Week 8: Time Well Spent

It feels surreal that this is our final class in the MS in Early Childhood Studies program together. As a result of studying the courses and learning together with you all, I’ve become a better person. I’ve learned a lot about diversity, social justice and child advocacy. On my journey of being an early childhood professional, there are at least 3 lessons that I will use to make a difference in the lives of children and families!

1.      It is essential to develop and maintain strong teacher-family partnerships. In most cases, the family and teacher want the best for the child being educated. As an early childhood professional, I want parents to know that they are a valuable resource in their child’s future success.

2.      Creating activities that encourage children to be proud of who they are and where they come from is a priceless gift that anti-bias educators can give. If children are comfortable with their family structure, gender, race, varying ability or beliefs, they will develop the habit of learning to respect the differences in others.

3.      I will embrace diversity by loving everyone despite their beliefs or differences. I feel inspired to meet more diverse groups of people and learn about their languages, parenting styles, varying abilities, customs and beliefs.

 

I have the long term goal of using social identities to help children and families celebrate their own identities while learning about the social identities of other children and families.

Dr. Teri and my lovely colleagues have made this learning experience a life-changing experience by sharing their opinions, experiences, explanations, practices, theories, questions, comments, time and love for the various issues in the early childhood field.

I know that all of you are going on to do great things like earning your PH.D., getting married, having children, being your very own boss, becoming teacher of the year and many more things. I really wish everyone the best!

THANKS FOR BEING ROLE MODELS, LEADERS, AND ANTI-BIAS EDUCATORS TO EACH OTHER, TO THE CHILDREN AND TO THE FAMILIES!

 

 

 

Week 6 Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

The International Step by Step Association (ISSA) is an organization that supports several childhood programs. Such programs include early childhood, primary school, Equal Access, Teacher Education and Civic Participation in Education. As a result of clicking on one of these programs, I’ve been able to increase my knowledge and gain new ideas about the early childhood field. “SbS classrooms foster democratic habits. In this type of classroom children are encouraged to make choices and accept responsibility, learn independently as well as cooperatively, and be tolerant and respectful of differences” (ISSA, n.d.).  This organization appeals to me because it supports programs that align with the age groups of children that I will be working with.

 The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is a giant community of practice that focuses on a variety of child safety and health issues. These include water, sanitation and hygiene. In fact, the statistics are very alarming. “Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices, kills and sickens thousands of children every day, and leads to impoverishment and diminished opportunities for thousands more” (UNICEF, n.d.). Learning these statistics reminds me of the small things that I sometimes take for granted. However, this organization appeals to me because I feel more determined to focus on my ability to donate money that will help children and their families.

 I am most familiar with the Save the Children organization. I clearly remember seeing the infomercials on television showing the faces of poverty and poor health and it always brought tears to my eyes. The mission of this organization represents everything I plan to do to help the poor, hungry and sick. This organization appeals to me because I can use the stories of less fortunate families to inspire my children about the importance of helping each other. It’s exciting to learn that there are more than a dozen ways that people can give to support this organization! I have made a commitment to participate in the Honor A Special Person Program each month! “With your donation of $20 or more, Save the Children will include a personalized Gift Card to be sent to the person or the family of the person in whose name the donation was made” (Save the Children, n.d.).

 Job Opportunities

 A Project Director of Early Childhood Care and Development Program will be working in Mozambique. They have the job responsibilities of managing, implementing, and monitoring coordinated project models across multiple provinces (Save the Children, n.d.). The requirements to fulfill this job role include

Master’s Degree in Education or a related field

5 to 7 years of experience of managing community-based projects

Portuguese language skills (both oral & written)

 

A Program Development and Reporting Specialist will be working in Sudan. This professional will have the responsibility of assisting to ensure strong program design and proposal development. They will review and provide quality input to all project proposals, reports and assessments. The requirements to fulfill this job role include

M.S. Degree in a humanitarian or development field

Excellent reporting and essential planning skills

Computer skills including Microsoft word, PowerPoint and Excel

 

References

International Step By Step Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.issa.nl/index.html

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

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