Time Well Spent

This program has definitely increased my awareness of the impact of positive social change, the importance of building an effective community of practice, and how necessary it is to build relationships with the families that I service at my center.  This program has broaden my insight on how to move from engaging in a local community to a global community.  My new perspective inspires me to build centers in communities where early education and support is needed the most.  My goal is to open a learning center that provides high quality education and services, educational workshops for parents, and accessible family resources and tools in poverty stricken communities so that they will be afforded the same opportunities as children in communities with a higher SES. 

With my goals in mind and even as I reflect on how far we have come in the ECE field, these two quotes inspire me the most:  

“Its not how you start but how you finish”  ~ Zig Ziglar

“What is now done, was once imagined” ~ William Blake

To my Professor and Colleagues,

Special thanks for your devotion, dedication, and commitment to completing the MS ECS program at Walden University.  In addition to the time invested, thanks for having a passion for social change.  I am able to conclude this program, knowing that I have learned from the best in the ECE field.  It was your experience, insight, suggestions, and feedback, that helped me revise my professional goals and find long term ways to be more effective in early learning and developmental practices.  Again, thank you and best wishes.  As we begin new chapters in our lives, I hope our missions are vertically and horizontally aligned so that we may collaborate again.  Below is a link to see the Wordle that I created to express the milestone I have reached, and I'm sure you will relate.  Feel free to reach out to me via this blog or email at shonda.jones@waldenu.edu.  Look forward to see how we all impact the early learning sector!  

Warmest regards,

Shonda Jones

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/8064131/MS_ECS_Overview

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

The three international organizations that appealed to me are: Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI), FHI 360, and Save the Children

ACEI is a charitable organization that shares approaches to educating children in order to enhance their skills and abilities to be successful in life.  This organization consist of a community of educators and advocates worldwide that have come together with their background, education, and experience to explore ways to educate and advocate for children.  Their mission is to promote and support the education, development and wellbeing of children. 

As I explored the website for ACEI, I didn’t come across a career link but I discover ways to become a member and get involved in global initiatives.  At the local level, the organization offers professional development, information on obtaining CDAs, and award, grants, and scholarships to future your education as it relates to ECE.  They also offer summits or conferences each year, to help your build your global COP and utilize the information shared at international events.  One of the opportunities that captured my attention was becoming a diplomat for education.  By becoming an education diplomat, I can help shape the world by advocating for the quality of education children are to receive.  For more information, please visit   http://www.acei.org/

The second organization of my choice is FHI 360.  FHI 360 is a nonprofit human development organization that’s simply dedicated to improve lives through areas of health, education, economics, nutrition, gender equality, etc.  This organization serves at least 70 countries, plus the U.S.  I am attracted to this organization and would like to become a part of their community of practice because of the basis of their vision and mission.  FHI 360 believes that everything is connected so in essence it will take all of us to help children meet their full potential.  We must collaborate and partner with other experts within civil society to help meet the issues that affect communities. 

FHI 360 offers internships, fellowships, consultation proposals, as well as career opportunities.  From the list of jobs I browsed, I didn’t see anything I was interested in because most of them are analyst, program management, or financial positions that are outside my expertise.  I did see a few jobs related to education, but it was at the secondary level and I’m most interested in the primary or early education years.  However, they do offer opportunities to partner with them through solicitation, consolation, and small business approach.  For more information, please visit http://www.fhi360.org/.

And, in my opinion, to save the best for last, my third choice is Save the Children.  This organization has created programs and built partnerships to make sure children have their own rights.  As I consider my own COP, this organization would be one that I would use as a mentor, coach, and guideline to what it means to influence social change.  Save the Children works around the world, saving the lives of children, through protection, medical aid and assistance, food and nutrition distribution, emergency disaster recovery, and education.  I seriously considering how to become a part of their efforts from a long term perspective. 

Save the Children does offer job opportunities and they have several within the U.S and in other countries.  One job that caught my interest is the Family Services Coordinator. This job links directly to the challenge I have set during this course.  One of the main responsibilities is to help parents set goals and encourage them to get involved in their child’s education.  I know this jobs takes me away from the ECE field, where I won’t work directly with children, but I will still impact their lives from a different approach.  A lot of parents struggle with which direction and plans they have for themselves which affects their children.  This position is will give me the opportunity to meet the parents where they are, educate them, get then on track, so in turn their children will have a better outcome.  Based on the qualifications, I lack an associate degree in social work but I do have degrees that relate to family and human services.  I also lack experience at the adult education level, but if they will consider the informal encounters I’ve had over the last three years, where I have trained and educated new teachers, then I might just qualify.  For more information, please visit http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

The National Black Child Development Institute was founded 40 years ago to help black children and families get the early education, health care, and other resources they needed to be successful in society.  I’m interested in making this organization about of my community of practice because of their PEP, Parent Empowerment Project.  Since my challenge focuses on increasing parental involvement during the early years, this program will help me implement ways to meet my challenge.  NBCDI developed a comprehensive curriculum designed for parents to improve the influence they have on the lives of their children.  In the program, parents learn what is best for the child, how to become better parents, and ways to use the resources available to help their child develop.  There are a series of 2 hour classes offered to the parents by training facilitators to empower parents to become engaged in the early learning process.  For more information, please visit http://www.nbcdi.org/what-we-do/parent-empowerment-project.  As of right now, NBCDI has an opening for a President and CEO.  In order for me to be eligible to apply for either position, I must have 15 years of leadership experience in addition to my advance degree.  Even though, I haven’t obtained supervisory experiences of this capacity yet, I have noticed that there isn’t an affiliation in the Dallas area.  With that in mind, I will explore ways to begin a chapter in my region. 

The Association for Early Learning Leaders is a nonprofit organization that has been serving ECE leaders since the early 80’s.  Their purpose is to promote leadership development that enhances the quality of the early learning program.  I am interested in adding this organization to my community of practice because it promotes meaningful collaboration among other ECE professionals not just within my community but within the nation as well.  It will also give me professional development opportunities to fortify my leadership skills after I’ve obtained my advanced degree.  In order to access the job opportunities listed on their website, you must become an ELL member.  Otherwise there is a $49 fee.  However, it does allow you to post employment or volunteer opportunities that you have within your program without a fee.  I am interested in the conferences they offer for owners and directors of child care programs along with the accreditation process they offer assistance with.  For more information, please visit http://www.earlylearningleaders.org/?page=Professional. 

The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organizations that focuses on advancing public education.  I would like to include them in my COP because of the resources and programs they have in place for partnering with parents.  The NEA offers positons in management, professional, and administrative support.  In addition, there are paid and unpaid intern positons.  Even though they have plenty of opportunities, none of the positions listed am I qualified to apply for due to lack of experience in leadership role.  However, I am interested in the fall internship because it provides hands on training to substantive programmatic work experiences that improve the quality of public education.  It will give me more in depth research experience, data analysis, participation with policy forums, and visits on Capitol Hill.  For more information, please visit https://neacareers.silkroad.com/.

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community

The three local or state organizations that appealed to me this are:  Commit2Dallas, Children’s Advocacy Center for Denton County, and Head Start of Greater Dallas. 

Early this year I applied to Commit2Dallas and was accepted in a long term professional development training that will begin this upcoming school year.  Their mission is to start within early childhood helping children become school ready and develop literacy skills by the end of third grade. 

CAC mission is to provide justice and healing for children who have been abused.  During this process, they offer emotional support, family services, therapy, counseling, and prevention education. 

I chose Head Start of Greater Dallas because of their high priority to partner with parents to ensure children get a great head start during the first five years of their life. 

As I look for job opportunities within each of these, Commit2Dallas have various ways to get involved but at this time there aren't any job announcements.  I also was unable to see any employment opportunities with the Children’s Advocacy Center but there are volunteer options.  The Head Start of Greater Dallas have teaching positions posted on their site.  At this level of my career, I am more interested in directing an early learning programs.  So, even though I didn't see any administrative positions in these three choices, there are plenty of director positions throughout the metropolis of Dallas.  I have acquired the education and skills needed to qualify me as a potential director for an already existing early learning center.  However, I would like to challenge myself to establish a new program within my community. 

For more information on the organizations I selected, please visit the following links:

http://www.hsgd.org/families-teachers

http://commit2dallas.org/cradle-to-career/

http://www.cacdc.org/about/mission/

Issues I have within ECE

Welcome colleagues to our last course of graduate school!  Brace yourselves, I have a lot to share during our practical starting with the issues I have in the early learning field.


 

Special Thanks

Thanks to all my colleagues who have supported me during this Communication and Collaboration course.    During the past eight weeks, I have enjoyed engaging in in depth conversations about what we have learned and what we have experienced within our professions.  Thanks to you, I have improved my communication skills.  Thanks for participating, sharing, inspiring, and given me the feedback I needed through collaboration so that I can be an effective communicator.  A special thanks to our professor, Dr. Lisset-Bird Pickens for taking the time to share her expertise, for investing in current and future ECE professionals, and for being an effective teacher that used various activities, assignments, techniques, and technology to help us become better communicators.  Again thanks and I look forward to continuing my educational journey with you!

Adjourning in Team Development

This weak I learned about the five stages that teams or groups go through.  The adjourning stage is a process the groups encounter when they are disbanding (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2012).  This is the time the group reflects on accomplishments and/or failures they experienced along the way.   Some groups don't disband; while others may never work together or see each other again after completing a group project.  I've had several chances working with others during my military career and during my educational career.  As a HR, we constantly had group projects and often times I worked with the same group for various projects.  It wasn't until after I decided not to reenlist that I experienced adjournment and had to say farewell because there would be no future projects for me.  In education, I get to work with my kindergarten team weekly in meeting academic goals within six week increments for the young children assigned to me.  We won't experience adjournment until the end of the year, if the team has to disband.  I don't think high performing groups, as with me and the Armed Forces were hard to leave.  It’s expected and comes with the job.  We are well aware of the turnover rate in the military sector.  For me, it would be harder leaving a smaller high performing group.  As always there are good bye rituals in place especially for members who have invested a lot of time or made a major impact on reaching the common goal of the organization.  When I left the military, those I worked with the most, we had lunch together.  I still contact some of them until this day.  When I left the early learning center for a public school teaching position, my colleagues and I enjoyed my last day on campus by bringing our classes together and celebrating my new opportunity.  Gifts were given, pizza was delivered, party trays displayed, cards and well wishes were expressed, etc.  I still remain in contact with some of the ECE professionals from my first campus and it was hard to say goodbye.  As I get closer to completing my master’s program with WU, I'm not sure how I will adjourn from the group of colleagues that I have worked with for the last two years.  I know we will all be excited about reaching a professional goal and graduating from the program, but I'm not sure how we will bring it to a close when it's the final week of the very last class we have to take.  Adjourning is essential to teamwork because it provides closure to the group project and to relationships that are meant to be long term or to continue.  It definitely helps to understand and improve any areas of weakness that may have been discovered during the project.  

Reference:  O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012).  Real communication:  An introduction.  New York:  Bedford/St. Martin's.  

Conflict Resolution

Not too long ago, me and my supervisor clashed.  I had brought, on more than one occasion, a pay discrepancy to her attention.  As before she had indicated that she would take care of the situation for me.  When it occurred again, I had reached my limit with depending on her to rectify the situation.  I preferred to take matters into my hands by skipping the middle man, which was her, and speaking directly with the counsel about my issue with not receiving holiday pay.  According to her, I wasn't hired as a full time teacher.  Even though I was working full time hours and received other benefits that are only designated to full time employees but because "the system" indicated I was part time, I couldn't get holiday pay.  To me, that didn't make any sense and when I questioned her about it, she just gave me a blank stare as if she didn't know what to say or do.  I walked away because I knew it was a waste of time and there wasn't much else to say to her about it.

Later, she handed me a letter regarding all her concerns about me and how unprofessional she thought I was during the brief conversation.  In return, I wrote her a letter addressing each concern she had and sharing my professional opinion with her as well.  A few days later, we meet and discussed our concerns in both letters.
The misconceptions she had, I was able to explain and give her clarity.  In turn, it gave me an opportunity to learn something about her as well.  She is what is considered an escapist.  She avoid direct conflict but leaves issues unresolved (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2012).  Even though I didn't receive my holiday pay and the conflict wasn't totally resolved, I reached a point where it was best for me to remove myself from the situation.  This is considered separation, a tactic used to resolve conflict (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2012).  I chose to resign for varies reasons that led up to the conflict, but in retrospect it was the best career move for me.  Now, I have the administrative support I need and don't have to debate over compensation that is rightfully mine.  I am blessed now to enjoy paid time off and not just for holidays!

Reference:  O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012).  Real communication:  An introduction.  New York:  Bedford/St. Martin's.  

Me, as a Communicator

This week I evaluated myself as a communicator.  I took three assessments.  One assessed my perspective of public speaking, the other evaluated my listening skills, and the final one measured how aggressive I am when I communicate with others.  I chose to compare my results to what my teenage daughter and one of my close girlfriend's thought about how I communicate with them.

My daughter thinks I'm a very direct and effective communicator.  She thinks I listens for the purpose of solving problems.  Which is understandable from parent's perspective.  She's not around me when I have to engage in meetings or public speaking, but based on family engagements, she is able to share her insight on how well I interact and speak out with them.  On rare occasions, she has witnessed an aggressive conversation of me arguing my point, especially in heated debates about politics, education, and religious beliefs.  

My friend felt like I am passive.  I listen more than I talk.  I only answer questions I'm asked.  She feels like she has called me over the years to vent and I didn't seem to be annoyed by it.  She doesn't think I get frustrated when people call me for my advice but choose not to take it.  She's only seen me on a few times in a public speaking setting.  I didn't appear to be nervous to her.  She thought I did well with explaining the requirements to new hires.  She commented that I've always been able to just talk to anyone, whereas she prefers to communicate with people she know and is comfortable with.  

Listening to others share how they perceive and accept me was very interesting.  I know I can come across strong, especially if I am adamant about my point of view.  I also know that I take others, feelings, into consideration before I respond or react.  I'm shocked that she felt like I was passive.  I think I am very vocal.  Professionally, I take other factors into consideration when working with young children and their families.  I definitely have to create solutions, once I voice my concerns or problems that I see regarding their child.  One of my duties is to educate the families I encounter.  I enjoy helping other achieve their goals and having effective communication skills are important in order for me to do so.  

Communicating with People from Other Cultures

As I reflect on how I communicate with different groups of people, I come to realize there is a difference.
When I communicate with my colleagues or within the workplace, I'm more formal and use high language.  I use terminology based on early education.  I make or use a lot of references to support my professional insight.  The majority of our interaction or communication is data base or research driven.

When I communicate with parents, I don't use as much educational jargon.  I tend to talk to them more in terms they can understand.  I talk to them from an academic perspective and a child development perspective.  I take the time to make sure they understand the information I present to them.

When I communicate with my family and friends, I use more informal and low language.  Most of our communication and interactions are not as politically correct and are less grammatically correct.  I don't self correct myself as much nor am I as formal with them.  I do engage in a lot more "slang" with them.

This week has taught me how to include diversity perspectives with working with families and their children.  I have gain a better understanding on cultural differences and how to take into account their beliefs in relation to early learning.  Learning to learn from some one's perspective will help me be more sensitive to what other cultures have to contribute within the learning community.  

The three strategies I chose to use to help me communicate with other cultures are:

1. When I don't understand something or something bothers me, before I respond/react, I will try to look at it from their perspective and seek a rational reason for it.  
2. I will try to withhold judgement until I have a deep enough understanding.
3. Increase my modeling strategies to help them develop the characteristic skills they need to be good citizens.  Showing them how to make better choices will go a lot farther than me just using dictation.   

The Assumptions in Communication

I must admit that this assignment was different but intriguing.  Watching a show without sound was somewhat challenging b/c I wanted to know so badly what was being said.  The show I chose to watch was NCIS:  Los Angeles.  It was an older episode from season three.  When the show first started, I could see the silhouette of a man banging on the windows outside the home.  The mother grabbed the kids and they hid behind the couch.  I assume she was telling them to not be afraid since that's what most mothers do when they are trying to comfort and convince their child that everything will be OK.  She then was talking on her cell phone, so I assume she was contacting 911.  Based on their non verbal behavior, they were frighten.  I can tell from their facial expressions and the closeness they positioned their bodies with one another.  The way the guy was banging on the window, I'm sure he was yelling, since I noticed his mouth wide open.  

When I finally unmuted the T.V., the man that was banging outside the living room window, was the ex spouse asking for help.  The daughter informed her mother that she was scared.  The mother acknowledged her daughter's feelings but asked her, in a calm manner, to remain quiet.  She did contact 911, informing them that her ex husband was trying to break in.  She think he had been drinking.  The 911 agent asked if he was dangerous and the ex wife shared how he owns several guns.  She asked them to hurry and send someone.  Moments later the police showed up with their weapons drawn.  The former spouse walked towards them in a surrendering position.  As he fell to his knees, his face was covered in bumps the size of boils.  He appeared to have been exposed to some type of contamination from a nerve agent.  Then the scene switches.  

This activity definitely helps you realize how without all of the information you can make the wrong assumption or draw the wrong conclusion.  Listening is a vital part of communicating.  Just seeing something happen is not enough to understanding the meaning of the message that is being portrayed.  

Competent Communication

Competent communication is the ability to get your message across effectively. As I begin learning ways to become a better communicator with the students I teach, the families and community members I partner with, and other educational professionals I interact with, I am eager to learn more of about direct/indirect, verbal/nonverbal concepts of communication. This week I got a chance to observe my communication from colleagues. One of the teachers sent out a letter, to the parents of the students she work with, to inform them that she will be resigning from teaching and transitioning to administration at a different campus. By providing the parents with a letter, showed concern and respect. She also explained, one on one, with her colleagues about the opportunity. Some coworkers were glad for her and expressed how they would miss her but wished her the best on her new job. Other coworkers wasn't too excited about her leaving but were still happy for her. The teacher also discussed her new opportunity with her students. Of course they don't want their teacher to leave. As she reminded them each day leading up to her last day, she introduced their new teacher to them. While she was training the new teacher to replace her, she also allowing the children to familiarize themselves with her. This was to make the transition smoother. I definitely like how she took time to inform the students, parents, and staff of the decision she made to advance in her career. She took time to answer questions and to explain in depth what this means for her and her family. I witnessed the bittersweetness of her having to leave a job she devoted five years to for a major career move to help her continue her devotion to early learning.  I too want to effectively engage in competent communication through the relationships I will encounter as I continue advocating for young learners. 

Professional Hopes and Goals

My Hopes

One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is that my learning environment not only makes them feel safe, loved, or wanted but also included.  One of my professional goals is to include each individual culture within my classroom into the activities, lessons, centers, etc. through the course of the year.  This is a way to help children learn about other cultures, learn to accept and respect those other cultures, and understand that even though the culture is different from theirs, there are still similarities. 

Another goal I would like to set with ECE in relation to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to increase my awareness of those issues in the classroom.  I want to target the issues that are present in my classroom so I can use those moments as teaching opportunities to show how we should respond and teach others who may look different, act different, or have a difference in opinion from ours.  We all know that the issues exist around us, outside the classroom.  The approach with the families, parents, or other adults will be much different from the approach I will take with the children I work with.  Finding a personal touch in a professional manner to address those issues as well will be crucial because once the child leaves my classroom, his family or parents may not support what I’m sharing and showing in the classroom when it comes to diversity, equity, and social justice.  So, increasing their, the parents, awareness as well will be helpful in building the child’s character development. 

Special Thanks

I want to thank all my colleagues, especially during this course, who took time to read my post and respond.  Thanks for your input or feedback; even through the discussion board.  I really have gained insight on the anti-bias that are present in education.  I hope all of you are much closer to your professional goals and will take what you have learned and apply it to the young children and families you work with daily.  Again thanks for being a part of my educational journey and helping me become a better educator.  

Welcoming Families from Around the World

I’m excited to receive a four year old boy from Panama, into my early learning program. The family is new to our country and has decided to enroll their little one into an in home learning environment. The mother feels this is the best way for her son to adjust to the new transition. I couldn’t agree more since in home care is more intimate and has a lower teacher to child ratio that will help him not only adjust but to work at his own pace, without feeling overwhelmed.

Based on my research of Panama, I have prepared myself to be culturally responsive by:

1. Incorporating their Spanish language into the learning activities. By me learning Spanish, I’m able to better communicate with the child and his family. I can also send written communication in their home language as well.

2. Having the family share with me some of the child's developmental experiences. By probing, I can find out what the child likes to eat, do for fun, and even what signs to look for when the child isn't interested or doesn't feel like participating. This will help me better understand him and help me met his needs, along with make him feel more welcomed.

3. Including Panama specific customs like art, music, and special foods. This will demonstrate to him and his family how my program accepts his culture and renders respect to his country. This will also help me learn more about Panama's history.

4. Gaining a thorough insight on their early education system compared to the U.S. education system. This will help me gauge what the child has already been introduced to in the Panama ECE programs. It will help me better assess him and to know what type of foundation has already been establish so I can continue to build on it.

5. Gaining insight on the national youth organizations of Panama will help me explore the objectives they are trying to meet with helping children with their child development. This will help me to view current research and other projects that are working internationally to build equity and social justice.

I believe from the knowledge I've gained from diversity classes and professional development courses, that the methods I use to work with this child and his family will help the family adjust to the American culture, and most importantly help the child get the early education and child care he needs as he begin a new journey in his life as well. As I continue to advocate for young learners, this will help me explore a new culture and continue to promote social justice for children. 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

Recently my family and I watched Lee Daniel's The Butler. The movie is about a butler who served seven presidents and what he and his family encountered during the major events that has helped shaped our country. The movie shows the oppression African Americans experienced during slavery. It demonstrated how unfair and unjust the laws were towards blacks and how they were not protected from the violence white people inflicted upon them. As the movie continues it shows the struggles and challenges that blacks encountered during the Civil Rights Movement. Some methods were of love and peace, while other methods where to took a fight fire with fire approach to use violence as well. This movie differently displayed how white people had the mentality that they were right, their way and methods were the best, and they were the only race deserving of what they suggested life is about. There was one scene in the movie where the main character admitted to having to have two identities. He had to pretend to be invisible when he was serving white people while in his butler role. Outside his butler role, like at home, he could be himself and be honest of how he felt about the realities of life. Equity was diminished throughout most the movie. One specific demonstration of inequity was when the butler would ask for a raise for him and other black employees at the white house. Each time he asked for the raise, he was denied it. According to the butler, not only did the black employees not get annual raises, they were not promoted to other positions within the organization, compared to the white employees. When he brought this to his supervisor's attention, not only was he denied or rejected, he was also advised to seek employment elsewhere. 

I enjoyed the movie and it is more than just entertainment for me and my family. This movie shared insight of African American history. It exposed the in depth experiences blacks faced in our country trying to get equal rights. Another scene shared how the Black Panther Party was formed. I even got a glimpse of what the Freedom Riders experienced. I'm definitely glad times have changed and my race of people, and others have rights and legal privileges now that they didn't have 60 years ago. I'm proud of those who faced those discriminators and demanded change. I'm also glad that I didn't live in that era and have to either suffer or fight along with others during that time.

It took one of the President's to help the black employees get their raise and promotions. Just think if he had of gotten it two president's sooner. A lot of changes have occurred since the butler first started working at the white house. In fact, he was able to witness President Barrack Obama become the first black president. Even though he had retired and wasn't able to serve during his administration, I'm sure after living through the struggle and now witnessing the power of those sacrifices made it worth it. Then compared to now, and knowing that racism still exist, just in different forms, we must still work towards diminishing those inequalities so history won't repeat itself.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

During this week, I witnessed a form of microinsults and/or microinvalidation.  One of the parents decided to correct the assigned teacher and her assistant about the pronunciation of her child’s name.  As Americans, and having a thorough knowledge of English grammar and phonics, the teachers that interact with her son, were pronouncing his name without the Latin accent.  The teacher disregarded it as being unimportant.  She stated, “Why didn't she inform us of that at the beginning of the school year.  Why now?”  The assistant teacher felt like the child doesn't know the difference anyway.  “Besides we are not Spanish speaking people; everyone can’t roll their tongues”.    These are the hidden messages that Dr. Sue was referring to in the Microaggressions video.  I’m not sure if it was intentional or unintentional, because the teachers didn't express this to the parent.  They only discussed it in private, but their attitude of not rendering respect to the parent’s wishes and the child’s identity was shocking.  I definitely disagree with both because they can at least put forth the effort to try to pronounce the child’s name correctly and even though the child is only 2, he is picking up on different behaviors within his learning environment and with the attitudes of these teachers, it could cause an early onset of psychological stress (Microaggression in Everyday Life).  As he develops, he could become embarrassed by his culture or heritage and lose that part of his identity in order to fit in with society or people who share their attitude.   From this observation experience, I see how easily it is to engage in microaggression, as adults, and use it towards children regardless of their age.  This also was an indication of how we must improve our professional development requirements.  If I was the administrator, and this was brought to my attention, both of them would be attending Anti-Bias Educational Classes.    

Reference
Laureate Education, Inc. (2011).  Microaggressions in Everyday Life.  (Mulitmedia Presentation).

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

I recently asked the following people about their definition of culture and diversity.  Their responses are:

Ruthie, my 58 year old mother:  "A person’s way of life; their lifestyle, beliefs, values, and what is the norm for them is their culture.  Diversity is just a fancy word for being different."

Kyna, a 36 year old friend:  "I look at diversity as being a part of their race. but a person’s culture helps identify them.  How you are raised also defines your culture.  Depending on the country you leave in determines your own culture.  It's just a lot of things."

 

Brianna, my 9 year old daughter:  "A person’s culture is proof of people being different (diversity) from other people.  Culture includes things around you like your family.  Describing culture is really hard." 

I chose different age ranges to demonstrate how over time people's concepts of diversity and culture develops.  As I reflect on what I've learned and listen to what my friends and family have shared with me, I’m reminded of how complex culture can be.  According to Chapter 5 of Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves, culture refers to how particular groups of people live (Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  Everything we do reflects our individual cultures.  Mostly people view culture as the difference between ethnic groups but it is possible for the Asian culture to share some of the same beliefs as a non Asian culture.  It’s even possible for African American families to share the same ethnicity but have different approaches to their everyday living.  By listening to how others define diversity, I perceive that diversity goes hand in hand with culture because of the uniqueness of it.  There’s no way to identify culture but not recognize diversity.

Reference:
Derman-Sparks, L. & Edwards, J. O. (2010).  Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves. National Association for the Education of Young Children, Washington, D.C.

My Family Culture

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you hold dear and that represent your family culture.

• A description of the three items you would choose

The three items I would take with me will be identification documents, valuable family heirlooms, and pictures. 

• How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you

The legal documents may be useful in the new country and if I'm ever to return to my previous country, I will have them to help me transition. Having anything of value will help me to survive in the new country. I can use things of value to barter with. Taking pictures with me will help me remember and express our family history. It will remind us of what life was like before the catastrophe and help gives us hope for what we will return to one day. 

• Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you

It would sadden me even more to have to give up the little I have left. I probably would give up the legal documents that identify me since now that I'm in a new country, they will want to recreate that information for me based on their classification system. I would hold on to what is valuable and as many keepsake items I have. 

•       Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise.

I am closer with my immediate family versus my entire family. I rarely see and interact with them unless its holiday functions, graduations, wedding or funeral ceremonies, etc. Losing my immediate family will be more devastating and have a greater impact on me than losing a distant relative. So, it definitely makes a difference not having a relationship with someone but being related to them. Even within your family their can be a culture diversity.

When I think of Research

First and foremost I would like to thank all my colleagues for their support, expertise, and insight during this course.  Your participation is greatly appreciated and as help better my understanding of the influence of research.  

What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?

Learning the details of research has helped me better understand why research is important and how it is used to improve the lives of young children.  Learning about the different issues of research and what is currently being done to minimize those issues.  

In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?

I have a better knowledge of the research process.  I understand that their are guidelines and divisions in place to govern what is or isn't acceptable.  Children, families, and other participants have rights that are protected during research and case studies.  

What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?

I learn the steps to take when designing a plan to conduct research.  Being specific helps know what exactly the objective is that I was trying to meet.  Learning to look at what I want to learn and how I want to contribute to early education was helpful in determining which approach to take.  

What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?

Making sure the time and resources are available to complete the research is one challenge.  Replacing participants that can no longer commit to being apart of the research is another challenge.  

What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?

My professional perspective was challenged when I had to switch to a researcher's mentality.  As a researcher, I have to interview and observe then document and analyze.  As an educator, I focused on helping young learners achieve their academic goals.  As a researcher, I see the evidence and I compare it to another group's outcome; I can't interject and make corrections and turn the situation into a teaching moment.  My purpose is to test a theory and to focus on what the child knows or doesn't know.  So, keep the two positions separate was a major modification for me.  

Research Around the World

Recently I visited European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA) to learn about current international events related to ECE.  There is an upcoming conference in August for international researchers to gather together and collaborate and network about child development.

What I found interesting is that EECERA offers one of the most prestigious ECE journals of the world.  EECERA is also affiliated with special interest groups.  These groups are formed from members of EECERA who collaborate internationally over child development topics and issues.  EECERA have a partnership with Pacific ECE Research Association and the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education.   

Unfortunately, EECERA hasn't displayed their current topics or events; that section is under construction.  

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