Three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field:
(1) Be passionate and dedicated to what you are doing and you will see great results in the end. You will be amazed of the difference you can make in the early childhood field and in the lives of children and their families.
(2) Learning is universal and no matter where you are in the world we all share common goals: providing quality education for young children, advocating on their behalf so that all children have the same opportunity to high-quality education no matter what their cultural background may be, and we all love the children.
(3) When we come together sharing ideas and knowledge we can focus on making the learning and developemental process of children so that they are ready for kindergarten and have the desire to go to the next level.
My goal related to international awareness of issues and trends and the spirit of collegial relations.
Goal: To become a member of the World Forum Organization and share ideas, gain knowledge about other cultures. To share resources with other professionals that will be useful in the field of early childhood education.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Getting to Know Your International Contacts--Part 3
Here is some information that I found to be both interesting and helpful in the early childhood field.
(1.) United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (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.
(2.) (Quality) – High quality childcare, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, promotes motivation, confidence, good cognitive and linguistic development and school readiness. There are no universally agreed criteria for quantifying ECCE quality base useful factors to consider include pedagogy materials, personnel training, service setting and parental education and involvement.
(3.) The Global alliance for Cultural Diversity fosters partnerships between public, private and civil society actors in cultural industries in developing countries. The Global Alliance operates at two levels: it provides information and tools on the partnership through web platform and supports operational projects in the field.
Reference
childhood.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Sharing Web Resources--Newsletter-October 7, 2011
In researching my current newsletter I researched an interesting link titled, “Mitchell family went to greath lengths, and distances for kids.” This article was about Kit Carson School District R-1 board that decided to tell state officials that they would not be able to provide for the special needs of children living in the Mitchell family’s group home.
The Mitchell family (Howard and Melody Mitchell) decided in order to provide their children (foster and adopted) with quality education they would make daily drives of 20 miles each way to a more welcoming school district in Eads. It was by officials who believed they could accommodate the special needs of abandoned or abused children.
Sadly, on Thursday morning while Howard Mitchell was traveling to take the children to school disaster struck. The van driven by Mr. Mitchell went into the back of a semitrailer truck killing Howard Mitchell and five of the children, while seven of the children remain in the hospital.
According to Janelle Asmus spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Education, “There is no state mandate on this. We have a lot of local districts that makes decisions like this on their own.”
Another topic of discussion in my newsletter was about: U.S. Child Obesity Reduction Program Test. Over the past three decades, obesity rates among children and adolescents have almost tripled according to Dr. Thomas R. Friedan, director of the CDC. He states that, “obese children are more likely to have asthma, depression, diabetes and other serious and costly health problems. This project will help figure out ways our children can grow up to lead long, healthy, and productive lives.”
The Center for Disease Control and Preventions is using $25 million made available by the Affordable Care Act to support a four-year Childhood Obesity Demonstration Project. They will target children ages 2-12 covered by the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
In the first article that I explored I think that it is wrong for a school system to turn their backs on educating young children. Just because a child has a handicap their parents shouldn’t have to go outside of their school district to get quality education for their children.
In my second article, which fell under quality for education, I think it is important for us to remember that when children are overweight we need to keep them very active. I think this is play can have positive effect on children. When children are active in physical movement they are able to loose fat tissues that are not needed. Today, many of our children sit in front of video games for fun and they are not physically active.
Resources
National Association of Child Care Resources & Referral Agencies. (Newsletter:
Steffen, J. (October 2011). Mitchell Family went to Greath Lengths and Distances for
Kids. The Denver Post. Retrieved from
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Getting to Know Your International Contacts--Part 2
Insightful information I gained from the Harvard University’s Global Children’s Initiative Website:
(1) The Frontiers of Innovation (FOI) initiative and online community, developed by the Early Childhood Innovation Partnership. Their design is to create cross-sector partnership and create high impact strategies for faster innovation in the field of early childhood programs and practices. They do this by: Bringing people together with different areas of expertise; focusing on making a child ready to learn when they are ready for kindergarten; trying new things and taking risks; having a desire to go to the next level; and a better investment early on.
(2) In understanding intervention it is important to know that “the basic science of early childhood and early brain development answers the “why” and “what” questions about investing in young children. The applied science of intervention and program evaluation is essential to answer the “when” and “how” questions.”
(3) The FrameWorks Institute emphasizes the importance of early intervention for children who experience symptoms of mental distress to help them avoid long-term adverse outcomes. There are many stressors and environmental influences interacting with genetic predispositions that can cause the breakdown of unhealthy social and emotional development in early childhood that can endure through adulthood. “The emergence of mental health concerns in young children occurs within the context of an environment of relationships that can include a child’s parents, relatives, caregivers, teachers, and peers.”
In my podcast I listened to Maysoun Chehab who is the Regional Early Childhood Development Program Coordinator at the Arab Resource Collective (ARC), a not-for-profit non-governmental organization based in Beirut, Lebanon. She works along with practitioners and policymakers in raising awareness about early childcare and development. They train early childhood workers on best practices. They also work along with the parents and teachers on issues that affect child development. Maysoun stated, “adults have to be supportive in order to support young children.”
I also learned that the World Forum Foundation have an organization called Global Leaders for Young Children. Their goal is to “encourage participants to become more effective change agents ad advocates for quality early childhood development services in their home countries.”
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Sharing Web Resources
Newsletter- Friday, September 23, 2011
There was an article in my newsletter entitled, “Fingerprint checks for daycare workers sought.” This information seemed relevant to my current professional development because I work in a corrections facility and we have many people there who are sex offenders. The article mentioned that early childhood advocates in Missoula want fingerprint background checks to be a requirement for everyone in Montana working in a daycare. They are hoping this will prevent sex or violent offenders from being employed in their daycare centers. I think that this should be done in all facilities. Parents are assuming that they are leaving their children in loving and trusting care while they are away. You cannot look at a person and determine if they are a sex offender or not. I work around them everyday and you would be amazed at how most sex offenders come off to be so caring and loving, while at the same time they are some of the most dangerous people to be around especially around children. So, I hope they decide to mandated fingerprint into their law.
In my newsletter was article titled, “Parents Wait For Co-Pay Refunds After Cleveland Child Care Shuts Down.” This article made me think about the idea of daycare center in a new way. It reminded me of a family being hit by poverty. I never gave much thought to a daycare center not receiving enough funding to keep the doors open for the children. In the reading the Woodland Learning Center in Cleveland closed it doors two weeks ago, posting only a sign and a voice mail to give parents the bad news. Parents were left with nowhere to take their children. Woodland Learning Center claimed it closed due to declining enrollment and cuts in federal funding. The parents’ say they felt robbed, and even the employees didn’t know what was going on. This seemed to me that poverty hit the daycare center.
Information from my newsletter that adds to my understanding of how the three disciplines support the early childhood field was found in the article, New Jersey’s Poorest Districts Get More Pre-K Money. It explained how the budget signed by Gov. Chris Christie in July increased K-12 money, but did not include additional preschool funding. In May, Christie’s attempt to cut school funding by $1.6 billion was ruled unconstitutional by the state’s Supreme Court, and the court ordered funds restored to the state’s 31 poorest schools. As we all know the most obvious component of providing quality programs is to have adequate funding. We must not cut the funding to the programs that we have; if we do we are jeopardizing the future of our children by not providing them with the quality needed early on in life.
Other insights gained by reading my newsletter were from the article, “Single Mothers Hit Hard by Economy (Impact of the Economy on Child Care).” In Illinois nearly one-quarter of families with children are headed by single women, who face high unemployment, low pay, and frequent poverty. Nearly 39 percent of Illinois households headed by single mothers exist at the poverty level and 6.4 percent for married couples.
Reference
National Association of Child Care Resources & Referral Agencies. (Newsletter:
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