Assessing My Styles as a Communicator

I have truly learned a lot about communicating with others since beginning the course Communicating and Collaborating in the Early Childhood Field. I never really thought about the complexity of communicating with others. How often do we just wave to others or talk to them without even thinking about the consequences of our words or actions. Communication helps to establish and build relationships with others. It enables us to make connections with those we love and those whom we have just met. My communication assessments were completed by my husband and a co-worker. They both scored me as a people-oriented person. This did not surprise me because I have always been a very empathetic person who tends to be very trusting of others. I believe that in the field of education you have to be a people-oriented person in order to relate to students and their families. They both said that I am moderate in the area of being respectful when disagreeing with others by not attacking the person, but by disagreeing with the topic or facts being stated. I will work on bringing that down lower to be gentler with those I disagree with. Everyone agreed that I really do not show much anxiety when communicating with others. I think the only time I really feel anxious is when I have to speak to a large group of people in a public place. As I begin advocating for children and families, it is very important to me that I become less anxious as I collaborate with others in the field of early childhood education.

COMMUNICATION AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY

In our world today people from all walks of life learn how to work, play, and live together. We interact and communicate with people of varying cultural and ethnic backgrounds, lifestyles, and abilities (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009). Communication helps you to establish and maintain relationships with these people on a personal and professional level. In order to communicate effectively and appropriately in our world today, you must possess an understanding and appreciation for people who look differently, think differently, and perceive differently than you do. It is also important to understand the way your own background affects your perceptions (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009). Successful intercultural communication requires mindfulness, being respectful of others, and maintaining an accurate perception of the situation (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009). I try to remember this when communicating with my colleagues, my religious organizations, and people I have met socially. I also listen carefully to their responses and watch their nonverbal behaviors. You can tell a lot about what a person is thinking and how they are feeling from their nonverbal behaviors (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009). I find communication with my family much easier because of the culture and connections that we share. Therefore I have expanded my perspectives, modified schemas, and initiated a third culture with others outside of my race, religious affiliations, and political view to establish relationships that have become like family in order to continue my passion of working with children and families (Beebe, Beebe, & Redmond, 2011). References: Beebe, S. A., Beebe, S. J., & Redmond, M. V. (2011). Interpersonal communication: Relating to others (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. O'- Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

COMMUNICATION IN ACTION

The Cat in the Hat: “Dress Up Day” I chose an animated television show to observe for this assignment. As I began watching the show without the sound I immediately understood why children are drawn to animated television shows. The Cat in the Hat Series features a very lively and colorful cast of characters. You have the Cat in the Hat who is a very big black and white stripped cat with a big red and white stripped top hat. He jumps and flips and flies around while laughing and making all sorts of other things appear and disappear. The children in the show were known as Nick and Sally. Nick and Sally laughed continuously and communicated throughout the program with gestures and nonverbal clues such as eye contact, pointing, jumping, clapping, and hugging. The plot included the children trying to find a costume for Dress up Day and taking an adventure with the Cat in the Hat when Sally needs silk to mend her princess costume. Throughout the program the animals portrayed human like qualities of smiling, frowning, talking, laughing, and helping each other as friends. I believe that because this was an animated children’s show, you could very easy understand what was happening even though there was no sound at first. The animals which included a cat, fish, a silk worm, and a moth all explicitly portrayed nonverbal cues and expressions that enabled me to clearly figure out what was happening. Watching this show reminded me of something my husband and sisters have always said to me. They told me that I have the perfect job of working with children because of my ability to be dramatic and animated. I view that as a compliment because I am able to make children laugh while they are learning! Reference: Ardiel, B. (Writer). Collingwood, T. (Director). (1995-2012). Cat in the Hat [Television Series]. Stroud, H. & Stall, J. (Producer). New York, NY: PBS.

A Great Communicator

To communicate effectively, we need to be thoughtful, be able to use listening skills and symbols as well as have the ability to influence others (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2009). When I think about a competent communicator I think of Steve Harvey. Steve Harvey is a comedian who has his own syndicated radio show that is broadcast all over the world. I believe that he is an effective communicator because he is able to make you laugh as well as give you genuine advice about life. He has a real down to earth personality even though he is rich and famous. Through his radio show he is able to inspire millions with his motivational segment. You may also call in for advice or just to get a laugh. He communicates love and giving through his charitable contributions and mentoring program. His influence is widespread and has a lasting impression. The behaviors that I would like to pattern after Mr. Harvey include the ability to make people smile or laugh. I believe a place of laughter is a happy place. As I work in the field of early childhood education, I would also like to be an excellent listerner and motivator for the children and families that I serve. Reference: O’Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s.

PROFESSIONAL HOPES AND GOALS

The course Perspectives on Diversity and Equity have taught me how to better prepare myself for working with children and families. I have learned how important it is to reach each child and family through their culture and how deep connections play a vital role in educating the children. My hope for myself is that I will continue to make a difference in the lives of children and families with a renewing faith that each child and family is unique and deserves to be treated with deep respect. I hope that my voice and my activism on the behalf of children and families advocates for the social justice that we so desperately need in our society today. A goal for the early childhood field is that each institution realizes how vital diversity and equity is in the lives of children. Courses on diversity, equity, and social justice should be offered in the study of early childhood education. School Districts should also have workshops and training on these topics yearly. Finally, I would like to say thank you to my colleagues for your comments and support throughout these eight weeks. Your discussions have provided me with a plethora of knowledge that I can pull from as I continue my professional journey.

Welcoming Families From Around the World

I have recently learned that a family from the country of Oman will be moving into the neighborhood across from our early childhood learning center. They have five children who will be enrolled in several schools in our district. Their youngest daughter Nadia is four and she will attend our child care center. In preparation for their arrival I have shown the students some pictures of the land of Oman. We have also talked about the clothing they wear, games they like to play, and some of the foods that they like to eat. Outside of the classroom I have studied traditions and customs of the land of Oman. I have listened to tapes of the Arabic language and studied the religion of Islam since the Omani culture has its roots firmly in the Islamic Religion. I have also sent the family a welcome letter with a picture of our staff and students. I have learned and taught the students how to say hello and welcome to our school in Arabic. The students and I are very excited about Nadia and her family’s arrival. We hope that they will be excited to learn about the United States just as much as we are to learn about Oman. We have tried to learn some facts about their country and the things that their family likes to do. We hope that this will help to make them feel welcomed and comfortable at our school. References: http://www.omanet.om/english/culture/overview.asp?cat=cult

PERSONAL SIDE OF BIAS, PREJUDICE & OPPRESSION

Several years ago I taught an African American female student who was removed from her home and placed with an aunt when her Mom become incarcerated. I will call her Ann. Ann had transferred to my school the year before as a first grader with about three weeks remaining in the school year. She had to repeat the first grade because of her averages from the previous school and I got her in my class for her second year of first grade. She didn’t always have the best of clothes and sometimes her hair wouldn’t be combed. On the days when this happened I or the nurse would help her with her hair and the nurse would always fix her clothing or give her something else to wear. She was very “street smart” but occasionally had a hard time getting along with the other students. This same year I have had a female Caucasian student who was experiencing her first year in a public school. I will call her Dawn. Dawn, like a few other students in my class, was a little apprehensive about being in a new school with new people. We spent the first few weeks’ role-playing and playing games about friends to help build an atmosphere of community in the classroom. Throughout the year, Ann received counseling and had visits from the Department of Social Services to see how she was getting along and to help her make an adjustment to her new surroundings at home and school. I eventually found out that she had been getting into trouble at home with her Aunt and that she was being treated differently than the other children in the home. Ann became a very angry and confused little girl. Sometimes the students would complain about her bothering them or being mean. We would discuss the problem between the students that were involved and we would work on building friendship strategies during our community meeting each morning as a class. Several times I met with the Ann’s Aunt, along with the guidance counselor, to try and find the best way to help Ann become a positive part of our room. Towards the end of the year, Dawn’s Mother informed me that Ann had made threatening remarks to Dawn several times during the year. I knew that Ann would try and take things away from children on the playground and that she would tell kids that they were not her friends, but I never knew that she had threatened to physically harm a student. Apparently Dawn didn’t tell her Mom until almost the end of the school year. I eventually found out from Ann that she didn’t like it whenever Dawn’s Mother would come and eat lunch with her, whenever she would go on a field trip with her, or whenever she would bring toys for show and tell. When I asked Ann why she acted that way towards Dawn (since other parents did the same thing as Dawn’s Mother as volunteers in my class) she replied to me that she didn’t like Dawn because she was a pretty white girl that had everything. At that moment I knew that I had failed Ann, Dawn, and their families. Somehow I had failed to nurture love between these two students and give each of them what they needed to support their emotional and social development. Ann was a victim of prejudice and the bias opinion that you have to be white in order to be pretty and have financial stability. She was also a victim of oppression because of her situation of being out of her own home, without her own mother, and being placed with family members who treated her differently than the other children in the family, and feeling inadequate in her own skin. Dawn was a victim of prejudice because she was viewed as the enemy just because of her race and her parents’ financial means. Neither one of these students received an equitable year of emotional or social development. When I spoke with Dawn she told me that there were several times when she did not feel safe at school because she didn’t know if Ann would try and hurt her. It took me a long time to forgive myself for not realizing that these two students needed me to provide them with the safeness and security of love that they needed while at school. I thought that what I was already doing in terms of building social skills, character skills, and friendship was enough. I learned from this incident that it is vital to teach, model, and re-teach positive self-awareness to children explicitly! Children must be aware of their individuality and how unique and special they are just the way they are. They do not need to change or look like others in order to be happy and fulfilled. It is also important to respect others who are different than we are. I also learned that children might bring with them preconceived biases/prejudices from their home life that can cause negative behavior and attitudes which can affect their entire view of society.