Time Well Spent

At least three deeply felt learnings from this program

One thing that I have learned is that I must be open minded so that I can get a better understanding of myself and others.

It is essential to be ant-bias and not place judgment on others. We must get to know people and accept them for who they are.

The final thought that I will take from this course is that children learning abilities will vary because of their up bringing so we must welcome all culture’s customs, values and beliefs in our classroom community so that all children are welcomed.

At least one long-term goal

It is my goal to be an advocate for young children and stand up for what is right for them and their well-being. I hope to provide children with resources that can help them become productive citizens in today’s society. Throughout life many children will be faced with life changing circumstances that may interfere with their overall development. “Inequitable opportunities, privileges, and life experiences based on economic class deeply affect young children’s lives” (Sparks& Edwards, 2010, p.101). Many will lack the necessities of life which can hinder their cognitive development. Early childhood professionals must reach out to these children and come up with all possible rationales to help them succeed in spite of their social economic status.

A farewell message to your Instructor and colleagues (consider uploading a video or audio podcast)

It has been a pleasure working with and getting to know all of you. Throughout this journey I have learned so much from each of you. The blogs and discussion board is where all of our interactions took place. It is always a joyous feeling reading your responses. We all have come thus far and I wish you all the best of luck on your future endeavors. I know that each of us will continue to excel as we are all advocate for positive social change that is beneficiary to young children and their families. Thank you Dr. Myers for your hard work and dedication to ensuring that we are anti-bias educators so that we can better serve children and families. Most of the children within our classroom community will come from diverse backgrounds. In order to be anti-bias educators we must be open-minded, optimistic and set aside our biases so that we can display diversity and provide children with quality learning opportunities despite of their culture, race, ethnicity or religion. Through hard work and dedication we are willing to do whatever to support the well being of children. Best wishes to all of you and I hope that we keep in touch over the years to come! My email address is quitner@yahoo.com

References

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).

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

The first organization that grasps my attention is the United Nation Children’s Fund. As I browsed through some of the things this organization did, the section about quality of education and friendly schooling stood out to me. “UNICEF is profoundly committed to securing safe, rights-based, quality education for each and every child, irrespective of his or her circumstances” (UNICEF, n.d) It is my desire to provide children with quality ;earning experiences in spite of their economic status or life circumstances. I will add this organization to my community of practice because we share a common goal.  One Job that I was interested in was the Junior Professional Programme. In order to apply for this job one must be a citizen of the respective country in which they are applying, be between the ages of 28 to 32 years of age and must have a master degree.

Save the Children is an organization that focuses on “helping children and families help themselves” (Save the Children, 2011). This organization adds fuel to my passion because it is educators it is our hope to be able to equip families and children with resources and knowledge that can help them in their daily lives. Giving families the skills needed to sustain in life can help them provide a better life for their children. The ad visor of early childhood development is a job that interests me. In order to be a candidate for this position one must have a master’s degree in International Education, Developmental Psychology, or Cultural Anthropology with ECD focus. I do not have the adequate education at the current time to fulfill the requirements of this position; however I am willing to take the necessary steps that are needed if a job becomes available within my area.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is appealing to me because their overall mission is “is to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world” (OECD, 2011). Early Childhood professionals is always willing to do whatever it takes to protect the well being of young children. Politicians and lawmakers come up with policies that are either for or against the well-being of children. With an organization like OECD behind us we can ensure that they will come up with many rationales and solutions to help protect the well being of children and families. The global partnership for effective development cooperation is a position that caught my attention because it “will provide a platform for political dialogue, accountability and mutual learning. One will need a degree in economics, international relations, development economics/studies or a related field. You must also have at least three to seven years of experience in a national or international aid agency, preferably both at headquarters and in the field.

References:

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.oecd.org/home/0,2987,en_2649_201185_1_1_1_1_1,00.html

Save the Children. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.unicef.org/

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

The Children Defense Fund provided a wealth of information to assist children and families in needs.  The Children Defense Fund is a non-profit organization that is “known for careful research on children’s survival, protection and development in all racial and income groups and for independent analyses of how federal and state policies affect children, their families and their communities” (Children Defense Fund, 2011). This will ultimately allow other organizations like Children Defense Fund to implement ideas and strategies to help put an end to poverty so that children and families can move forward in life and focus on understanding and believing in themselves by realizing the goals they’ve set through hard work and dedication, despite their circumstances. “CDF educates the nation about the needs of children and encourages preventive investments before they get sick, drop out of school, get into trouble or suffer family breakdown” (Children Defense Fund, 2011). A job on the site that interests me is the Operations Coordinator position. In order to be a candidate for this position you must have a bachelor’s degree with three years of experience program support, project management, systems processing, events planning or meeting coordination.

Another Agency on the State level that I have always want to be a part of is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The NAEYC is on e of the largest organizations that with and on behalf of children from birth through age 8. This interests me because my concentration area is young children. It is my desire to be an advocate for these young children and provide them with skills that can equip them for success. There were no jobs listed on the website that caught my interest because they were IT jobs.

My final organization is Zero to Three. I was in tuned with this organization because their mission is “to promote the health and development of infants and toddlers” (Zero to Three, 2011).  Zero to Three is a national, nonprofit organization that informs, trains, and supports professionals, policymakers, and parents in their efforts to improve the lives of infants and toddler. Zero to three does not have any job opportunities available at this time.

References:

Children's Defense Fund. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.childrensdefense.org/

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.naeyc.org/

Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.zerotothree.org/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

This week we had to explore local or state organizations or communities of practice that were appealing to us. The first organization I chose was the Houston Area Association for the Education of Young Children (HAAEYC). I chose this organization because we share the same vision which is to provide quality care for young children. Since starting these masters program, it has been my goal to provide children with quality learning experiences in spite of the economic status.  They currently have a program director position available that interest me. In order to fulfill this position I must have this ability to work with people which is not a problem as I interact act well with people on a daily In addition you must have good computer skills and strong organizational skills.

Another Agency on the State level that I have always want to be a part of is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The NAEYC is on e of the largest organizations that with and on behalf of children from birth through age 8. This interests me because my concentration area is young children. It is my desire to be an advocate for these young children and provide them with skills that can equip them for success. There were no jobs listed on the website that caught my interest because they were IT jobs.

My final organization is the Arrow Child and family ministries. Their overall goal is to advance the well being of children, families, communities, and culture by providing them with resources that will strengthen their family life. These organization goes hand and handing with my duties and educators. Many children will enter the classroom with little or no home structure and it is the educators’ duty to equip them with knowledge that they can sue in and outside of the classroom. They currently have a teacher position available. With my current educational back ground I will be able to fulfill this job. You must also have the ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing with superiors, colleagues, and individuals inside and outside the ministry.

Reflecting on Learning

It is my hope and desire to provide children with quality learning experiences despite of their race or gender. I know that it doing so I must be open-minded so that I do not form opinions or make assumptions of the children and their families. The children within the classroom community will come from various walks of life so I must be open-minded in order to get a full understanding of who they are and what they stand for. With that mind-frame I can help meet the needs of children so that they can excel in and outside of the classroom.

To Dr. Myers and Colleagues,

It has been a pleasure working with and getting to know all of you. Throughout this course I have learned so much from each of you. The blogs and discussion board is where all of our interactions took place. It is always a joyous feeling reading your responses. We all have come thus far and I wish you all the best of luck as we continue this journey. I know that each of us will continue to excel in the program and we must thank Dr. Myers for her hard work and dedication to ensuring that we are anti-bias educators so that we can better serve children and families. Most of the children within our classroom community will come from diverse backgrounds. In order to be anti-bias educators we must be open-minded, optimistic and set aside our biases so that we can display diversity and provide children with quality learning opportunities despite of their culture, race, ethnicity or religion. Through hard work and dedication we are willing to do whatever to support the well being of children. Best wishes to all of you as we continue this journey

Barbados

Share with your colleagues the area of the world you chose and why.

The country that I chose was Barbados. As a child I always wanted to visit the island and just relax with my family. In my adult life I am curious about learning about Barbados and the challenges that the people within the city face.

Describe in detail some of the challenges that children in this region of the world are confronting.

In Barbados the children are born with HIV. It saddens me to hear that at such a young age these small children have to encounter these medicals issues. At some point mothers should not be permitted to conceive knowing that they are HIV positive. It is to much for the children to have to battle with disease because they end up being placed with extended families or in the custody of their state because their parents are not able to care for them.  Another challenge that the children in Barbados face is not attend school because of their parent’s inability to pay for their schooling. They educational system there also encounters challenges with meeting the needs of children with special needs.

Explain how these experiences might have an effect on children’s emotional well-being and development.

Children with special needs will encounter feeling of despair as the educators are not willing to help them excel in their learning by providing better opportunities for them to grown despite of the their special need or learning abilities. It bothers me that they do not see this as a problem. The parents need to pull together and stand up for the well-being of children. You cannot continue to put these children off.  We have to provide better learning opportunities for these children so that they can excel in their learning. The children who are born with HIV we encounter a lot of emotional trauma as they have to deal with feelings of uncertainty as they do not know  how long they have to live. Another problem that these children will face is not fitting in with their social settings.

Include a personal and professional reflection. Explain the insights you gained and the influences they may have on you as a person and as an early childhood professional.

As a future educator I was disturbed by the educator’s unwillingness to work with children with special needs. Many of them do not provide children with quality learning experiences because they are not satisfied with their pay. That simply means that they are not passionate about meeting the needs of children. I will not place a price value on life I can shape as I transition into teaching.

Reference:

http://www.unicef.org/barbados/children.html

The Sexualization of Early Childhood

Share your reaction to the topic of the sexualization of early childhood. 

The topic of sexualiztion in early childhood really bothers me. I blame the parents because they are responsible for what they children see and hear. Children in today’s society are more in tuned with the things that are portrayed on TV, things they see and hear in their surroundings, and their interactions with their peers. “Children growing up today are bombarded from a very early age with graphic messages about sex and sexiness in the media and popular culture” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, pg. 2). This has been going on for many years and parents are blinded by the negative impact that it can have on their children.

Provide three or more examples, from your personal or professional experience, that further illustrate the exposure of young children to a highly sexualized environment. 

One thing that really upset me is when they came out with the pregnant Barbie doll. It saddens me as an auntie and my nieces were never allowed to play with Barbie dolls again.  The pregnant Barbie to me simplifies that it is ok to be pregnant. Young children misconceive these messages and want to be like the dolls they play with.

Another thing that get me extremely bothered is when I see young children wearing make -up. This past Christmas I went to my fiancé’s family house and his five year old niece had eye-shadow on. I told him that it makes her look grown. He told me that it is not my child so I do not need to be concerned. We got into a debate about it because I told him that whether it is my child or not, we should not allow children to grow up before their time.

Kids clothing has changed as well. I did not condone children wearing skinny jeans. They fit really tight and show all of the child’s features. When I was in Wal-Mart this young girl was standing in front of me was wearing skinny jeans. This little boy who appeared to be between 14 to 16 years of age was asking the girl her name. Her mother immediately turned around and said that the little girl was only nine and to please quit conversing with her daughter. If she would dress her daughter in age-appropriate clothes then there wouldn’t be any attention drawn to her.

Explain the implications this may have on children’s healthy development.  Include ideas you might have, as an early childhood professional, to best respond to these concerns and to reduce the negative impact on children

We live in a society that paints a picture as this is the acceptable way of living. These young children are growing up to fast and we as a nation must do something about it. Children spend too much time watching TV and do not engage in outdoor play activities like I did when I was a child. This is very unhealthy for children as they mimic everything they see and hear. We do not want our children to carry out behaviors that are not acceptable. Due to socioeconomic class some parents do not see after their children and have no clue about the behavior their children carry out. Educators are stuck trying to rationalize everything. “Parents and professionals everywhere are struggling to deal with this new sexualized environment and often feel confused about how best to respond” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, pg. 7).   As a future educator I will make parents aware of sexualization so that they do not allow their children to grow up so fast. If children carry out sexual behavior within my presence I will address the issue first hand so that children can understand why they must not act in that manner. I will also inform the parents of their behavior so that they can address the issue with their child.

Describe the ways in which your awareness of the sexualization of early childhood has been influenced and/or modified by studying the topic this week.

This topic has really stirred my curiosity about the well being of children. I want to do everything that I possibly can to protect them from harm’s way. Children are being exploited to sexual behavior and violence on a daily basis just by turning on the TV. We must put an end to this nonsense and make children and parents aware of the matter. Society as a whole must come together and do things that are in the best interest of young children. “Society should support you in your efforts rather than set up roadblocks at every turn”. I want to help shape the lives of many children but I cannot do it alone. From this day forward I plan to take a stand by being more observant to children behavior an appearance so I can identify if they are being exploited and address these issues firsthand before they continue to act out in this manner.

Reference:

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids. New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf