Time Well Spent

Wow!!  I cannot tell you how excited I am about completing my Master’s degree.  As many of you know, being a wife, mother, full-time teacher and a college student is tremendous work.  This program has taken great dedicated and commitment.  I have thoroughly enjoyed my learning and growing through this program especially the capstone class.  One of my deep felt learnings from this program is the importance of knowing my own biases.  Of course everyone has biases but do people really know their own biases and know how those biases are influencing their work, relationships and ability to help other people.  During this program I found that knowing my own biases and being aware of them is extremely important in forming relationships and helping children reach their developmental potential.  A second deep felt learning from this program is just the knowledge of what diversity entails and the importance of making sure that every family that enters my preschool feels welcomed, needed, visible and appreciated.  A third deep felt learning from this program is the importance and necessity of having strong effective relationships with coworkers, students and the families you serve.  I have always felt this is a very important quality but this program has highlighted the necessity of relationships and their impact on children’s growth and development.  It has also highlighted the necessity of relationships on my own professional growth.

One short-term goal I have is to actually use some of the technology I talked about in my capstone project in my own classroom.  I have already created a Class Messenger account for each of my preschool classes and I am excited to use this technology with my students and their families.  For a long-term goal I would eventually like to be able to use a digital tool such as Evernote to help families have more opportunities to actually see what their children do in class each day.  Another long-term goal would be to continue to learn and grow in the field of early childhood education.  I want to do the best I can do to help reach more children and make an early childhood education more attainable for all children in my city and state.

I would like to say I huge thank you to Dr. Embree for her guidance, encouragement and support throughout this capstone project.  She did a great job pushing me further forward in my thinking.  I believe the capstone class helped me learn and grow the most throughout my educational experience at Walden.  Also a huge thank you to all of my colleagues that have gone through this experience with me.  It was encouraging to learn from each of you and to see different ways of looking at topics through your thoughts and ideas.  I wish you all the best in the future and congratulate you all on achieving such a huge accomplishment. I leave you with this graduation video containing some of my favorite quotes. 

Then for a little fun I wanted to leave you with a video of my son trying body surfing on our family vacation this summer.  The video wouldn't work so I am leaving you with a few pictures!  My son is eight years old and was very nervous and unsure if he was going to try this activity.  In the end he tried it, loved it and did it multiple times.  I think it is a good reminder to all of us of the importance of getting out of your comfort zone, trying something new and watching the amazing results!  Best of luck to all of you in your future endeavors! 

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

The first international organization that I have an interest in is Save the Children.  “In 2014, Save the Children worked in 120 countries, including the United States, and helped more than 166 million children — including more than 55 million children directly” (Save the Children, 2015).  Save the children invests in childhood and ensures every child has a healthy start and an opportunity to learn.  Save the children is dedicated to child-focused emergency readiness and ensuring children’s voices are heard and needs are addressed.  The depth of what Save the Children accomplishes and the amount of children and people it reaches is very appealing to me. 

One job that was interesting to me was the Program Specialist.  “The Program Specialist is the on-the-ground Save the Children staff member providing training, technical assistance, and management support to program partners to ensure quality program implementation and results for children” (Save the Children, 2015).  The program specialist must ensure accurate and up-to-date data collection and reporting for each assigned site and consult with the Senior Specialist about program questions and needs (Save the Children, 2015).  The following is the required background and experience:

Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, child development or related field. Master's degree highly preferred  Minimum of three years relevant experience in the area of infant/toddler development.  Experience as a trainer/mentor/coach. Experience with home visiting programming, working in rural communities with limited resources, and working with families who are economically challenged is preferred. Experience in working with or supporting professional/paraprofessional home visitors. A strong foundation in relationship-based work and supervision. (Save the Children, 2015) Another international organization I was interested in was the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI).  “ACEI is a global community of educators and advocates who unite knowledge, experience, and perspectives in order to exchange information, explore innovation, and advocate for children” (Association for Childhood Education International, 2015).  Their mission is “to promote and support the optimal education, development, and well-being of children and youth worldwide” (Association for Childhood Education International, 2015).  This organization appealed to me because it really focuses on advocating for the children and working with the teachers and caregivers to improve the standards and well being of children.  Another very cool aspect of their website was that you could change the website to be in a different language.  There were numerous languages to choose from.  I did not see any job openings in this website.  I did see how to become a member, do an internship and many different ways you could volunteer.  Another international organization I was interested in was the International Step by Step Association (ISSA).  “ISSA is a vibrant network that connects professionals and non-profit organizations working in the field of early childhood development” (International Step by Step Association, 2015).  “ISSA’s vision is a society where families, communities and professionals work together to empower each child to reach her or his full potential and embrace values of social justice and equity” (International Step by Step Association, 2015).  This organization was appealing to me because it really focused on the families and teachers working together in a professional community to support children’s development and learning.  ISSA is open to all individuals and organizations that would like to join.  It is my understanding that ISSA is ran by volunteers.  The Council is a voting body which enables ISSA to achieve its goals and objectives. The Council is composed of ISSA’s full members, who are independent, locally-established parent/teacher associations, foundations, and educational organizations, working closely with educators and early childhood experts, parents, community groups and policy makers in the field of early childhood care and education.  The Council meets annually at the General Assembly Meeting to discuss strategic issues and conduct the official business of the association, such as voting on annual strategies, budgets and reports. The Council elects a governing Board of Directors to oversee the policy development and implementation of ISSA’s strategies. The Board consists of no less than six members who do their work on a voluntary basis and do not receive any remuneration for their activities. The board meets at least twice a year.  (International Step by Step Association, 2015)

References

Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI). (2015). Retrieved from https://acei.org

International Step by Step Association (ISSA). (2015).  Retrieved from http://www.issa.nl/.

Save the Children. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm

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

The first national organization that I have an interest in is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  I couple of years ago I had the opportunity to attend one of their conferences and it was amazing to be around so many people with a passion for early childhood education. I think it would be a great feeling to be able to go to work everyday where the passion for early childhood education is so prevalent.  A job that is open right now that interests me is Director of Quality Improvement and Program Support.  In this position you are responsible for leading the accreditation team responsible for providing technical, motivational, and process support to programs progressing through the accreditation process (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2015).  The following are the skills and experience needed for this position:

●Strong knowledge of early childhood education content, current issues, and professional development needs and strategies.

● Extensive instructional experience and ability to deliver content through a variety of channels including training, technical assistance, coaching, peer to peer communities, and multimedia resources.

● Ability to positively influence, motivate, and engage staff and other stakeholders.

● Strong experience in program implementation support.

● Minimum 3 years supervisory experience leading staff, contractors, and/or volunteers.

● Demonstrated capacity to recruit, onboard, support, and evaluate staff.

● Bachelor's degree required. Master's degree a plus.  (NAEYC, 2015).

The second national organization that I have an interest in is ZERO TO THREE.  Their mission “is to ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life” (ZERO TO THREE, 2015).  “ZERO TO THREE is a national nonprofit organization that provides parents, professionals and policymakers the knowledge and the know-how to nurture early development” (2015).  This organization is appealing because they focus on helping children right from the beginning and they reach out to parents and other member of the early childhood field.  ZERO TO THREE did not have any current job openings that I was interested in but they do employee over 100 people. 

The third national organization that I have interest in is the National Head Start Association (NHSA). 

NHSA's vision is to lead - to be the untiring voice that will not be quiet until every vulnerable child is served with the Head Start model of support for the whole child, the family and the community - and to advocate - to work diligently for policy and institutional changes that ensure all vulnerable children and families have what they need to succeed. (2015). 

A job that would interest me at this association is a professional development coordinator.  “The Professional Development Coordinator is responsible for coordinating various activities and functions within the professional development division of face to face events, on-line course offerings, and networks” (NHSA, 2015). 

The requirements for this job are the following:

1.     2 years of professional experience required

2.     Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience

3.     Medium degree of computer knowledge

4.     High level of attention to detail and ability to work well under deadlines

5.     Flexible and adaptable to changing priorities

6.     Strong verbal and written communication skills

7.     Excellent data entry, analysis skills, and customer service skills

8.     Bilingual skills preferred (Spanish)

9.     Knowledge and experience with the use of social media tools, conference and Learning Management Systems

10.  Capable of traveling to various cities within the United States and surrounding Territories

I think getting to travel to a variety of different cities and territories would be extremely interesting and exciting.  All these organizations are committed to early childhood education and working for an organization with that much commitment to early childhood education would be extremely appealing.  

References

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). (2015). Director, quality improvement and program support.  Retrieved from https://naeyc.applicantpro.com/jobs/277560.html.

National Head Start Association (NHSA). (2015).  Retrieved from https://www.nhsa.org

ZERO TO THREE. (2015).  http://www.zerotothree.org

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

I am actually very content in my current job position.  This is the start of my sixth year teaching preschool in my school district and I may never leave this job!  I enjoy my coworkers, assistant and the wonderful children and families in my preschool.  In Wyoming teachers are paid well and since I work for the school district I am paid the same as all teacher from grades kindergarten through high school. I truly enjoy what I do and I love working right with the children.  I could one day see myself going to teach kindergarten or being the supervisor of the preschools in my school district.  A preschool supervisor interests me because I have experience in preschool and I would love to see more preschools available in our school district.  I also feel like I am gaining knowledge and experience that I could use to help other preschool teachers.  This position would not require any additional schooling but I believe preschool teaching experience would be extremely beneficial.

Once I started looking into organizations in my state it was interesting to learn about some of the organizations working to improve and promote early childhood education.  It made me realize that there are many opportunities right here in my state to be more involved in the promotion of early childhood education.  One of those organizations is Wyoming KidsFirst.  Wyoming KidsFirst mission is “To lead a public-private partnership in the development of an accessible and sustainable, high-quality early childhood system that supports communities and families” (http://www.wyokidsfirst.org).  Later in my career it could be interesting to be the Executive Director of Wyoming KidsFirst.  I am not exactly sure of the educational requirements for this job but the current director has a bachelor’s degree, although it is not in education, and she also has a master’s degree in public administration.  I definitely believe that experience in early childhood education would be necessary and important.

I have heard a lot about the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and have even had the opportunity to attend one of their conferences.  It was a great learning experience and wonderful opportunity to be around so many other early childhood educators.  Working for the Wyoming Early Childhood Association (WYECA) is a job that would interest me because this organization is a state affiliate of NAEYC.  The requirements for being the president of the WYECA is you must be a member of NAEYC and WYECA, demonstrate potential in leading the group and previously served as a board member.  I believe in all of these jobs it is important to have experience as an early childhood teacher prior to having a supervising role.  I believe you also need to be a good communicator and have good collaboration skills.  In all of these positions it would be important to be able to work together with other people to accomplish goals and encourage growth in the early childhood field.   

Reference

Wyoming KidsFirst, (2015).  Retrieved from http://www.wyokidsfirst.org.

Reflecting on Learning

Throughout this course I have learned a lot and reflected on how what I am learning will look like in my own classroom.  One of my most passionate hopes for my future as an early childhood professional is to make every moment count.  I do not want to miss out on any of those teachable moments with my young learners.  Days get busy and there is so much going on in a classroom that sometimes I feel like I miss out on a great opportunity for me to help my students be more confident or aware of what is happening around them.  I do not want to miss out on the opportunity to help them see how their words and actions are influences someone else’s feelings.  I want to help teach them the skills to be able to stand up for themselves and others against prejudice.  Many times I feel like these skills can be taught throughout each day if I just make sure to take the time to teach them.  In regards to the families I work with I want them all to feel welcome and visible in my classroom.  I want them to feel comfortable to ask questions and be willing to work with me to help their child develop.  I want them to know how important their love and guidance is in their child’s ability to learn and grow. 

Thank you to all of my colleagues and instructor during this course.  It has been a joy to read your discussion and blog posts and to see the different perspectives shared during this class.  It is always a good educational experience to hear other people’s ideas and views on different issues.  Thank you for taking the time to do great work during this class and help me grow as an early childhood educator. 

Impacts on Early Emotional Development

I chose to look at the Caribbean because I love to vacation in the Caribbean.  We have taken a few cruises in the Caribbean and I have visited some of the islands in this area of the world.  After visiting these islands I have always been interested in learning more about the children on these islands.  One island I looked closer at was Dominica.  My husband and I took a tour on this island about five years ago.  When we arrived on the shores of the island it was very beautiful with all different types of colors on the buildings.  We had a wonderful time on this island but saw from the beginning that it was definitely less industrialized then other islands and we wondered about the economy on the island. 

“UNICEF is on the ground in over 150 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence” (UNICEF, 2011). When I looked at the UNICEF website I found a story about a seventeen year old boy, Remoff, who at a young age lived with a variety of different people while his parents worked at jobs on other islands.  He was headed down the wrong path until he finally got help and started attending Social Centre.  Social Centre is a school funded by UNICEF with a location on the Dominica.  Since Remoff did not have a strong support system at home he did not have the emotional or financial support to stay in school.  UNICEF has given him the opportunity to work on his high school education and hopefully move on to college.  Many children do not have access to daycare or preschool in the Dominica.  This lack of educational opportunity can have a negative effect on children’s emotional wellbeing and development.  A nineteen-year-old named Christian is working with the Roving Caregivers Programme to help support and train parents to provide a better life for their children (UNICEF, 2011).  This was a great opportunity for children and families to see the importance of male figures helping in the development of children. 

Another island I looked closer at was Jamaica.  I was saddened to read about how prevalent sexual abuse against children is in the Caribbean.  In this region sexual abuse against children is greatly underreported and victims are made to feel a great deal of shame.  “A study in Jamaica indicated that men often believe they have a right to engage in sex with girls under their care, while children in Guyana reported believing that sexual violence can be blamed on a victim’s clothing” (UNICEF, 2011).  Any type of sexual abuse would have a devastating effect on a child’s emotional wellbeing and development. 

As I was reviewing this website I found it very upsetting to read about all the challenges children face but I also found it inspiring to know that there is an agency working to help these children.  It also reminded me that children right here in America face some of these same challenges and devastating situations.  I was reminded of the importance of really knowing the children in my classroom and being a strong resource for them and their families. 

Reference

UNICEF (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/

The Sexualization of Early Childhood

As I started to read the introduction from the book So Sexy So Soon my jaw began to drop.  Even though I have noticed how girls are dressing more provocative at a much younger age and I have heard young children say things that I thought should never have come out of the mouth of a child that young, some of the stories told at the beginning of this introduction were very disturbing.  “Sexualization has to do with treating other people (and sometimes oneself) as objects of sexual desire . . . as things rather than as people with legitimate sexual feelings of their own” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4).  I do take notice of some of the clothing teenage girls wear as well as young preschool girls.  It is disturbing to me when I see teenage girls wear shorts that pretty much show their bottoms.  It is even more irritating to me when they wear these types of clothing to school and the school does nothing about it.  Our school district actually made a stronger dress code for students and teachers that go into affect this school year.  I am interested to see if the school really makes students or teachers change their clothes when they are dressed inappropriately.  I see preschoolers wear clothing that I feel is just too grown up for them.  If it is something a teenager would wear if it were in their size then I am not sure a preschooler needs to wear it.  I feel like we push young children to dress way above their age because parents think they look stylish and cute. 

“When people are sexualized, their value comes primarily from their sex appeal, which is equated with physical attractiveness. This is especially damaging and problematic to children and adolescents who are developing their sense of themselves as sexual beings” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4).  If you listen to children play in a preschool classroom you will hear them make remarks to what someone looks like and how these looks affect that person’s ability to do different things.  For example a girl might say she wants to be the cheerleader but another student will tell her you have to be pretty to be a cheerleader.  It is sad to see how much importance is placed on what people look like.  Young children watch the older children and adults in their lives place too much value on what they look like.  This can also be true when it come to dieting.  It is amazing to listen to young girls talk about going on a diet or things they will not eat because they need go on a diet.  Our society places too much value on what people look like on the outside and not enough value on what people are like on the inside. 

“The sexualization of childhood is having a profoundly disturbing impact

on children’s understanding of gender, sexuality, and relationships” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 3).  As an early childhood educator it is extremely important to be a good model for your students.  Make sure you are dressing appropriately and professionally.  Make sure you are not only commenting on certain children’s outfits but also making sure everyone in your classroom feels special.  Make sure you model healthy eating habits and be aware that children are constantly watching what you do and say.  Also make sure you are available for your students and willing to answer their difficult questions.

The readings this week have opened my eyes to sexualization and made me want to be more aware of its implications on my young preschoolers and my own children.  I realized I had a little bit of knowledge regarding this subject but not nearly enough.  I also realized I had no idea how big of a problem this is can be and how young it can start.  This is an issue that is not going away but one that definitely needs to be addressed at an early age. 

Reference

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf