UNESCO

I visited the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization site and was delighted to see that the areas of education regarding quality, access, and investment are areas being discussed all over the world.  We as educators know these issues are not isolated to one country or region; instead, they are issues that affect the field of early education worldwide.  After exploring the sight, there are three issues discussed that directly relate to my professional goals of advocating for best practice and access to early education for all children.

Currently, I support pre-k and pre-school teachers in areas of instruction and best practice within their classroom.  So often, I have encountered teachers that depend strictly on the curriculum that they forget or ignore best practice.  Best practice should be present whether there is a set curriculum or not however, many teachers depend on the curriculum to create routines, manage behavior, and foster positive classroom climate.  Some of us, speaking from experience, have become lazy and dependent, yet we wonder why our children are all over the place, why they do not participate in engaged play, and why nothing instructional can be accomplished during the day.  The policy brief from September 2004 is focused on curriculum in early care and education.  Within the brief, it states the pros of an established curriculum: common approach to pedagogy, identification of specific areas to be taught, establishes a standard level of quality.  However, what is also just as important is that ECE should be tailored to meet the child at their individual level of social emotional and cognitive development and should be directed by the child.  Because of this, an established set curriculum may not be the best option for early childhood educators, instead the identification of specific guidelines or framework.

The second insight which gave me hope was reading about Brazil’s mandatory education fund for early education.  The fund entitled, Fund for the Development of Primary Education and Teacher Development (FUNDEF), is comprised of money from state, local, and municipalities’ budgets.  In 2000, this fund increased early enrollment to 96.4% and has allowed access to early education from ostracized populations.  Due to the success of FUNDEF, policy makers are drafting a bill which would mandate educational funding for children ages 0-6.  A statement made by Severiano Alves, a member of the Brazilian congress, summarizes how we all, especially law and policy makers should view early education “ignoring or belittling the problem of early childhood education, to me, is a serious mistake. Imagine a primary school classroom with children from rich families who have gone through private pre-schools and are well prepared for learning, and those from poor families who have little idea about learning, let alone having any developmental base to begin learning. Imagine the kinds of problems this situation can create for the teacher, for the children themselves, and eventually for the entire society. Instead of working on bills to remedy problems, I would prefer working on a preventive, more economical and effective, measure – investment in the early periods.”

Aside from funding, quality is also an important component when discussing access.  In New Zealand, home based services are offered for families of children aged birth to five.  Within this program, homes are clustered and managed by coordinator.  The coordinator places children in approved homes for a specific amount of hours per week.  The program, managed by the New Zealand Dept. of Education, provides specific funding per child for each home based program.  Additionally, each home based program is monitored by the government and must stay in accordance with the Education Order.  This program services a range of families, which has increased in population due to an increase in mothers working outside of the home.

From the three policies of focusing on improvement for early care of countries from all over the world, I have faith that one day this country of the United States, will follow suit and not just recognize the importance of early care but put their thoughts into actions.

Resources

UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Education. September 2004. Curriculum in early childhood education and care. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001374/137401e.pdf

UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Education. September 2002. Home-based early childhood services: the case of New Zealand. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001373/137381e.pdf

UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Education. October 2003. Mandatory funding for early childhood education: a proposal in Brazil. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001374/137406e.pdf

Web Resources Extended- NCBI

I have visited site for the National Black Child Development Institute (BCDI) numerous times now and have yet to explore the affiliates section, which was one of my initial reasons I chose this website; they have an affiliate close to my home.  There are 27 affiliates of the BCDI located in major cities or counties across the United States.  Of the affiliates listed, only 5 had websites specifically for their city.  Unfortunately, the affiliate near me was not one with a web site :@(.  I browsed through the Philly site (the closest affiliate to me even thought is 2.5 hrs away) and noticed they offered a lot of events for the community including cooking classes, Kwanzaa celebrations, and supports for women with breast cancer.  Meetings for this affiliate are held monthly for both members and nonmembers. 

The Philadelphia affiliate is currently focused on 2 programs; GROW Green Get Fit and Entering the College Zone (ECZ).  GROW Green Get Fit, is a program developed in conjunction with the YMCA, BCDI, and Donna Richardson-Joyner to end childhood obesity.  Through the program, children and their families learn information about healthy eating and nutrition, making healthy changes and choices in behavior, cooking healthy meals, fitness tips, and information of the effects of poor healthy including high blood pressure and diabetes.  Focusing on children, youth, and their families, this program became so successful that land was donated so that a community garden could be created where children could grow healthy fruits and veggies.

Entering the College Zone (ECZ), a program targeted to middle school students and their families, provides resources and support so that they can successfully complete the application process for college. The goal of the program is to encourage parents to participate in their child’s education, while encouraging students to plan for and succeed in obtaining higher education.  

I also visited the site for the Atlanta which had similar postings to the Philadelphia site.  The Atlanta site however, had a link labeled ADVOCACY which stood out to me.  The Atlanta affiliate works with the community specifically, young children and their families, to advocate for quality care and to enhance the quality of life.  Most notably, partnering with early childhood centers to meet NAEYC accreditation, partnering with early childhood organizations to challenge policies and laws and ECZ are the 3 largest advocate focuses. This affiliate is actively involved in making sure the voices of young children are heard.  Access to policy alerts, public forums, and registration drives are just a few of the tactics this affiliate has used to advocate for young children and their families.

After exploring both the Atlanta and the Philly Affiliate sites, the notion that it takes “a community to raise a child” really stands out.  In both cities, there are those who volunteer their time to advocate for those without a voice and who put on programs to support the educational and healthy growth and development of children and those in their communities.  Health is a huge focus in many African American communities and it is evident in the programs the affiliates and the BCDI are promoting.  Although the definition of quality varies from community to community, there is precedence that things can be better, children deserve better, and there are people fighting for that.

Resources:

National Black Child Development Institute Atlanta. n.d. Advocacy. Retrieved from http://bcdi-atl.org/advocacy/

National Black Child Development Institute Philadelphia and Vicinity.n.d.  Retrieved from http://www.bcdiphiladelphia.org/index.html

Global Children's Initiative

I think I have decided to give up on establishing communication with another overseas professional.  It has now been almost 6 weeks and I have no updates at all.  The idea behind the assignment is great however, I think if the university had connections with certain groups or organizations where they knew students would be contacting them, I may have gotten a little farther in my communication.  So from here out, I will do the alternate assignment.

I explored the Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University, and more specifically the Global Children’s Initiative.  I was amazed to see that the center established a center solely on educating, supporting, and collaboration within ECE, countries around the world.  My first thought is that the United States is not completely selfish and about the development of our nation, well at least not in terms of Early Childhood :@).  I read some interesting things about various programs happening all over the world:

• The initiave has 3 major focuses: early child development, child mental health, and children in crisis and conflict situations.  Within each area, strategic steps and projects have been implemented to address various needs.  Under early development, the center is analyzing ECE programs and environments globally, creating collaboration among global schools, and improving the quality of preschool in Chili.  Under mental health, mental services in China are being assessed; programs have been created to support maltreatment and mental health in Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Suriname. Within children in crisis, collaboration from a science and public health perspective are being generated to support assessment and management of children and their well-being during natural and man-made crisis.
• The Zambian Early Childhood Development Project was established in 2009 to address the lack of information available in early childhood development in sub-Saharan Africa.  An assessment tool was created to measure effect of child development due to the anti-malaria campaign. The tool, which is separate for children and parents, ask questions about home life, school, social emotional development, and education of parents.  The test for children assesses many skills including fine motor, vocabulary, expressive language, attention, and letter identification.
• Nucleo Ciencia Pela Infancia, a projected launched in Brazil in conjunction with leaders, politicians, and scholars works to create and implements policies and programs, based on health and children development, which will benefit young children and their families.

Resource: http://developingchild.harvard.edu/activities/global_initiative/

Web Resources Pt. 2

This week I returned to the National Black Child Development Institute website and I was slightly disappointed.  I signed up for the newsletter but I have yet to receive one.  I went directly to the initiatives tab and was disappointed when there was little information available and the only recent information was about the National Head Start Conference held in June.  I clicked on other initiatives thinking it would have more recent information but it did not. 

Every time I visit a professionals organizations’ site I explore professional development opportunities; this site mentioned information regarding the annual conference.  The conference, which will be held in October, is offering 2 seminars that I would professionally benefit from; Strengths-based coaching and early childhood educators as advocates for change. Unfortunately, I will not be able to afford to attend the conference.  This week my exploration was limited and slightly frustrating.  I will check back next week in hopes of receiving a newsletter by then.

Update on professional contacts: No change from last week.  I have not gotten a response back.

Resource: http://nbcdi.org/blog/category/early-childhood-education/ 

Web Resources

The National Black Child Development Institute (http://nbcdi.org/) was born during the late 1960’s, during a time when people began to rally together to create social change.  Incorporated in 1970, NBCDI began work to improve the life of the black child (History, 2102, para. 1).  The mission, “to improve and advance the love of black children and their families through education and advocacy”, has remained foremost, as the institute focuses on early childhood education, secondary and elementary education, health and child welfare (NBCDI History, 2012, para. 2).  NBCDI, provides direct services to education professionals, families, and specialist including social workers and other professionals (History, 2012, para. 3-4).  There are core programs which the institute focuses on that accomplishes their vision and promotes nationwide attention: Love to Read, The Parent Empowerment Program, African American Parents Project, SPARK (Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids, Entering the College Zone, and the National Affiliate Network (NBCDI History, 2012, para. 5). 

This week we focused on changing demographics and diversity and in Dr. Graces’ interview she mentioned that curriculums may need to be adjusted to address the chaining demographics (Laureate Education, 2011).  NBCDI has also begun to address this issue by developing a Cultural Competency Improvement Tool (CCIT) (Home, 2012).  This tool can be used to review the cultural competence in health and nutrition curriculums used for all aged children.  Why is this relevant? The changes in population include increases in Latino, African American, and Native American children and families which have reached epidemic rates for childhood obesity (NBCDI, 2012).  As educators prepare for increased diversity, we must not forget cultural components such as nutrition, food, and nutritional habits that will affect children and families. 

Link to Cultural Competence Improvement Tool:

http://nbcdi.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/DRAFT-CCIT-June-2012.pdf

Resources

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). The effects of changing demographics and diversity on children, families, and the early childhood field [Audio].  Issues and Trends in the Early Childhood Field. Baltimore, MD: Author

National Black Child Development Institute. (2012). About: history. Retrieved July 6, 2012 from  http://nbcdi.org/about/history/

International Contact/ Professional Organiation

I was somewhat hesitant in embracing this assignment.  My first thought was that I would have a difficult time connecting with someone who I email out of the blue.  However, I thought about the endless possibilities of being connected to other professionals across the world and how I could greatly benefit from it. I have to be honest… my first rational for choosing professionals to contact were locations that I am interested in visiting.  My next “filter” in deciding who to contact was whether they were male or female.  My reason for contacting females over males was the cultural component of communication between men and women across the world.  I have attempted to contact Mrs. Bimno at the Ajoke International School in Nigeria, and Jane Lim of the Association for Early Childhood Educators in Singapore.  Although I have not received emails back, I am hopeful I will be successful in my attempts to establish a relationship.  It has been one day since my initial email, and if I do not hear back from either Mrs. Bimno or Ms. Lim by next Tuesday (7/3) I will choose the alternative to complete.

            Of the list of organizations posted, I was aware of a few of them both nationally and internationally.  As I scrolled through the list I was immediately attracted to the National Black Child Development Institute and the Association for Childhood Education International.  I was unaware there was an organization, that was dedicated to the development of African American children.  I have decided to select this organization to following because I currently serve and support African American children in my work position, I am an African American who is dedicated to providing the best education and support for my community, and it has an affiliate group close to me.  Although, I will not follow the Association for Childhood Education International for this class, I will add this to my list of sites to check frequently and as possible membership option. 

How are you, my colleagues, feeling about reaching out to other professionals worldwide? Did you have the same hesitations as I did? What is your plan to create a long lasting relationship?

Tip: some of the emails are being bounced back.  There are some professionals that have common email servers (yahoo.com) that I tired that have not bounced back. Check the websites that are linked to the address to make sure they work before you send. 

My Supports

There are many supports in my life.  The first support is God, as without him nothing is possible.  Another support is my boyfriend of 4 years.  He listens when I need ears, he encourages me, he calms me down, and he loves me for who I am.  Another support is my mom and dad.  They support me in decision making and help with navigating this thing called adulthood and life.  My friends are emotional support, especially since I embarked on a lifestyle change to lose weight and finish my master’s degree.  Aside from people, I have supports that help to keep me organized that are truly helpful.  I use post it notes daily for everything.  They helped to keep me organized.  Post its also help to prioritize my daily and weekly to do's.  My planner is also a great support in keeping me organized.  My cell phones, both work and personal, hold all of my contacts and emails which is very helpful to have access to immediately.  There are certain apps I use that support me in my quest to maintain a healthier lifestyle such as live strong and Nike training app.

All of my supports are very important to me and without them I feel lost and unorganized.  I almost lost both my mom and dad last year within a day apart and it was the worse feeling I felt in my life.  It would be hard to lose the support of my friends and loved ones.  If it were to happen, I would cherish the advice and support I received over the years; knowing their voices would speak to me at the right time.  If I did not have my planner or cell phones I would use the older method of keeping an address book and creating list on sheets of paper.  It would take longer and would require more organization but, would serve the same purpose. 

If I had to imagine a disability, it would be losing the function of my legs and having to use a wheel chair.  I would really need the support of my family and my boyfriend.  I would have to have modifications done within my home to enter the house and also to gain access to the kitchen to cook and bedrooms upstairs.  I would need supports in my car to help me drive without the use of traditional breaks.  I imagine I would need support of a physical therapist to gain strength to move and adjust to my new lifestyle.  My boyfriend would have to support me in getting dressed and bathing.  Without supports from people and modifications made to my environment I would probably become very depressed. I we all people have challenges and although some are more difficult than others, with the support of family and friends, a spiritual being, and belief in yourself anything can be achieved.