My Passionate Hope

My most passionate hope for my future as an early childhood professional and the children and families whom I serve is that every child and family member that I come in contact with will know that I am an advocate for them.  My passion of working with children extends both to my professional and personal life.  I want children to know that I am in their corner and will work diligently to make sure that they are treated with respect and dignity.  I want them to feel safe and protected and know that they are unique individuals with creativity and imagination.  I want them to be able to face the world with motivation and know that they are valued and loved no matter what obstacles they may come against.

To my colleagues and professor, I say thank you for sharing your experiences and life lessons.  I have grown so much in my profession during this course.  I have learned many strategies that I will be able to use as I continue my journey in early childhood.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you!

IMPACTS ON EARLY EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The innocence of childhood is being taken away from children all over the world.  Violence, child abuse, terrorism, disease, natural disasters, and many other horrific tragedies are affecting children of all ages.  These tragedies may have devasting, lasting affects on a child's emotional stability.  As professionals in early childhood education it is important that we are aware of the challenges that face not only the children in our immediate reach but all children. 

The region I choose to study is South Asia.  I choose this area of the world because I knew little about the lives of the children there.  Some of the challenges that face the children living in South Asia includes child marriages, children being traded to settle disputes and debts, malnutrition, and poor access to education and health services.  Child marriage is a human rights violation and has an impact on all aspects of a girl's life.  It denies a girl of her childhood, disrupts her education, limits her opportunities, increases her risks of violence and abuse as well as jeopardizes her health (UNICEF, 2012).  Child marriage is most common in South Asia where about 1/3 of women ages 20-24 years old were married as children. Another challenge facing children in South Asia is being traded from their families in order to settle disputes and debts between warring families.  Children, especially daughters, who are traded experience violence and abuse on a regular basis.  Children are also facing malnutrition and poor access to education and health services.  Conflict, political turmoil, natural disasters and economic instability have posed major challenges to the well-being of children and women in Pakistan in recent years (UNICEF, 2012). 

UNICEF and its partners support the mapping and assessment of child protection systems. This work helps build consensus among government and civil society on the goals and components of such systems, their strengths, weaknesses and priorities upon which to act. This then translates into improved laws, policies, regulations, standards and services protecting all children. It also leads to the strengthening of these systems with the financial and human resources necessary to deliver results for children.  Over the past decade, UNICEF has also supported the informed understanding of social norms that result in violence, exploitation and abuse and has promoted change in a number of countries. To promote positive norms to bring about an end to harmful practices, UNICEF engages in advocacy and awareness raising and supports discussions, education programs and communication for development strategies at community and national levels (UNICEF, 2012).

As I continue my journey in the field of early childhood education, I am constantly reminded how precious a healthy stable life is for the development of children and adults.  It is very important that we, as professionals, advocate for children all over the world.  We must continue to support programs and projects that seek justice and equality for all children.  Personally, I am committed to contining my prayers and giving through my religious connections for children all over the world.

 
Reference:

UNICEF. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/rosa

THE SEXUALIZATION OF EARLY CHILDHOOD

The sexualization of children is a major problem in our society today.  Television, magazines, stores, and video games (just to name a few)  all entice children by stereotyping what is appropriate for girls or boys and what you need to have in order to be successful (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  The information that children are receiving from society as a whole doesn’t really focus on what is needed to nurture a successful, productive, healthy lifestyle, but instead what the media and the social culture deems is necessary to be popular or “cool”.  To me as an educator, this type of mis-communication is very damaging to the self-esteem or self-motivation of young children.  I have witnessed young boys being told that if they cry or whine they are acting like “sissies”.  Does this child grow up feeling that only girls should cry if they are hurt physically or emotionally?  How does this type of statement affect what the child thinks of his identity?  I have also watched young girls in my family dress in their female relatives’ high heels and say that they are now pretty.  Does this mean that they were not pretty before?  It is very important that we send our children the right messages.  They do not need objects to make them pretty or popular.  We have to nurture their spirits and let them know that beauty and strength comes from within.  We must help them develop a wide range of behaviors that go beyond the stereotypes that they may face each day (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  Communicating with parents, as well as helping children understand what they may see or hear in their environment is important also.  Connecting with parents to find out where they stand on toys that are chosen for their children, or what they child is allowed to watch on television will enable the child care provider to enforce the same in the classroom if it is appropriate.  It is also a way to give parents positive ideas of how to face the sexualization that may occur in society if they have any questions.

Reference:

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

Describe in detail the consequences you might expect for the children and families with whom you work while you experience specific “-ism(s)” in your own life.  Include specific examples either those you have and/or are experiencing or ones you would anticipate.

An ism is the attitude and actions that surround institutional advantages and disadvantages people experience due to their membership in certain social identity groups (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  The ism that I have experienced most of my life is racism.  My earliest recollection is from primary school while riding a bus that carried predominantly Caucasian children to school.  I was ridiculed for being African American on a weekly basis.  As I grew older, I began to feel that our world was ruled by what was known as “White America”.  I felt this is why my father insisted that all of his children do well in school and go to college to get a good education.  We were told that knowledge was something that could never be taken away from you and could take you places.  So we did as we were told…my siblings and I all went to college, graduated, and got pretty good jobs.  However, I can tell you that there are some who live in our society that believe education, respectfulness, and human courtesy does not count for anything.  If you ever thought that racism was dead, I am here to tell you that it is alive and kicking!

 I was hired two weeks ago as a first grade teacher at a primary school.  The school serves a predominately African American population with a poverty ratio of about 80%.  Because of the number of children in the first grade classes, the Principal was allocated money for an additional teacher.  A parent of one of the children who will be transferred to my class wanted to know if I was Black.  She was told that I was an experienced teacher with 16 years teaching young children and taught previously in a District that was known for receiving excellent marks on the state report card.  She was also told that I came highly recommended for the position from my previous supervisor.  However, the parent was only concerned about her Caucasian child being taught by an African American teacher.  She also went as far to say that the only reason her child was attending this school was because most of the teachers were Caucasian.  When the Principal first told me of the situation I felt as if I had been slapped in the face.  Here we are in 2012 and it doesn’t matter how well you do your job, how you nurture and inspire children to learn, but what matters to some is what race you are.  After I got past the initial shock of what I was hearing, I knew that God put me in this position for a reason.  Will she and her son be treated any differently?  The answer is no.  I have always bent over backwards to communicate with all of my parents and worked 150% for all the children I serve.  Her child will get the same love and nurturing that all of my students receive.  As I do with all my parents, I will ask her to attend conferences and school functions and see me with any concerns that she may have about her child.  I have already sent a welcome home letter to all the parents letting them know how important it is for us to work together.   Racism continues to divide people and produce social and emotional turmoil.  As an anti-bias educator my goal is to embrace diversity within my classroom by making my students and families aware that we are all different, but we are all equally important to society, our classroom, and each other.

 

Reference: 

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and

ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

 

Observing Communication

Young people have real ideas and opinions to share.  They are very curious and ask many questions on their own.  Our role as parents, teachers, adults, and the community as a whole is to guide their ideas as we instill in them positive concepts (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).

My observation for this assignment took place during a short Veteran's Day Service at my church.  Three small children between the ages of four and six came in with two of their Aunts.  When the program was over the three little girls walked down the center aisle to where a visiting Pastor was standing.  She spoke to them and asked them their names.  After each little girl said her name, they told the Pastor that they wanted to sing a song for her.  She immediately sat down and began to listen as they sang "The Itsy Bitsy Spider".  As they were singing, the Pastor performed the hand movements that go along with the song.  She praised them for their singing and then asked them if they knew a song about Jesus.  One of their Aunts told them to sing the song "Jesus Loves the Little Children."  Even though the congregation was waiting on the Pastor in the rear of the Church, she sat up front listening and praising these three little girls whose faces were lit up with smiles. 

As I watched this exchange of communication through a few words, song, and laughter, I was reminded of  the statement made by Ms. Kolbeck (Lareaute Education, Inc., 2011) that children must feel that you are listening to them and valuing what they are saying or doing.  Children communicate in all different ways.  These girls definitely loved singing and wanted to share what they knew with these person that they had never seen before, but for some reason, they were drawn to her.  This spoke volumes to me about her presence and how the children must have felt very safe and comfortable with this presence.  As educators, I think that it is very important that our children feel safe enough around us to show us their creative side.  We must in turn listen and support them in the things that they do.

References:

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and             ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). Communication with young children [video]. Strategies for Working with Diverse Children. Baltimore, MD: Author.

LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

Creating Affirming Environments

Child care reaches thousands of children each day.  It may be a licensed childcare center or a licensed family childcare home.  Therefore it is imperative that those who operate these facilities make sure that they honor diversity among the children and families that they serve (Pelo, 2008).  An environment rich in anti-bias education promotes creative discovery and supports the fact that every child deserves the right to develop to his or her fullest potential (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). 

 

In my Family Child Care Center it would be vital for the families of my students to be an intricate part of our program.  One of the ideas I would include that came from the Anti-Bias Learning Video (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011) would be a welcome and greeting room where I could greet my students and families each morning.  In the room I would make sure that I had a schedule of our activities for the day.  The room would also contain photographs of our children and their families.  It is a part of our professional vision and responsibility to integrate families as valuable and indispensable partners in the learning community (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  I would also instill a volunteer program where family members could come in and volunteer at the school throughout the day.  Including a star student/family corner which highlights a different student each week along with items from their home would give the children the benefit of seeing both their home and their early childhood program as equally welcoming and loving place. 

 

My literature area would include many genres of books who main characters or illustrations reflect diversity.  If my center included Hispanic children or children who knew a second language, it would be important to have books that contained that language in the literature area.  There would also be an area rug so that volunteers could come and read to small groups of children.  Books (especially big books) are a great tool for engaging small children and leading discussions into other subjects.

 

Adriana Castillo’s Family Child Care Home (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011) also showed a center where skin tone materials were placed.  Children could connect with these items because they showed a reflection of themselves.  My Art center would definitely contain paper and paint of various skin/earth tones so that children could include variations of themselves and their families in their art projects and paintings. 

Puzzles, Legos, etch-a-sketches, and blocks would also be kept in an area to promote critical thinking and promote motor skills.  Center areas would also include housekeeping, dramatic play, and puppetry.  Finally, images of different children and families would be placed throughout the facility.  This gives children a connection with society as a whole.  The photographs could facilitate discussions about families around the world.

 

References:

 

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and

ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

 

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). Welcome to an anti-bias learning community [video]. Strategies for Working with Diverse Children. Baltimore, MD: Author.

 

Pelo, A. (Ed.) (2008). Rethinking early childhood education. Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking

Schools.

 

 

 

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

When I think about diversity and families, I think about the unique individuals that come to my classroom each year.  I think about the creativity that I will help to foster and the seeds of love that I will plant into each child.  Each year I express to my parents the need for us to be in constant communication about their child.  I express to them how important it is for their child and our class as a whole that the parents be an intregal part of our classroom community.  My hope is that parents and educators everywhere understand that it takes a village to raise a child.  As early childhood professionals, we are there to care and nurture your child during those hours they spend with us each day.  The better the relationship we have with the families, the better the connection will be between the child and the teacher.

One goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field that is related to diversity, equity, and social justice is to continue to offer resources for professionals to network to continue developing strategies for promtoing diversity and equity.  Continue providing opportunities for advocacy when it comes to the healthy development of all children.  These opportunities are extremely valuable for families and also the professional growth of individuals working with children and their families.

To my colleagues, I want to thank you for the opportunity to learn from and be inspired by your thoughts and experiences.  As we continue our journey of anti-biased work and supporting children and families all over the world, let's remember that equity and equality work hand in hand.  We must become involved and stay involved to ensure that strategies and policies are in place for our most precious gifts...children!