Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is mutual learning.  I hope that I will use what I learn from children and families to better help them and hope they will learn as well.  I will research and integrate their culture to help build and become a part of a strong support system for the child.  I feel that by working together we can create a shared understanding of each other and what is best for the child.  The goal can only be achieved if we can establish a connection of respect for each other and our active roles. 

One goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to continue working with other fields in collaboration.  A lot of the issues stem from other non-traditionally related disciplines.  For example, classism deals with economics and ableism can be linked to city planning or even the field of architecture.  Politics, government, medicine and science and the information they hold can help progress in the Early Childhood field and make an even greater impact on society.   I feel that other disciplines can offer perspectives, insights and support when it comes to issues of diversity, equity and social justice. 

I would like to say thank you to all of you my colleagues.  I wish you all the best of luck as you continue your studies and hope you truly enjoy your time off, you deserve it!

Welcoming Families From Around the World

Think for a moment about the following two statistics:

-About 195 different countries exist in the world today.

-According to the U.S. census bureau, the United States’ population includes individuals and families from 150 different countries.

For this assignment, imagine the following scenario:

You are working in an early childhood setting and you receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you know nothing about will join your group soon. You want to prepare yourself to welcome the child and her family.  In order to complete this assignment, first choose a country you know nothing about as this family’s country of origin.

Five ways I can prepare myself to be culturally responsive towards a family from Yemen is by:

1. Identity- Understanding my own cultural identity, I believe, is the first step to being culturally responsive.  You have to be able to share who you are if you want others to do the same in order to work together.  Also, I can draw on similarities and comparisons to better connect with families.
2. Resources- Gathering information, going to a cultural event, learning the history and communicating with people can all help my understanding of the elements of that culture.
3. Integration- Integrating the culture creates a sense of acceptance, excitement, respect and comfort that helps make deeper connections with children and families.
4. Language- It is important to incorporate the home language somehow.  This can be done visually and verbally.  If the language in the early childhood setting is different from the home language I would make it known that since the child and/or family is learning a new language then I would like to learn their language as well.  This way everyone is learning and experiencing similar feelings.
5. Involvement- Involving the family helps everyone see that they matter in the child’s life from family members to myself as an early childhood professional.  Also, family members can act as cultural resources for myself or the greater community.

I hope that these preparations will benefit myself and the family in a few ways.  I hope that it will be a learning experience for all.  This simple idea can help subside any power relations and focus on the more human experience of getting along, learning new insights and building a relationship that centers around doing what is best for the child.  I hope to create a partnership of communication, support and trust that can come from investing the time and effort in culture and family.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

One memory of when I experienced prejudice happened in middle school when a girl in my class told me that I should speak English because this is America.  I was speaking with a friend of mine in Spanish and she made it very clear that this was not acceptable.  I remember feeling a range of emotions when I heard this.  Mostly, I wondered where this young person learned to have such strong feelings about other languages and cultures.  I felt offended and shocked. 

This incident diminished equity. The girl was trying to make my friend and I feel like we were wrong.  She did not treat us with respect or fairness and instead tried to make us feel inferior for not speaking the language of the dominant culture, her culture.  She then tried to justify her statement by reminding us of where we lived and thought that we should only be using the language of the dominant culture. 

I think what would need to change to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity, is that girls experiences.  There would have to be a change in the cultural environment where this took place.  More diversity could have made a significance in this incident as well.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

The example of microaggression I observed this week was in the form of a poster for the AHF, the Aids Healthcare Foundation I saw on a bus.  I considered this a form of microaggression because it was designed and with good intentions and meant to be positive but ends up marginalizing gay men by exhibiting certain stereotypes.  The poster showed 6 men with their arms around each other smiling, standing in a line with either the words “HIV +” or “HIV -” written on their shirts.  Each man had a different shirt representing one color of the rainbow. Yet, on closer observation I realized that they were not wearing shirts, they had been painted on their bare chests.  It bordered the line of sexual objectification and I didn’t like that all the men were clean cut, groomed and in muscular shape.  As a gay man I would feel very offended of this stereotyping of what a person of my sexual orientation looks like.  Not every gay man looks like that and not every gay man is AIDS positive. Furthermore, AIDS does not only affect one group or type of person and I feel like this poster was alluding to certain things.  I felt upset and uncomfortable that this organization would put out such a visual.  I feel they went too far.

This observation affirmed my perception of the effects of stereotypes on people.  I see even more that stereotypes are socially created and it is the media that perpetuates them.  That even helpful organizations like the AHF can use stereotypes will good intentions in mind but that their effects on people could be interpreted differently.  I was a little shocked that I, a straight, HIV negative, woman reacted so strongly that I looked up AHF to learn what it stood for since the poster did not explain the acronym.  I was offended and thought about what children on the bus might think when they saw it.  Children are curious, they might ask what it means and they might come to learn stereotypes from just one small visual.  

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

Pat-

I always have to think: what do I think of when someone refers to a culture? I think of music, values, food, clothes, important places, entertainment, and family traditions. I'm not fond of American culture but that's what I grew up with. I've often said white people, American white people, don't have a culture, but that's obviously not true. Unfortunately, a lot of our "culture" has been exported, to the detriment of others' cultures I believe. Values probably play the biggest role in the development of culture. So American values revolve around acquiring money and things. That seems to dominate American culture. The exportation of those beliefs have ruined some countries and cultures in my opinion.

Diversity to me has to do with people but it certainly has to do with culture. A diverse culture would accept lots of different music, ideas, traditions. And, of course, I think diversity is highly important for open mindedness and growth. Diversity means different kinds of people--like Oakland is a very diverse city in the number of people of different ethnic backgrounds and languages and cultures and sexual orientations. But diversity as I said can refer to lots of things, like music, ideas, and traditions. A person can have a diverse music library or book library or whatever. My children celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah because of their "diverse" parents.

Ana-

Culture is about heritage, roots and background but also has a lot to do with the experiences one has.  Culture is influenced by things like location, surroundings, values and your particular upbringing. 

Diversity is different backgrounds and embracing shared cultures and accepting peoples’ experiences that are different from your own.

Kelly-

Culture is highly personal and is a hybrid of influences including an individual’s age, gender, religion, ethnicity, sexuality, socio-economic levels, home life, family structures, language, and geographic location to name just a few.  Culture is ever-evolving depending on an individual’s experience. One may be born into a culture, but one can also enter a culture based on personal preferences.

A diverse population is when there are differences among a group of individuals in one or more of the areas that impact an individual’s culture. For instance, this may occur within one ethnic group when there is a variety of ages or when individuals are gathered from different areas though they may share a cultural background. A population grows more diverse when there is an increase of different views and experiences based on culture.

However, promoting diversity has a goal of ensuring that all individuals feel safe, despite their differences, so I would argue that authentic diversity occurs when/if this is established.

Juan-

My definition of culture is ethnicity of a person, their background where they come from. Culture encompasses food, character and customs.

My definition of diversity is that you are a part of a certain group within the population.  It means there is a label of where you came from.  It means a mixture of people with different backgrounds.

There are aspects of culture and diversity I have studied in this course that are included in the answers. For example, in the video segment this week Janet Gonzalez-Mesa mentions how culture can vary from little things to big things (Laureate Education. Inc., 2011).  From the responses that I got, everyone defined culture with a range of all of these things that included both surface and deep culture.  The aspect that was omitted was social identity.  I think it is important to note how people create their social identities and how those can be a part of culture.  There can also be sub cultures.

Thinking about other people’s definitions of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics.  It helped me see that there are common and shared understandings of these words.  This was demonstrated in the similar definitions from different people.  For example, there was multiple mentions of ethnicity, values and every single person used the word “background” in their definitions.  The word “background” is used to describe ethnicity and culture in a sense but is also used to describe ones upbringing and experiences growing up.  These experiences help shape who we are uniquely within a cultural group.

Reference

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

My Family Culture

The three items I would choose would be things that always bring the family together.  I would bring my fathers’ ipod, the tortilla maker and a San Marcos blanket.  These items mean a lot to me in different ways. 

The ipod holds all of the music that I grew up with and music is such a big part of my family.  It connects me to the country where my parents are from and because it is in Spanish it connects me though language as well.  I grew up with music everywhere and heard it all the time, while my mother was cooking, as we ate, while cleaning even while showering everyone has the radio on.  I remember my mothers’ records, my fathers’ eight-track in the old pickup truck and all the cassette tapes.  It’s so great to have all of those songs and memories in a more compact and portable device.

The tortilla maker, “tortillera”, was my grandmas’, “abuelitas”, and now my mother uses it.  Tortillas can also be made by hand but for rounder and faster production the tortilla maker is better because it presses the “masa” more efficiently.  We also use it to make tamales.  I learned how to help make tamales when I was really young.   I even had my own smaller tortillera that I would make small tamales with.  I remember my uncle, always asking me to make him some.  When we make tamales everyone has their job and we work in an assembly line around the dinner table talking and sharing the work.  I have all of these great memories that come to mind when I think about the tortillera.

The brand of these blankets is “San Marcos” and every member of the family has their own.  They come in different sizes and I have had three.  The small one I had when I was little is white and pink with a teddy bear on it.  I remember asking my dad to wrap me up like a burrito in it, and he would.  The twin sized one is maroon and beige with a deer on it.  That is the one I had growing up and eventually took to college with me.  I have a queen sized one now that is black and blue with a tiger on it.  My sisters’ is pink and white with roses on it.  My mothers’ is green and black with a Koi fish on it.  My father’s is teal and black with an elk on it.  When we visit family out of town or go camping these are the blankets we take with us.  Not only are they soft and warm they are also made in Mexico where we bought them and then brought them over.  They hold many memories of warmth and family.

If I were told I had to give up two items and only keep one I would feel devastated.  Each item holds so many different memories and I would hate to lose that tangible connection to them. 

This exercise helped me realize how important family culture is and how fortunate I am to have wonderful memories that are connected to these items.  I realize how hard it would be to narrow it down to three or one item to keep with me.  I think about the items other people would choose might be different but how the reasons for choosing them is probably the same.  It really is autonomous what the item is because we give it significance and meaning by making it a part of our family culture.

When I think of Research…

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

I have gained many insights about the research.  I learned about the different designs, approaches, data collection methods, issues and considerations when it comes to planning and conducting research.  Being able to create my own Research Simulation was very beneficial to me as it let me apply concepts as I learned them to a topic I was interested in.

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

My ideas about the nature of doing research were confirmed.  I knew it was not as easy as it seemed and I always recognized its importance in the field of early childhood.  We rely on research to guide our work with young children and families and I see that to keep being successful in our aid research must continue.  It must be an ongoing project that changes with the current environment of the early childhood field.  For example, right now a topic of relevance is early childhood programs and the ways in how the government supports them.  Another topic is immigration, specifically immigrant children and all of the subtopics that are included.  Research has given us the insights we value and use now and it will continue to do so with every related issue in the early childhood field.

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

I learned more about the intricacies of planning, designing, and conducting research.  I realized that the two most important parts of the research is the research itself and the children.  By the research I mean that the research has to be true to its purpose.  It is to report findings based on evidence that was collected in an honest and equitable way.  By the children I mean that in this particular field we are working with the most vulnerable population and one must be always keep that in mind when doing this important work. 

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

Challenges I encountered were understanding scientific concepts.  I have never been able to fully grasp science and the scientific method and processes, I am more of a visual and artistic person and writing and English were always my stronger subjects.  What I found helped me the most was to read my colleagues’ blogs.  Once I read clarifications on things I was confused about and saw how they responded I was able to post my thoughts.  Another challenge I had was sticking to my research topic.  As the course progressed I started doubting my initial idea and thought about changing it a few times to something that could be more experimental and could be tested.  I am glad I did not change my topic because it helped me learn more about variables and how they do not have to be measurable to gain some numerical evidence, they can be qualitative and give more insights in some ways.

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

I would like to thank everyone in this course for your insights. I would have to say that this has been the toughest course for me so far and I think a lot of it has to do with its scientific roots.  What helped me was reading your posts to gain clarification on topics.  I wish you all success as you continue.

Research Around the World

The international web site I chose was the European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA).  On this web site they provide access to all of their journals and saw some interesting research topics based on article  titles such as:

·         Education for sustainable development in early childhood education in Spain. Evolution, trends and proposals

·          Children’s meaning-making of nature in an outdoor-oriented and democratic Swedish preschool practice

• Stress and caregiver sensititivty among childcare staff in Santiago, Chile.

• Demographic factors, temperament and the quality of the preschool environment as predictors of daily cortisol changes among Finnish six-year-old children

What I gained from exploring this international early childhood website is that current topics are similar around the world, the only thing that differs is their specific location.  Researchers everyone are questioning, discovering and reporting what they have learned about early childhood.  This organization is trying to bring together researchers from around the globe to create an opportunity for collaboration and support on this topic.           

The principal aims of EECERA are:

·         to provide a relevant academic forum in Europe for the promotion, development and dissemination of high quality research into early childhood education;

·         to facilitate collaboration and cooperation between European researchers in this field and the wider early childhood community across the World;

·         to encourage the clear articulation and communication of the links between research, practice and policy;

·         to offer interaction, development and support to those interested in early childhood education;

·         to raise the visibility and status of European research in early childhood education throughout the World.

These aims are achieved through:

·         the staging of an Annual Conference and other forums and seminars for debate;

·         the publication of a refereed, academic research journal, at least four a year;

·         the establishment of a European network of researchers and the facilitation of collaboration and communication between them;

·         such other activities and publications that might facilitate the development of research, policy and practice in early childhood education (EECERA, 2014a).

Other noteworthy information would be:

• Memberships are offered that include a subscription to the journal, the opportunity to join special interest groups and participate in international research networking.
• The EECERA holds an annual research conference every year in Europe.  The last one was in Greece just last month.
• The huge amount of available journal articles, they have been publishing for over 22 years.

EECERA Ethical Principles

In their ethical code it states that early childhood researchers must have an ethic of respect for:

1. the child, family, community and society;

2. democratic values;

3. justice and equity;

4. knowing from multiple perspectives;

5. integrity, transparency and respectful interactions;

6. quality and rigour;

7. academic scholarship;

8. social contribution.

(EECERA, 2014b).

References

EECERA (2014). [web site]. Retrieved from http://www.eecera.org/

EECERA (2014). Ethical code for early childhood researchers. Retrieved from http://www.eecera.org/documents/pdf/organisation/EECERA-Ethical-Code.pdf

Research that Benefits Children and Families—Uplifting Stories

When I thought about an uplifting research story that dealt with benefits to children and families I immediately thought about a local story I had heard about in the news.  6 year old Jayden David suffered from epileptic seizures due to his medical condition, Dravets syndrome.  His father had tried everything including medications, 22 a day, that helped stop the seizures but would leave his son immobile from the side effects.  When his father gave him a liquid form of the nonpsychoative form of marijuana the effects were alarming.  Jayden’s daily seizures stopped and he was a happy functioning child again. 

The full article is here:

Porter, B. E., & Jacobson, C. (2013). Report of a parent survey of cannabidiol-enriched cannabis use in pediatric treatment-resistant epilepsy. Epilepsy & Behavior, 29(3), 574-577. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/10/health/medical-marijuana-child/

I also found similar stories here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/31/cannabis-for-children_n_4697135.html

And a survey report here:

http://www.epilepsybehavior.com/article/S1525-5050(13)00462-9/fulltext

Since it is a controversial topic for adults even, there is still official research to be done on this subject but I can see how if it were accomplished the positive effects would help children and families in ways that they never thought possible.  That is why research is so important, the benefits can change lives.

Personal Research Journey

My reasons for choosing this topic and subtopics is because of my personal and professional experiences.  Personally, I did learn English as a second language.  Professionally, I work at an elementary school where a high percentage of the students and families are also learning English as a second language.  I have had the opportunity to teach children English language development and English phonics as well.  This school year, the topic is even more relevant as I am working with two new students from Vietnam who have only been in the country for six months.  Adding to that, there is also a new student in the same class who only speaks Arabic and I have been working with the three of them together in a group.  I am interested in seeing how it will all work out.

In last week’s discussion I shared that the general early childhood topic of my choice was second language learning but I have decided to refine my choice to that of English Language Learners or ELL’s.  With the topic of ELL for the simulation the subtopic that will be the focus of my simulations in the coming weeks is if there is difference in approaches with teachers who were ELL’s themselves and those who were not.

I chose this topic because of my personal and professional experiences with it.  Personally, I learned English as a second language myself.  Professionally, I work at an elementary school where most of the student and family population are also learning English as a second language.  I have had the opportunity to teach children English language development and English phonics as well.  I am curious to learn if and what types of personal experiences make a difference when the teaching ELL’s.

My personal experience with this simulation process is that I am still learning a lot about the terms, topics and how to properly reflect on research and resources.  The “Understanding Research Chart” is a very appropriate assignment that helped me identify areas in which I need improvement, it helped me better understand the content and how to apply it.

Any advice, insight or resources that might help is appreciated.   

Issues and Trends in the Early Childhood Field- Final Blog Assignment

Over the past 8 weeks I was able to establish contact and communicate with an international early childhood professional form Finland.  I also explored the website, newsletters and links from the Division for Early Childhood.  I also had the opportunity to read the blogs of my classmates and learn new information from their international contacts, organization research and podcasts.  These resources have enriched my professional development by providing me with new information on issues that were covered in addition in our required resources.  My colleagues supported me by posting valuable information and also by commenting on my blog posts and bringing up important points and questions.  

  

One consequence of learning about the international early childhood field for my professional and personal development is that it has made me more aware about the intricacy of the field and how one main issue can have multiple related issues within it.  A second consequence is that I have also learned about the inequities that exist internationally.  A third consequence is that the issue of high-quality programs and education is widespread and that a lot of it has to do with a teachers and professionals education, appropriate compensation, policies and funding.  While every program or school strives for high-quality the factors that affect this goal are always the same.

One goal for the field related to international awareness of issues and trends and the spirit of collegial relations would be to have every early childhood professional establish contact with another international professional.  Not only would this help with awareness through the sharing of information and collaboration, it would also encourage collegial relations that contribute to the spirit of the early childhood field and the passion of the people involved.

Getting to know international contacts- Part 3

Here are some thoughts on quality from my international contact from Finland:

• Issues regarding quality that are discussed is the education of teachers and other workers, the content of early childhood education including the amount of children's play, the teacher's ability to handle every child as a person and give an opportunity for every child to develop and learn individually but notice if the child needs special education and provide it to them. 
• In addition to all this teachers should be able to handle a group of children, not only two or three children at the same time. A teacher is expected to be the professional of child development and early years learning.
• Professional development requires thinking. In my opinion, teachers get good abilities from education to develop their professionality but it's only the beginning. The development requires different situations where teachers' have to reflect their work as a teacher, learn from their success and mistakes and develop their thinking. Teachers grow professionally every day while working, but the growing demands support from colleagues and from the director of kindergarten.
• My professional goals at this moment are to improve early childhood education by doing reserach of children's learning and try to influence on early childhood education that children could be able to feel well and enjoy in learning. As a teacher my goal is to give every child the confidence to learn new things, to create possibilities for children to find learning inspiring and get them to realize that the world is full of interesting new things and even the ones who are struggling with learning would find their own ways to learn and trust themselves as learners.
• My one ultimate dream is that kindergarten teachers and their work would be more appreciated and the understanding of the importance of early childhood education would increase. One thing that should definitely improve is the salary. It's way too low considering the demanding and hard work that kindergarten teachers do everyday.

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I also found some information on UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education” webpage.

-UNESCO advocates for Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programmes that attend to health, nutrition, security and learning and which provide for children’s holistic development.

-Today, early childhood policies are placed within a broader context of social development, gender equity and poverty reduction.

-It is important to note that pre-primary education must promote the child’s holistic development and should not be implemented like early primary education.

(UNESCO, 2014)

These three insights relate to my professional goals.  First, I agree with and believe in the holistic approach when working with children and strive to uphold that ideal in my work.  Second, I understand the impact of early childhood care and development and its affects on greater social issues and try to keep that in mind as I assist children and families.  Last, I also find it important that early childhood education does not loose sight of  the developmental, emotional and social skills that are so important in the early years.  While I understand the importance of preparing children for academic success I also understand the importance of play and hope to share this information with colleagues and families in throughout my professional career.

Reference 

UNESCO. (2014) Early Childhood Care and Education. [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood/

Sharing Web Resources

I followed a link on their social media feed and it lead me to a media segment where Dr. Jennifer Greene of the University of Illinois explains a little about the workshop she will be presenting at the Division for Early Childhood’s 30^th annual International Conference on Young Children with Special Needs and their Families in October.  She gives an overview of what she is going to discuss in “Mixed Methods Design and Alternative Representation of Data.”

I searched the area of the site that explains more about DEC Special Interest Groups which are:

-a group of DEC members who have a shared interest on a particular topic. The purpose of a SIG is to engage members and provide a forum for dialogue around a specific topic of interest. SIGs are independent, autonomous communities for DEC members to gather information, learn about resources and share ideas with other who have similar interests

The 6 current topics are:

1.      Early Intervention

2.      Leadership

3.      Research and Practice

4.      Professional Development

5.      Student

6.      International

The DEC urges members to get involved in SIGs:

•    To develop collaborative relationships and learn from their colleagues
•    To explore and discuss topics of interests within the field in a variety of formats (i.e. electronically, by teleconference, through web-conversations, face-to-face, etc.)
•    To build community within DEC
•    To gain opportunities for professional growth, to develop relationships, network with other DEC members in the US and internationally
•    To gain leadership opportunities as desired

 (http://www.dec-sped.org/)

The newsletters I have been receiving are all focused on information about the upcoming conference.  I did receive a newsletter about the DEC bookstore and saw a few interesting titles like Quality Inclusive Services and Supporting Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.  Although I did not have access to these titles I am sure that they address the issues of excellence and equity with regards with children who have special needs.

Getting to know international contacts- Part 2

My international contact from Finland shared her thoughts about the issues of excellence and equity in the early childhood field.  She shared her individual thoughts and personal experiences and reminds to regard them as solely her own and that other Finnish kindergarten teachers and early childhood education experts may think differently about these issues.  I am glad she pointed this out as it is easy to make generalizations and assumptions.  She had some interesting things to say.

About excellence:

• We say (or at least some people here say) that early childhood education (ECE) should be high-quality and given by educated professionals. Education is really important for everyone who works with children in early childhood education field but I don' know about the word quality when it comes to children. Well, of course it HAS to be high-quality teaching and care but I think that the quality is so hard to measure in that sometimes one can start to measure wrong things and in the end the measurements don't show if the early childhood education is actually what it should be. Few things of course tell a lot and they are teachers and other workers education (as high as possible), size of a child group (I think in US you call it a kindergarten/preschool class), enough time to play and do things that children desire and what they are interested in.

• Our government is forming a new act for early childhood education. The present act is from 1973 so anyone can understand that it is time to renew it. And its focus is more on children's social welfare than on education so we need a new act. Children's social welfare is of course an important issue as well but ECE is not social work and kindergarten teachers are not social workers. Good, thorough and modern law for early childhood education is definitely one thing what comes to excellence. Now we just have to wait and hope that it's going to be good. In addition to laws we have National Curriculum Guidelines on Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in Finland (see here in English http://www.julkari.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/75535/267671cb-0ec0-4039-b97b-7ac6ce6b9c10.pdf?sequence=1) which gives guidelines for our early childhood education but is only a recommendation and not compulsory to follow.

• After the publishing the document ECEC has moved from Ministry of Social Affairs and Health to Ministry of Education and Culture and the emphasis of ECE has changed from "ECE as a social operation to ECE as an educational operation". Laws and curriculum guidelines helps excellence and equity in the early childhood field.

• Early childhood education is excellent when children have enough time to play, wonder about the world and do things they desire and they can do these things with peers and with educated adults. This doesn't mean that children shouldn't be taught new things or they could always do only the things that they want to. That is why teachers and other educators have to know children and give them opportunities to learn new things.

• Learning should be fun but some things children learn when they don't have that much fun (e.g. learning to play with some new things or with new children is not always fun at first but when a child learns the rules and the way that play should be played and his/her new friends it will be fun) and here I think adult has a big role.

• Adults have to see what is good for children and that is why teachers have to be educated. By teacher's positive attitude on learning new things and making learning interesting, children engage more on learning and get feelings of success and want to learn more. Because young children's learning is very complete it's important to teach and raise a child in cooperation with parents.

• Parents of course know their own child best and they are their child's experts. Teacher’s role is to be expert on learning and child's development and of course manage group of children and all of their learning. And I believe that early childhood education gives something to children what she/he doesn't experience with her/his parents and family.

• One important thing is planning. Teacher should have enough time to plan the teaching and activities in kindergarten. Well planned education provides excellence in the ECE field in every places.

About equity:

• In Finland every child has the subjective right to participate in municipal or private (all private ones are non-profit) kindergarten or family day care (usually at the childminder's home). As I mentioned earlier the amount of fees are in relation to parent’s salary). It seems that the subjective right is an issue that arouses opinions and discussion. Some people don't support it and some think it's the best thing for children development and learning. Those who don't support it, argue that children who have parent(s) home with younger siblings or are unemployed should be home with their parents. In my opinion, every child despite her/his background should have access to some kind of early childhood education outside home where they could spend some time per day with educated kindergarten teacher(s). This may not concern the youngest children (maybe over 2 or 3 years-old) because it is proved that babies should be and develop with their parents. Of course children with working parents have the right to take part in early childhood which usually is kindergarten. We have discussed that the government would take the subjective right away from children who don't suffer from social problems but I actually don't know what is the situation at this point with that issue.

• All children with working parents don't go to kindergarten. They may have nanny at home or they go to family day care at the childminder's home. The problem with different nanny’s is that they are not always educated and the quality can vary. On the other hand, I have seen great childminder’s so the issue is not that simple. Childminder’s may be educated and usually they get pedagogic support from their bosses who usually are kindergarten bosses as well. The ideal is that every child gets good and professional teaching and care which is individually designed in collaboration with parents.

• When talking about social work and teachers I don't mean that teachers should close their eyes when it comes to social issues but they are specialized in teaching and they should solve social issues in cooperation with social workers and other experts on that field. Teachers should support families when they are struggling with social issues because a child is a whole and when a child feels well she/he is strong enough to be interested on the world around them and learn new things
  
  
  

Sharing Web Resources

The newsletter for this month had a lot of information regarding professional development:

·      They offer DEC's online professional development-

The topic this time is: Addressing Challenging Behavior and Child Learning

The presenters will describe strategies to address challenging behavior and child learning through assessments linked to intervention. 

·      They call to participate in DEC's Lead Academy-
      Applications available now for a four-month cohort-based program designed to bring together leading young professionals from across the country.  Through exploring personal, leadership values and beliefs, participants will:
      * Share their knowledge with colleagues

      * Develop and implement strategies to advance in their careers
      * Empower one another to advocate for themselves and their ideas
      (This sounds a lot like what we do here at Walden University)

·       They promote the DEC Conference on October 7-9, 2014 in St. Louis-

They encourage early childhood professionals to register, serve as a sponsor or exhibitor, register for the pre-conference sessions/workshops, reserve a meeting or event space as well as nominate a colleague or student for the DEC Award.

From the website there was a message that was posted about more information about the UN Treaty on Disability Rights.  With the support of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) I learned that the, “United Nations Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international treaty that protects the human rights of individuals with disabilities…Opponents continue to use inaccurate scare tactics to diminish support in the Senate”.  I was shocked to learn that there are “opponents” to such a treaty.  It made me think and wonder who could be against the push for human rights for every person?

Through links on the website I was able to find information that adds to my understanding of how politicians support the early childhood field.  Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole is advocating for the ratification of the disability rights treaty (McHugh, 2014).  Children are included in this treaty and have already been a focus of concern in the past such as how it might be:

…used to interfere with the ability of parents with disabled children to decide what action is in the best interest of their children. Unelected, foreign bureaucrats, not parents, would decide what is in the best interests of the disabled child, even in the home (McHugh, 2014). 

I can see how this is a concern and why when it comes to politics there has be support from people who really understand the situation.  Politicians have to help advocate as it might make huge differences in the early childhood field if they don’t.  

Reference

McHugh, J. (July 23, 2014). Dole Back on Hill to try and push through U.N. disabilities treaty. [Web Article/Blog Post]. Retrieved from http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/07/23/dole-back-on-hill-to-try-and-push-through-u-n-disabilities-treaty/

Getting to know international contacts- Part 1

Hello colleagues, I would like to introduce my international professional contact to you all.  In a previous blog assignment in another course, we were asked to learn more information about the education system in a different country.  I had heard a lot about Finland so that is what I chose to share.  Impressed with the education system and the economy there I decided to continue to learn more about the country and was able to contact a Kindergarten teacher * and project planner of the Playful Learning Center in association with the University of Helsinki.

I asked her to tell me more about the issue of poverty in Finland and have learned a lot of information from her responses.  These are some things she had to say:

• In Finland poverty is not that big of an issue as it is in many other countries. We do have people and families who struggle with small incomes and are under our national poverty line and live a quite modest life but our social service system gives money to everyone who either has small or no income at all. Benefits like no kindergarten fees and some free hobbies for children are also made available.

• The tax system is a bit different than in USA.  We pay quite big amounts of taxes but with that money we make sure that our public services are free or demand only a small payment.

• In Finland pre-school (4 hours per day) and everything that children do there including materials, trips and lunch are free. So the poverty doesn't always occur in a child’s everyday life in kindergarten or in pre-school and as a teacher we don't have to deal with poverty as often as in some other countries.

• Still it doesn't mean that we don't have poverty in Finland. You notice it from poor quality clothes and toys. But usually you don't even notice it. Sometimes families from other cultures don’t work but I found that children don’t suffer from low incomes in kindergarten.
  
  
• In bad cases poverty and it's side effects like tattered clothes or old toys can cause bullying and mistreatment from peers. In this case teachers and other workers play a big role. Especially in kindergarten children are so small and are not that aware of poverty or other issues in society. Children may not even notice if someone is poor if all children are treated the same way by adults. In general, teacher's good behavior towards poor children and their families gives a good example to other children how to treat people. This kind of issue may sound small when thinking about poverty and children who don't get food and water every day but that is because in Finland we don't deal with those kind of problems.  This is quite an important and general issue that we have to think about as teachers.
  
  
• Some children come to kindergarten with tattered, dirty or unsuitable clothes for prevailing weather conditions or you can see that a child hasn’t showered for a week. Usually these kind of families do get help for social services and if we notice any neglect of children we call immediately to child welfare inspector and they start helping the child and the family.

• When it comes to learning and development, too often I have seen children from poor families who get only little support or hardly any on learning. Parents who struggle with money don't have time or energy to read books to their children, play with them, have good long conversations or explore and wonder about the world with their children. Luckily in Finland children have to go to school or get home education and soon they have to go to preschool as well (amendment coming soon) where children get high quality education, care and support.

• Sometimes children are referred to kindergarten as a child welfare action. Our education system supports children from every background. Still this isn't always enough and children suffer from their parents low incomes. But because this isn't that simple either, poverty is not automatically the reason for this.
  
  
• Universally I think that poverty is a really big obstacle what comes to education and learning and children welfare. The more people are educated and able to learn new things and aware of what's going on in the world the more they are able to control their lives and feel well.
  (personal communication, 7/16/14)
  
  

One insight I have learned about the issue of poverty is how it fluctuates throughout areas, cities, counties, states and countries.  It seems that poverty has been overcome in some places and that gives hope that there are effective ways to help people who are dealing with poverty.  

*To keep student identities and specific references unrecognizable and private I will not be publishing the teacher's name