PERSONAL ADVOCACY REFLECTION

Having gone through series of interactions in this course up to this level, I realized that my life has not been directly touched by advocate effort but hearing testimonials of my colleagues in addition to research finding, my eyes are now open to areas of diverse challenges and needs which should be met to help children reach their developmental milestone and develop normally.

Specific areas I would like to concentrate on, for children ages 0 – 12 years, include the following: language arts, physical development, mathematics, creative development, science and socio-emotional development.

Given that resources are mainly devoted to children 0 -5 years to meet their developmental milestones but sometimes some children are unfortunate by default of circumstances and miss the opportunity of getting the services meant for their developmental milestone at 5 years of age. In continuation of their schooling, their experienced loss in developmental gap would be having negative impacts in their performances. I wonder whether this gap should be left or bridged but my conscience and passion align me in the direction of bridging the gap, therefore, I am advocating on their behave. Meaning that children ages 6 – 12 years old who need help ought to receive help to argument or close the gap in their developmental pattern.  

To be effective in closing this gap I would like to become a service/program coordinator so as to liaise between the parents, students, and teachers at both levels 0 – 5 years and 6 – 12 years old.  

My interest is focused on the economically challenged population whose children feel the impact of poverty most. These children manifest a lot of socio-emotional behavioral problems and mental health challenges. These problems deprive them of normal developmental progress.

Advocacy Action

To be an advocate is about making a difference in the life of an individual. I am excited and would like to learn more from my colleagues about being an effective advocate. I have learned a lot over the years about children and their development but will like to know more on how to help them achieve a goal where they can compete with the world at large.

LOOKING FORWARD

One of the consequences of caring for children and families in my community is that helping children enable them shape how their brain develop because bonding and attachment in early infancy age are critical to the child’s normal development. Children who lack proper bonding will be detached in life and will find it difficult to relate with people. A child that does not have a bond with the parents, family and caregivers will perceive herself as being a loner and not having support resources and also manifest low self-esteem. Proper bonding will translate to proper development of the child. High quality early learning experience is important to children because it helps in nurturing and bonding that is assured. There should be enough funding from the state to help families facing challenges to get services that can help and support them. Disadvantaged and special need children need to have access to programs that provides early learning, early intervention, health and family supports to help children reach their full potential. “It is easier to build up a child than it is to repair an adult----choose your words wisely” unknown author.   

Children learn best through play. For children to have a quality education, it has to be through play. Play helps children use their hands on activities for learning about life. Children make sense of the world around them through play and manipulative. Play helps children develop skills they can not otherwise know. A high quality early childhood education with play will benefit children with special needs in helping them interact, communicate and learn. “Good teaching is one–fourth preparation and three-fourths pure theater.” Gail Godwin.

Family situation and environment affect children emotionally because the government needs to invest on childhood education to prepare them for school  readiness. When families are provided with resources to help their children it makes their life better and easier. I know a lot of immigrant families that need services to help their community, I am glad to be in the early childhood education program with child advocacy and policies. “Having a place to go - is a home, having someone to love- is a family, having both – is a blessing.” Donna Hedges.  “If the family were a fruit, it would be an orange, a circle of sections, held together but separable – each segment distinct.”  Letty Cottin Pogrebin.

My goal is to put together an early education system that helps promote high quality early education and destressing the lives of families and their children, by utilizing the services of health professionals, early learning experience and development, and family leadership and support.

I would like to use this opportunity to thank all my colleagues for their insights and contributions to what I know today. May God bless you all as we move forward in becoming children advocates. 

HYPOTHETICAL FAMILY SITUATION

This week’s hypothetical family situation that I envision is about a single immigrant mother that has just relocated from another country. She has two children with varying needs, one is a four years old asthmatic and dyslexic child and the other is a three years old with distractive behavior, cannot sound out words and also physically fights all the time.

         She has difficulties getting them to school on time because of the unreliable transportation and the distance of her children’s school from the house.

          Her family is staying in an environmentally poor neighborhood with family friends while waiting to get a job.

         I would appreciate if anyone with any thoughts or suggestions regarding my specific family situation should give them.

The Political Will to Improve Early Childhood Systems

·         All children and their families need to receive affordable, comprehensive, and high-quality health care.  

  Children need attachment in order to become healthy, caring, responsible connected adult. Children from households where parents are unavailable, afraid, and unpredictable, abusive, abandoned, and neglected always have challenges or struggles in school. Children affected by stress through their parents will have difficulty focusing or concentrating in school. As an advocate I would like to speak out for children under stress or who picked up stress from their parents.

·         Children and their parents receive the services and supports to enable them start school prepared for success. 

      Parental stress will affect a developing child by killing the brain cells.

·         All children have an equal opportunity to attend an adequately and equitably financed public school meeting rigorous academic standards aligned with the needs of the 21^st century workforce. http://www.voices.org/issues.

Children develop interaction within the environment so when parental stressors are picked up they affect the proper development of a growing child. Children should have relationships that are nurturing and caring in order for them to succeed in life.

reference

Voices for America’s Children. (n.d.). Retrieved August 1, 2011, from http://www.voices.org/issues

PARENT, FAMILY, AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

 The professional and personal significance I drew from the stories is that people who came across Head Start want to make changes and empower themselves so they can do the same for someone else. The story about Melinda George inspired me with her speech that if you want people to want more show them that it is achievable. She also explained how she wants her children to learn how to give back. I drew this experience from her to effect the change on my children so they do not always look for their own personal need but to always look out for how they can help someone else everyday. Professionally, Terri Denomie’s story taught me that the more input you put in your children, the more output you will get later in life. Her experience of teaching parents the skills on taking care of their children helps her in her journey of parenting. She has a parent child centered program in order to teach other parents (like victims of domestic violence, teenagers having children, parents with autistic children, and parents of children with fetal Alcohol Syndrome). Rachael Morale’s story about Head Start which is helping children at home to facilitate some teaching that will enhance and improve their skills. She encouraged parents to work and support their child’s teachers while they team up to better raise a well developed child. Head Start also helped some parents reach resources they need to support their whole family. I would like to be involved in Head Start in order to help parents and families reach their full potentials in life.

The involvement of parents and family members are beneficial to their children. 90% of brain development happens before the age of five, so it is important for parents to be involved in their child’s development and learning by teaming up with the teacher to build a connection from school to home to enable the parents track their child’s preparation for kindergarten. Parents need to talk to the educators about the needs they identify in their child/children so that the solution to that problem can be met. It is possible to meet the child’s need through early intervention. Parents need to be educated that there are programs and services to help their children meet a need. Parents need to understand that they have the opportunity to help their children to become successful. Parents, educators and community members need to come together to provide the best start that a child can get for their development. When parents and educators do well to meet the needs of a child, the early childhood group has done a lot to impact the life of a child.

The values of hearing the stories in early childhood professionals are important because of the words of wisdom that each of them was able to share. Rachael Morale commented that parents should not always agree with teachers but to try and work with teachers to advance the learning experience of the child.

Most of the parents in the school are involved in making policy decisions for their community or district school.

Parental involvement is an important strand of service for programs in the early childhood program. Parental involvement improves students’ performances when schools partner with parents or families thereby helping to build children’s confidence.

Reference

Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center (ECLKC), part of the Office of Head Start. http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/family/For%20Parents/pfs

Quality Programs for All Children

          The public opinion about quality services for young children and their families can be assessed by determining the affordability of the service, access to services for children, and their parents and also the combination of safe and secure care in school environment. Working in the early childhood field, I have grown to be passionate about educating children from different ability groups because children deserve quality education. It is of utmost importance to find out ways we can use resources personally and professionally to meet the needs of children and their families in our community.

          I think public opinion need to have changed in the next five years because more people should have been more knowledgeable and literate about the use of computer (Excel, Microsoft office/word) in order for them to be competitive in the job market. I am passionate about Head Start and its mission for children and families in poverty.  

When early childhood advocates collaborate with other groups of their interest by networking, the community will be aware of their services and families will have support from any area of need. I have a passion to help children in poverty to close the gap in learning, lack of health care, homelessness, and most especially access to quality early learning. In the field of early childhood the care for children in universal preschool, head start, early head start and special education services need to be inclusive so that by the time children reach school age, most of the basic services will not be required any more.

Reference

 Neugebauer, R. (2010). The start of head start. Exchange, (193), 20–21.

Retrieved from the Walden Library using the Education Research Complete 

database

MY ROLE AS AN EARLY CHILDHOOD ADVOCATE

MY ROLE AS AN EARLY CHILDHOOD ADVOCATE

            There are many reasons why I chose this specialization. Children and their families need someone to stand up for them. I want to be an individual that children can count on for support, opportunities, and reach out to resources to help children. I used to be in positions where I did not know what to do to help or how to do them. I am in a better position now to learn more about resources I can use to help children.

            Advocates are essential in the lives of children in order to give them the best needed opportunities to develop and succeed in life. Creation of awareness by starting children on strong foundation can prevent some delays that each child might exhibit later. I want to be involved in being part of an organization that will bring resources, find funders, and help in making things happens for children.

            I have a lot I want to learn about public policy and advocacy, for instance learning about policies, who makes them, their implementation and how children can benefit from the policy. I would like to learn ways of supporting children and protecting them from    things which will get in ways of their development. I would also like to have skills that would enable me be an equipped and informed role model, mentor, or someone children can look up to protect them from hurt or harm and surround them with positive influential people. There should be an individual who will be able to give children the opportunities they deserve to start school ready to learn. When people of like minds work and network together by motivating each other to speak for those without voices they are in a way speaking for themselves as well.

Quality Programs for All Children

          Working in the early childhood field, I have grown to be passionate about educating children from different ability groups because children deserve quality education. I would like to have the opportunity to accommodate the learning needs and create programs that would help every child succeed. Community members and families should be made aware of the need for high quality early childhood education for all children because most people think that a young child’s education does not matter until they get into kindergarten and start in a special education class where they will receive various services.

I have a passion to help children in poverty to close the gap in learning, lack of health care, homelessness, and most especially access to quality early learning. I would like to stay current with policies, issues and forums that affect children and their families. People who share their passionate information without being afraid of the issues they speak about are the most effective advocates. In the field of early childhood the care for children in universal preschool, head start, early head start and special education services need to be inclusive so that by the time children reach school age, most of the services will not be required.

MY ROLE AS AN EARLY CHILDHOOD ADVOCATE

            There are many reasons why I chose this specialization. Children and their families need someone to stand up for them. I want to be an individual that children can count on for support, opportunities, and reach out to resources to help children. I used to be in positions where I did not know what to do to help or how to do them. I am in a better position now to learn more about resources I can use to help children.

            Advocates are essential in the lives of children in order to give them the best needed opportunities to develop and succeed in life. Creation of awareness by starting children on strong foundation can prevent some delays that each child might exhibit later. I want to be involved in being part of an organization that will bring resources, find funders, and help in making things happens for children.

            I have a lot I want to learn about public policy and advocacy, for instance learning about policies, who makes them, their implementation and how children can benefit from the policy. I would like to learn ways of supporting children and protecting them from    things which will get in ways of their development. I would also like to have skills that would enable me be an equipped and informed role model, mentor, or someone children can look up to protect them from hurt or harm and surround them with positive influential people.

Reflecting on Communication in the Early Childhood Field

This semester has been loaded with many new experiences and learning opportunities for me. It has been a wonderful 8 weeks journey sharing information and resources throughout the course. Now is the time for us to enter into our different specialties, with the skills and knowledge to bring about positive changes. I hope we are undergoing positive changes within ourselves as well. The knowledge that I have gained in this class will help me throughout my life personally as well as my professional career. In this field it takes collaboration between the parents, community, and the educators to achieve the same goal. I considered myself to be a very observant and conscious communicator, paying close attention with my eyes and ears.

            I want to thank everyone for your words of wisdom and your support throughout this course. I am looking forward to the next transition and wish everyone much luck and success in the future. It has been a pleasure working with all of you and I hope we can stay in touch (my personal email is danfav32@yahoo.com).

Team Building and Collaboration

This week we have been discussing about team work and the ones we have been involved with as a leader or a follower. We as educators need to work in groups as we partner with families, communities and others around us. As a daughter when I came to America to stay with my dad and step mother, I had to say goodbye to my mother, sisters, cousins and other family members that I have grown to love and share some connections. It was difficult on both sides because we all felt that if it were possible we would have loved to travel together.

            The closing ritual I wish to experience is seeing my father alive again, beaming with smiles and happy that I finally graduated and got my masters degree. He used to remind and challenge his children that whatever others can do we can do better. He finds a way to motivate us any chance he got so that we can aim higher.

            It is important to have closure when working with any team or in a relationship because when a relationship is over or when a task is accomplished, you would like to know why it ended and ask yourself if you achieved your desired goal.

            I appreciate my colleagues for helping me understand that we are all unique individuals with different cultures, backgrounds, developments and goals. So adjourning will not be difficult because it is the time to reflect on what we know about each other from our discussions and blogs. It is important in a team to recognize our achievements, failures, relationships we have formed and goals we have accomplished, all these are important when a team is departing. In the adjourning stage the teams are coming to an end and the team members are moving off into different directions (Abudi, 2010).

Reference

Abudi, G. (2010). The Five Stages of Team Development:  A Case Study.  Retrieved from http:www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-five-stages-of-team-development-a-case-study.html

Conflict Resolution

Reading the information on the center for Nonviolence communication website has opened my understanding to conflict resolution. Recently, I found out that my younger brother pulled out from school and started hanging around with friends. I was so furious when I found out the school situation and I was talking to him in a very loud voice on how he wanted to waste his life. It seems to him that there is no need to have zeal and hope for the future since my father passed last year. He feels that he is a grown up person and knows what he wants for his life and that is not school. He finally came back home because if he does not, he would loose everything that the family had worked very hard to put together for him. Unresolved conflict escalates because no one is paying attention to the conflict or, even if someone is, because no one sets limits on the fighting, or, lastly, because no one intervenes to provide protection (www.thirdeye.org).

            I could have used the escapist strategy and let him wander around and see where he will end up. It is good that I reached out to him.  The strategy I would use in resolving conflict is creating a conducsive atmosphere that would lead to an open effortless conversation. Another strategy I would use is the cooperative strategy to benefit relationship, serve mutual rather than individual goals, and strive to produce solutions (problem solving approach) that benefit both parties. (O’Hair & Weimann 2009).

References

O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

The Third Side. (n.d.). The third side. Retrieved from http://www.thirdside.org/

Who Am I as a Communicator

                   When I think about myself as a communicator compared to what others think about me, I know that I am a good communicator and I am always conscious of how people (friends, colleagues and family members) are perceiving the message that I send to them. I recognize that I have weaknesses in my communication, verbal expression and listening ability but knowing that others have and are aware of individual weaknesses imply that I am not alone and have the chance to improve. This week's assignment has taught me that I should always be aware of how I am communicating with others either personally or professionally.
                    My reality is that I pay attention and listen carefully to people to make sure their values and principles are heard and implemented. I was surprised that my listening style profile was considered as a people  -oriented listener for all the three profiles. I am glad that my empathetic nature shows through my listening skills in both the personal, friend, and colleague's assessment.
                    The insight I gained this week is to continue to show respect, compassion and not to pass judgment on people based on my first impressions. I need to be more confident in myself, be comfortable in speaking in public, develop a communication skill that is clear as well as build relationships with people who are my listeners so they can receive my message clearly.

COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE

Communication is the process by which individuals use symbols, signs, and behaviors to exchange information (O'Hair & Wiemann (2009). The most interactive relationship I have developed all my life is with my family, friends and my colleagues. In a setting with colleagues or professionals I use eye contact, proper hand shake and proper English. We communicate differently with people from different cultures and settings. When we educate ourselves to know more about people’s culture and their unique nature we would appreciate them for who they are.

I find myself communicating differently with people from different cultures. Since I took the culture and diversity course I have been cautious of my communication with people from different cultures.

I communicate differently with people from different settings but the strategies I use in communicating better is by listening to others, showing respect to others so that when a child grows up seeing people helping others, they too become helpers” (Gonzalez-Mena 2010). And finally we need to be empathic with others by improving the lives of people when creating problem solving environment.

 References

Gonzalez-Mena, J. (2010). 50 strategies for communicating and working with diverse families. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

 O'- Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD

          I always watch people's body language whenever they talk to me but this course has awakened my subconsciousness to always watch people's body language, facial expression and other gestures when they are talking to me. I found out that sometimes the body language and the verbal communication do not always match in a conversation.
           I watched a scene of the program on the television Castle when the lady detective was hanging on the edge of a wall and was about to fall, that was so scary looking from the expression on her face, it appeared as if she was stirring death in the face. The other detectives were suspicious of the lady but her body language and speech showed that she was innocent.
           The body language and facial expression of a person tell alot about the intention of the speaker (communicator) who might be misunderstood. We really understand people better by their non verbal communication. People need to be aware of how they present themselves to others because actions speak louder than words.
           

Competent Communicator

One of the competent and effective communicators in my life is Oprah. As I have watched her shows over the years she has made talking to people appear easy. I would like to model some of her communication behaviors because she finds a way to address people with sincerity and makes sure she leaves the individual with something to contemplate for discussion. It is necessary that we display good communication skills to our parents as well as to our children. It is important to show respect to colleagues and accept their opinions as well. Oprah communicates effectively with others by preparing and practicing to discuss every aspect of how to overcome your short comings and equally focus discussion on the past experiences that highlight your strengths. 

Professional Hopes and Goals

            I hope to work with children and their families from diverse backgrounds to celebrate the richness of their cultures and seek ways and means by which the local, state, and federal governments can help early childhood development programs have access to the implementation of quality education. I also want to create hope and make everyone come together as one and not to judge ourselves because of age, size, class, and color.

            As an educator, I would like diversity to be celebrated, to help each child have an equal opportunity for their values and beliefs to be acknowledged. When we teach and have activities of diversity among children this will help them eliminate the biases of discrimination and marginalization which they have experienced.  So we as educators need to reflect on our biases, behaviors, values, beliefs and attitudes to sort out how these affect the ways we interact with others.

            As we conclude this course I want to thank all my colleagues for sharing their inspirations with me, it is a great opportunity and I appreciate it. This course has opened my eyes to see my biases and know more about myself to see ways I can be better to help others. I have also learned from all your experiences and understand that we all have biases that we are working on resolving and it is a journey. Diversity helps us to understand ourselves and the world. I hope to see you in the future and I wish you all the best.  

Welcoming Families from Around the World

I am a director of a child care center and a family from Ivory Coast just migrated to the United States and would like their young children to be registered in my program. I will find out more about the family and their culture because I have the information that they do not speak English, they only speak French.

                I would prepare myself to be culturally responsive to this family by:

         (I)                Gathering all the enrollment paper works to a translator who can help me translate them to French and I would make sure that we (myself and staff) learn some French words to help the family and their children.

         (II)               Finding out on the internet or the library about the family’s cultural traditions, their values, beliefs, food, their ways of communicating (greetings) and also the cultural events they celebrate.

(III)             Having an interpreter come to the school on the day of their registration to interpret and give them a tour of the school.

(IV)             Finding out a local Ivory Coast organization to help the family adjust and have someone call and speak to them about their new environment and how to go about getting some necessary things (resources) they need to survive.

(V)               Helping the children adjust to the new school through combined effort of my staff and I in learning more of their language with flash card, so that we can bring the home and school together to help their children adjust to their new school.  The use of relevant books, pictures, and television programs in French would enhance our collective success.

My hope and aim is to help the new family and my staff to make the change an easy task on their parts. Every family would appreciate and understand that we always adjust to take care of families’ needs knowing that people’s rich culture is hard to part with. With our help, every family would understand that their cultural diversity is part of their identity and we are here to help them believe in and preserve what they know.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

In what way(s) did the specific prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

            When I came to the United States and was eager to finish up my University undergraduate education that I started in my country someone people recommended a particular school to my parents and they decided for me to be part of that school. The school was predominantly white (90%) and few minority (10%) students. Some white students approached me during one of the school days, we engaged in friendly conversations and they were asking me many questions like; what is the capital of Africa?, is it true that you people live on trees?, and how did you come to the States? I wondered how they do not know that Africa is a continent and not a country and it is made up of regions and countries with their respective capitals. I know that Africans are not animals to live on trees. By what means did they think we came to the States, did we swim or paddle through across the oceans?. I do not know how people can still think like that in this modern 21^st century. I responded by explaining that Africa is a continent with countries, and that we have buildings built with blocks just like the ones in the United States and we flew from my country to the States. I was polite in responding to their questions but I felt belittled and degraded by their questioning. They did not show me how their questions affected me.

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

If it were today I would have responded the same way, explaining and educating them on what Africa is about

What and/or who will change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

My classmates should have educated themselves about Africa and its resources to enable them correct their views of degrading and emotionally challenging someone or African to react negatively.