give every child a chance at success in spite of their economical or cultural background. Its main goal is to break the cycle of generational poverty by giving each child individualized help in getting them to and through college in order to become a self-productive adult starting from early childhood.

I took great interest in this because not all organizations help children from the start. Most organizations usually reach out to troubled children but this organization realizes how important it is to promote success by building a successful foundation and guiding children starting at birth. Not only does this organization reach out to children but also to their families. Harlem Children’s Zone has different community centers to provide children and parents with opportunities to promote higher education and giving them a safe place to learn and grow.

Another program that I really admire is the Preventive Program. There are a total of 4 operated sites that are committed to helping families that have experienced crisis and help them to become more strengthened and stable to prevent foster-care placement. The staff also assists families of acute needs such as housing, clothing, or after school programs for their children. I have not yet received a recent newsletter from this site but the site alone is very resourceful.

Getting Ready—Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

Establishing Professional Contacts

In order to contact two professionals, I used the Global Alliance of NAEYC and UNICEF websites as a guide. The first two that I found were Kingston, Jamaica and Hong Kong, China. Both of the emails that I sent to them failed. In addition, I also emailed the Philippines, Albania, and Belarus. I am currently waiting for a response but I will not be so dependent on just these three, throughout the week I will be emailing them again and also more contacts until I get a response.

Expanding Resources

I have decided to further explore Harlem Children’s Zone. The reason I chose this website because it gives information about children ages 0-5, school-aged, and includes families and community. I hope that this website helps to me to learn more about the early years, the impacts of the early years to later school-aged, and also more of how to relate to and involve the families by exploring their website and also subscribing to their newsletter.

My Support

• Family
• Guidance to instill morals and values that helps you achieve obstacles that arise.
• 
  
• Friends
• Confidence that help build your self esteem throughout life we transition through many friendships that contributes to our character building and helps us focus on the person we are to become.
• Co-Workers
• Motivation to be able to build positive working partnerships that promotes to outstanding work ethics.

My support makes me who I am. It helps me to develop my foundation as a person. I wouldn't be who I am without my support and the experiences that comes along with them. Without my mother I wouldn't have went to college or pursued my career. My children give me a push to be a better parent and a better support. 

My Connections to Play

Growing up as a child it seemed as if we played everyday Starting early in the morning, in school, or right after school. All the children on the same street would play together and the household with the most children usually was the meeting place. We were all of different ages and genders. Playing all  types of games that included using fine motor skills, gross motor skills, physical activities, exploring, thinking games, or games with rules. We all learned from one another, built close relationships, social skills, and even learned how to solve problems from arguments we may have had during a game.

Today I feel as though play is sort of an endangered species. Neighborhoods aren't crowded with children playing sports, riding bikes, or playing. Even on Christmas the streets are not as crowded as they use to be with children playing outside. Most children are at home playing video games or watching television which has a lot to do with obesity, laziness, and underdevelopment of social skills. Not only is play limited at home but also in school. Lots of recess time is being cut to make more time for other learning subjects such as math, science, language arts, or just being taught for standardized testing. Play is important so what road will our children be directed to without it.

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are important because they serve as a motivation and support system. They build our emotions and help us to relate to others and develop empathy to respect one another feelings. Without positive relationships you will lack motivation and knowledge from other people experiences that you are able to learn from.

I share many positive relationships we many people in my life. Some consist of relationships with my mother, my children, my aunts, and co-workers. My caring relationship that I have with my mother’s has helped me in building a loving a caring relationship with my children. The dependent relationship that my children have with me motivates me to do whatever I can and helps me to try and be the best parent that I can be. The relationship that I share with my aunts and uncles are positive because of the advice they give me from their experiences. Finally, the positive relationship that I share with my Director is helpful because of the corrective criticism that she gives helps me to understand my faults and just reminds me to evaluate myself.

                Developing and maintaining relationships also have their challenges. Being able to gain someone’s trust and often being taken for granted can serve as a challenge. Maintaining relationships are also tough because of trying to meet the needs of everyone and having the time available to put in the work of building a relationship. There are some special characteristics that make partnerships in relationships. They can include being both a positive and negative motivator, showing concerns for others, and working with them towards success.

Many daily experiences from relationships have an impact on my work as an effective early childhood professional. I am able to collaborate with other coworkers and we can provide motivation and guidance towards one another. Expectations are clearly understood. It encourages me to except new tasks enthusiastically. Lastly, it helps me to develop effective solutions when having a positive mind set.

I would like to thank all of you for sharing your ideas, words of encouragement, and experiences.

Brenda, I sense that you are persistent and determined. It shows that you are passionate about working with young children.

Bonnie, I really enjoyed your blogs and the way you connected your post with multiple pictures. I believe that you are a strong woman and you can handle whatever comes your way.

Stephanie, from reading your posts and personal experiences it seems as if you are a caring and loving person and I admire you for wanting to be there for others especially your niece and her baby.

I enjoyed this time that I have had with all of you and hope that I am able to work with you again in the future.

Assessing the Whole Child

Most schools assess children by using standardized testing. “A standardized test is any form of test that (1) requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from common bank of questions, in the same way, and that (2) is scored in a “standard” or consistent manner, which makes it possible to compare the relative performance of individual students or groups of students.” (Education Reform 2013). There aren't any accommodations of the test no matter of the child experiences, learning ability, or cultural background. Each child is given the same test and scored based on these one set of questions.

In my opinion, standardized testing is not helping children educationally. They do not have long term effects and are just based on memory and not really what the child has learned. These “test evaluate whether students have learned what they are expected to learn.” (Education Reform 2013).  . Teachers are basically just teaching the test. Some children may not even be able to comprehend how the question is worded and may choose the wrong answer. Some schools get so wrapped up in having high test scores they cause other subjects to be limited such as art, physical education, social studies, and music.

Working with 4 and 5-year-olds I've noticed that they grasp information more when learning is interesting and fun. Standardized tests are not improving the achievement and educational success of the children because they take the fun out of learning and the pressure can cause the children to become stressed. Stress can lead to poor health and also cause the children to become less interested in school or learning in general.

The US is said to be average when it comes to education but Finland is rated as having the best educational system in the world. Finland children do not start school until the age of 7 and are not measured at all for the first six years of their education. There is only one standardized test in Finland and the children take it when they are 16 years of age. The children are taught in the same classroom no matter of their levels of learning and they rarely take exams or do homework until they are well in their teens. The children spend 75 minutes of recess a day compared to the US 25 minutes and the teachers all have master degrees and are selected from the top 10 percent of their classes. (Business Insider 2013).

References:

Business Insider (2011, December 14). 26 Amazing facts about Finland’s unorthodox education system. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/finland-education-school-2011-12?op=1

The Glossary of Education Reform. (2013, August 29). Standardized test. Retrieved from http://edglossary.org/standardized-test/