Course Goals

As I start this new course, Dynamics of Early Childhood Policies and Systems, I have been asked to reflect on early childhood systems and policy.  Also, three goals that will assist me in becoming an effective early childhood professional as I reach to achieve my goals.

1.  A better understanding of other early childhood systems.  I have gone on many interviews and have discovered that so many different early childhood programs are using many different early childhood systems.  It is very difficult to say that I am well versed in all of them.  Yes, I have heard of most of them before but to say I am an expert, not so much.

2.  Interaction with other early childhood professionals in the field.  I believe that there is no better way to work than to learn from those who have come before.  I was fortunate to have found a mentor years ago that I now call friend.  She taught me as an undergrad how to be a preschool teacher.  Today as I work in an elementary school I find myself drawn to other fabulous teachers who are showing me the ropes what it is like to be an elementary school teacher.

3.  Become better versed in early childhood and the politics behind it.  As I member of NAEYC I have received many e-mails recently about this upcoming election year and how to vote based on which candidate will help early childhood education in the Untied States.  This is something I have not thought about until the last year or so.  Yes, I do believe that it is important to find the candidate that will push legislation to put more funding behind early childhood education.

I hope to  learn more in this new course to help me to prepare for my bright future.

Jolene

Final Thoughts

As this latest course comes to a close I am reflecting on what I have learned and what helped me learn the most.  During my coursework what connected with me the most was the media presentations from Shuan-Adrian and Marsha.  The stories that hey presented were not different than the stories that I could read on paper however hearing them speak through the media presentations moved me. I could feel the emotions through the interviews that they provided for the media presentation.  The true life experiences that these people lived through, people who are just like you and me.

I would have to say that there is little that surprised me throughout this course.  The majority of my career I have worked with children who are culturally diverse. I have heard the hardships of families who are not in the majority.  I have worked with the children who are learning English as a second language.  I have worked with low-income families and children and have been one myself.

In this course it revived me to work harder in my professional career for the culturally diverse child, the low-income child, the underdog.  I can use my professional connections and my everyday work to help children and families that otherwise may not have someone to give them a voice.

The Interview Process

I have found that the interview process is going very smoothly for me.  I have been able to contact both of the people that I am going to interview.  If anything was the most difficult was coordinate times with my interviewees and myself.  All three of us have very busy schedules between work, family and obligations.  I found that both of my interviewees were very honored to be asked to be interviewed for the course project.

The course presentation is going well.  At times I find it difficult to keep finding new articles to use for the bibliographies, however in the end after some time I always find what I am looking for.  I have learned even more about the topic that I have chosen about children who are learning English as a second language than I ever knew before.

Course Project

     The topic that I would like to do is that of the challenges of teaching children English as a Second Language.  I believe that this is a very important topic because school districts are having a difficult time in assisting all children that enter their doors with varying home languages.  The subtopic would be cultural challenges related to teaching English as a language. There are challenges in teaching children English as a second language while helping the child to succeed in the grade that they are assigned too.  I already have two people to interview on the topic one is an English as a Second Language teacher the other is a distinguished member of the community who has held many positions in the local school district plus has help offices in local and national organizations.

     The reason that I have selected this topic is because I work as a teacher assistant helping children learn English as a second language.  It is a job that I fell into by accident because I can speak both English and Spanish.  It is important to me because when my children were younger we lived in Mexico and my children and myself had to learn Spanish as a second language.  I understand the struggles of both being an adult learning a second language, a teacher teaching a second language and a parent watching their child learn a second language.  

     My initial beliefs about children learning English as a second language is that it is not only difficult for the child to learn the language it is difficult for them to learn the culture that goes along with that language at the same time.  The children that I work with are mainly from Mexico and come to the USA with the Mexican culture intact.  Many times children will ask me to explain holidays and customs that are part of the American culture.  Many times they will look at me with puzzled faces trying to understand what seems to be strange to them like many Americans look at them and their customs a

Final Global Perspectives Blog

Resources that I believe our beneficial for the early childhood professional are anything that has been published by NAEYC.  On the NAEYC website there is not only articles to read but also books that can be ordered on a vast range of early childhood topics.  The NAEYC website is:

www.naeyc.org

I selected NAEYC because I always turn there first when in need of early childhood information.

My favorite inspirational quote about early childhood is:

"The first five years have so much to do with how the next eighty turn out" - Bill Gates

I selected this quote because nothing could be closer to the truth.

This is one of my favorite images that I selected when I see this image of the early childhood classroom I am at once transported to why I am passionate about early childhood education.

Fostering Early Learning

While researching the various sites that were given to us for Fostering Early Learning I found myself focusing on the site edutopia.  I sifted through the various articles that they have available and found that most of the articles do not necessarily deal with early childhood in education but older grades.  I then came across an article that I believe is pertinent for any age group the article is entitled:  The Language of Choice and Support.  This article is about how we as educators can reshape the way that we use words with children especially in situations that involve children who have diagnosis.  In doing this and changing the way that we speak we are cutting out the negativity and creating a more positive school experience for the children.

I like the real life example that the author used in stating that if we as educators go around using words like crazy, nuts and insane that we are creating a negative environment for the children.  This is something I am guilty of on a daily basis.  I like other educators do not mean to do this on purpose it is just part of my personality and the way that I speak. However the author suggests we use such language as unbelievable, unusual and unexpected instead for the former words to express how we feel during the day.  As an educator I can see how the choice in words will make a difference in how children perceive my personality and what I am saying.  The author also goes on to say that children are listening to the words that we use and will see us as either a place to go or not to go in times of struggle based on the words that we use in everyday language.


Reference

Shevrin, A. (2015). The Language of Choice and Support. Retrieved from:
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/language-of-choice-and-support-alex-shevrin

Communication with Professionals

For the blog this week I was asked to communicate with another professional about an important topic.  I spoke to another fellow co-worker of mine about early childhood intervention and how sometimes children whose delays are not that substantial receive high amounts of service.  The position that I take on the issue is that the children who have substantial delays could be receiving more services if the children who have minimal delays were not taking up all of the resources and man power.  However, my co-worker saw it differently then me stating that who was I to judge if a child needed more services or not and that it was not up to me to decide this.  However, I believe thinking like this is a lot of what is the problem in Early Intervention Programs.  The overall reason for issues like this coming up is money. Currently in the program that I work with we need to bill for every child that we see and regardless of the need all children have high frequencies of services to have more to bill.  Honestly, I think that this is sad and unethical however it is happening and it needs to be discussed.