Deep Thoughts

 

            As I reflect on the amount of information learned, discussed, and shared throughout this course I felt a sense of pride to call myself an early childhood professional. I gained a bit more understanding on my personal role as an early childhood professional in believing I can advocate for children and to desire positive social change is a start. I can recall wanting to multitask and dreaming of not only looking at the many issues impacting the life of a child but finding solutions to each and every issue. However, finding a focus and just brainstorming of ways to impact children of military families resonates with me. As I examined the military community I found that this community is one I desire the most social change because of past experiences. And wanting to see children of military families taken care of and not a part of an overlooked population. I believe a child’s learning and development should never be overlooked or push over. These children are literally our futures and I see teaching them from the start is critical. I became determined to build this community of practice and strive to watch the impact of social change. I also learned I really need to dig deeper into finding more of the history of children of military families and where the change began. All the resources I found, as well as the personal interviews I had with other early childhood professionals working on military installations had difficulty discovering the history. I enjoyed reading several job opportunities set to advocate for children across the globe and said to myself Too Bad I can’t have super powers and clone myself to participate in all these opportunities at one time because in reality I can’t be at 4 places at once. I felt like I needed to be a part of all of the organizations listed because it seems a vast amount of work needs to be done and we are just getting started. I trust and thank my colleagues to continue to advocate for children where one person is unable to. I realize how important my job is as a training and curriculum specialist especially to the people I’m mentoring. Before the start of this degree I only saw myself as a student but now I see myself as a student as well as a leader and mentor. I realize I advocate for children by also influencing the upcoming students/teachers by expressing my passion to provide quality care with children. My long term goal is to continue to express my passion for the field of early childhood to others and hope the program continues from generation to generation.

I would like to take a moment to thank my colleagues and Dr. Darragh for your knowledge, comments, encouragement throughout the course I greatly appreciate everyone’s input and support. Best Wishes to my colleagues for future endeavors in the field. Congratulations Everyone! My email address attached to my blog will remain the same should you wish to contact me I remain open to questions, comments, concerns or building beautiful relationships and networking.

Jdwarren83@gmail.com

International Organizations and Influences (Ms. Jay)

The international organizations that caught my attention are: The United Nation Children’s Fund, The United Nations |Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization and The Academy for Educational Development. The United Nations Children’s Fund has a mission focused on children’s rights across the globe as well as responding to children and families under distress with humanitarian action. As I reviewed some of the sections of the organization I notice an article discussing a mother and two children (under five years of age) from the Ukraine displaced from the countries war fight against Russia.  To read how the mother struggles to pay for her apartment food and diapers for her children sat with me. As a result I found this organization to support her with a toolkit for children which consists of diapers, diaper cream and napkins.  I was thankful the organization provided her with support. I looked into some of the job opportunities under their humanitarian action and found a humanitarian relief station located in New York. I would choose to be a part of this organization by helping out with putting these and other humanitarian kits together. I was unable to pinpoint skills as I imagine having the desire to aid children and families and abide by their mission to fight for children’s rights is a start.

 The United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization caught my attention next as they have several objectives including fostering diversity and “encompassing observance of human rights, mutual respect and the alleviation of poverty” (United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization Who We Are para 1) I found their mission to support peace follows alongside of what I envision early childhood educators instilling in children not just for military families. For example children are guided with opportunities to manage emotional development and result to expressing their feelings through words instead of hitting or kicking. I realized a bit of sadness when children have to learn about peace and war as it seems this topic is unavoidable. I was pleased to see the many different opportunities to join their organization based on the level of education an individual has such as an intern, consultant, general service member, young professional or professional. I would choose to occupy the temporary consultant or consultant team so I could advocate for children and families.

The Academy for Educational Development strives to improve lives of the community and advocate for children by valuing the challenges with human development. I enjoyed reading there vision because like early childhood education they envision communities working to perform tasks at full or high potential. I just imagine communities throughout the world supporting each other in ways that build international relationships, knowledge and partnerships. Like The United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization they too offer consultant, small business and internship job opportunities.   

Links

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

United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2011). Retrieved fromhttp://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/about-us/who-we-are/introducing-unesco/

Academy for Educational Development. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.aed.org/en/index.htm

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level (Ms. Jay)

I started searching for jobs related to the field of early childhood education and the military child and family community and discovered several organizations that appealed to me. The top three are the Airman and Family Readinesss Program Manager, Child and Youth Program Director and The Military Family Life Consultants.

The first organization is considering being a part of the Airman and Family Readiness Team. According to the USA job site the Airman and Family Readiness program manager will have some of the following duties to include “providing plans for an efficient resource management program and provide maximum support of service delivery…to identify family issues that require exploration, development, and resolutions, determines appropriate methods and resources” (“USA Jobs Search jobs Airman and Family Readiness Program Manager n.d. 2015”) Some of the job opportunities currently available in this profession are located in the state of Illinois and Tennessee. I became very interested in this organization because I’m interested to know how military families are receiving support for their needs and how military members who separate or retire from the military receive supports as well. Some of the skills needed to perform this duty have 3 optional requirements to include one year experience performing previous duties, a degree leading to a PhD and several management, counseling advising and developing newsletters. I had the pleasure of speaking to one of the Airman and Family Program Managers at my current location and she provided guidance as to what her job encompasses but to remember that “each military family has a different need of a support system” (D. Rampolla 2015) and it is her job to provide resources to receive support. I liked the fact her job is flexible and impacts the lives of military families by providing information on different types of support resources. It seems she tries to and leads military members and their families in the right direction and sparked an interest to be a part of the Airman and Family Readiness Team.

The next job of interest includes a child and or youth program director for the military installation. This job description is also found on the same job site as the Airman and Family Readiness Program Manager Position. Some of the skills and experience needed to qualify for this position include a bachelor’s degree in child development, early childhood education, elementary or special education, at least 24 months of experience managing a child or youth facility. Currently these positions are available on military installations located in Germany, United Kingdom, Virginia and Japan. As I spoke to other directors within the child development community across the United States some have held these positions overseas and enjoy the travel, exposure to different cultures and the experience.

 

Lastly the Military Family Life Consultants are licensed Health Professionals The responsibility of the Military Family Life Consultants are providing child and youth behavioral counseling to children of service members located on military installations. They provide a variety of counseling to include, non-medical, training/health and wellness, consultation with parents, child and youth center, school providers as well as behavioral health issues affecting children and youth. Some of the skill requirements: a minimum of a master’s degree in clinical experience as well as a license in professional counseling. I had the pleasure of speaking to the current military and family life consultant on the military installation located in Nevada and she says some background experience with the military culture is highly recommended but not required to hold these positions. Currently jobs are available in Georgia, Virginia, Texas, California, Minnesota and Washington DC and several others across the United States. I became interested in these Military Family Life Consultants or (MFLC)because of their commitment to serve military families and upholding to confidentiality and the determination to meet the needs of the children and family. My first experience with a Military Family Life Consultant happened when I was preparing to enter military service. The Military Family Life Consultant was very helpful in providing me the right tools to succeed as I had text anxiety. Further into my experience as a Training and Curriculum Specialist at the Child Development Center on the military installation I witness the MFLC providing information to child care providers on a particular child diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and strategies on helping young her with behavior. I was amazed at how much her willingness to care for children and encourage military families with separation and employment helped the reputation of the Child Development Program.  

 

Job Links

Airman and Family Readiness Program Manager

https://www.usajobs.gov/Search?Keyword=Airman+and+Family+Readiness+Program+manager&Location=&homeRadStatus=all&search=Search&AutoCompleteSelected=False

Child and Youth Program Director

https://www.usajobs.gov/Search?keyword=Child+and+Youth+Program+Director&Location=&AutoCompleteSelected=&search=Search

 

Military Family Life Consultant Through Magellan Health (Contracts)

http://www.magellanhealth.com/our-solutions/magellan-healthcare/federal-and-military-programs/our-military-program-experience.aspx

https://magellanhealth.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/magellan_health_careers/jobs

ECE Community: State and Local Levels (Ms. Jay)

Majority of child and youth programs set to partner with children of military families are (listed as located in Nevada): Nevada Army National Guard and Reserve, Boys & Girls Club, State of Nevada Education Department, American Legion, and Nevada National Guard Family Programs Office, National 4-H Headquarters

  The Boys and Girls club of America, Youth programs for the state and National Guard, and Nevada Registry. First the Boys and Girls Club of America has a mission “To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.” (bgca.org) and I’ve seen a majority of celebrates succeed from this program. Providing children opportunity to get involved within the community, a chance to give as well as learn other skills other than academics that can help their play and recreation skills. Many of the jobs offered begin from recreational assistant up to program director. The degree of skills needed to fulfill these rolls varies. I have had the pleasure of working on a military installation as a program assistant first before moving up to a trainer for the child development section. Boys and Girls clubs are often found across the nation however, to apply to these jobs the options are to view them online on their website or apply on a different website for working with children of military families on the military installation. Working as a program assistant for the boys and girls club of America sparks my interest because these are one of the programs that I know local communities support with donations for games, youth sports, equipment, uniforms and community service.

The next local community program I notice in the state of Wyoming where I currently working for military training is the National Guard Youth Programs along with National Guard Youth Challenge. The mission is geared towards “the growing dropout crisis and its impact on our nation's youth, economy and national security. We assist adolescents who drop out of school with the opportunity to improve their life skills, education and employability, creating the next generation skilled workforce in America. Our efforts are directed primarily toward developing, supporting and enhancing the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program.” (www.ngyf.org) You may also get involved as a volunteer. I see this as another interest because I was unaware this program was set to help children continue their education. Currently in Nevada, the state I reside in the school district is rated at the bottom of the top education list because of high school students dropping out. I see this program benefiting the community by encouraging young high school students to stay in school and get an education.

Lastly Operation Military Kids is set to focus on “focuses on those young people whose parents are in National Guard or Reserve units being called up in increasing numbers for extended assignments in support of the global war on terrorism. While these youth do not necessarily relocate, their lives are changed dramatically when a parent suddenly leaves the family through being mobilized or deployed for potentially dangerous assignments.” (https://www.unce.unr.edu) I believe these jobs are volunteer, however I see the importance of contacting their representatives on finding out more information to get involved. I believe the only skill you need to have to volunteer is the desire to help the military community and reaching out to support military families.

 

 Reference Links

http://www.bgca.org/meetourpartners/Pages/MilitaryPartnership.aspx

http://www.ngyf.org/about-the-foundation.html

https://www.unce.unr.edu/counties/churchill/programs/index.asp?ID=74

http://www.operationmilitarykids.org/public/home.aspx

Ms Jay's Test (To reactivate blog)

Good Evening,

This is just a test to reactivate my blog. I welcome leadership and colleagues striving to complete this course with hopes of continuing our education and striving with our fuel of passion for the early childhood field. I wish everyone the best.

Ms. Jay

Adjourning Groups (Flight 520)

 

 

Thinking back on the stages of building a team presented by Abudi, G. (2010) and recalling some of the groups I’ve participated in the most meaningful group that made for the hardest good-bye was graduating from the United States Air Force Basic Training flight: Flight 520

These were the women that began their military career with me, starting within the first stage of forming (transitioning from civilian over the course of 8 weeks)

If you want to see a taste of what I experienced click the link below and watch each week unfold

http://www.airforce.com/joining-the-air-force/basic-military-training/

 and then storming (conflicting with each other, finding our roles) Norming and Performing (working together learning the basic military routine over the course of the weeks plus establishing ourselves as one flight. Then as soon as we “came together” and realized how important the Air Force Core Values meant not only to an individual but as a military branch it was time to pack up all of our belongings and depart. This group was the hardest to leave because over the past 8 weeks of difficult training. Living in one dorm room together, establishing ourselves as a family flight (away from our families with our only contact being writing letters) We pulled through together,  motivated each other, cried and laughed together. I know that each Airmen went their separate ways to continue on to train at other bases within their specific jobs but our overall mission is clear. We built relationships with each other and some Airmen I still keep in touch with. I was able to experience some basic military rituals (that Airmen in the past have also experienced) including my husband and my dad. And when I returned home from basic I was able to share my experience, and listen to my husband and dad share their experiences with me. (Very meaningful) I believe the way that I will adjourn from my colleagues I formed while working on my degree in this program will be sad but alright ( I think because I left and came back and need to form new relationships with my colleagues) I believe adjourning is an essential stage of teamwork because learning how to work within different groups provides great knowledge especially as professionals we can reflect, change, and master the ways we effect our working groups. I feel that adjourning is similar to moving through chapters in a storybook reading and learning through (the beginning, the middle, and end)

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

Pictures by United States Air Force Basic Training Year Book (August 2013)

And  http://www.airforce.com/

Housing Conflict

I can recall a recent disagreement I discussed with my husband a few weeks ago.  Earlier this year as a family we considered selling our house in North Dakota and moving back to my hometown of Las Vegas NV (a lot warmer and closer to family). We are now in a spacious townhome/complex but the cost of rent and utilities is overwhelming. For about 6 months our family has been searching for a spacious house to buy and invest in. We decided to look at a house about 50 minutes’ drive in a small town outside of Las Vegas. And another house considerably farther than the first, as we looked at the first house it was a 3 bedroom 1 bath house built in 1988 with a good amount of property for a great price. I was not really excited about the house because for a household of 5 I felt the square footage was a little tight. Plus the house needed a lot of landscaping work and we would have to add renovate the house a bit to include another bedroom and bathroom the next house that was farther was built in 2005 was a 4 bedroom 2 bath house the square footage was awesome but didn’t have enough property for what my husband wants to do with the house. I really wanted the house with the 4 bed room 2 bath house and it was nicer and newer. My husband wanted the cheaper house with quite a bit of property. I found out that the newer house already had 4 bids and we would have to really compromise to get the house but the smaller house left more room in the budget to build.

As you can guess it was the house that I liked vs. the house my husband liked. I asked the realtor if she had any more houses we could look at and she said the market is a little dry. My husband got into an argument because he felt I really didn’t like any of the houses we previously looked at (cheaper and needed work!) vs. (higher end of our budget and little to no work)

(Which one would you choose?) Needless to say my husband really didn’t want to talk to me because he felt I was being snobbish. Considering what I’ve been learning in this class the strategy I took to let my husband know I was listening to him and considering his feelings was compromise and the productive conflict. I encouraged us to put an offer on both houses (a leap of faith that we will receive the house right for our family and the right budget) and see which house will accept our offer. I also explained to my husband that if we got the cheaper house with a lot of property the first thing we will do is get with a contractor right away to expand a bedroom to a master bed and bath. (Sharing a bathroom with 5 people is difficult) and the end result of our compromise is that we may be moving into the cheaper house with quite a bit of property. We have not heard anything yet but probably this week.

I decided to side with my husband (and to make him happy) to pick the house that I didn’t really like. I’m trying my best to focus on what I want done to the house (if we get it) and pick out designs. It’s difficult for me to put my wants aside and accept the needs of the other person. I thought to myself “he always does things to make me happy” and it seems I hardly do things that “make him happy” so we will see. I’m hoping for the best. I remember by O'Hair, D., dO'- Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012) that “productive conflict does not necessarily mean a successful resolution of conflict” (O'- Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. 2012 p.221)

Reference

O'- Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real communication. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

Communication Assessment

As I look at the similarities and differences between how I evaluated myself as a communicator and how others (My Husband) and (My father-in-law) evaluated me I was somewhat discouraged at the way my “Verbal Aggressiveness Scale” Point score. I thought I was in the Low level stage as trying to remain respectful of others and viewpoints but my score showed to be in the high level which leads me to believe that I often “attack” and “ridicule” others and not consider their viewpoints. I may think to attack and ridicule viewpoints but to be honest I try and remain considerate and not actually be verbally aggressive unless I’m upset and find myself in a disagreement with someone (most likely my husband) or my 6 year old daughter (that sometimes has a hard time listening and wants to make her own decisions when I tell her to do something). As far as my communication anxiety score I scored myself higher than my communicators. I see myself as having a moderate level of communicating anxiety and take precautions when speaking with people whereas my communicators both placed me in the Mild level of anxiety which shows that I’m a confident communicator.  The one thing that surprised me the most is the fact that my listening style profile group remained the same. All in the level of group one. It’s nice to see that they believe I’m a people oriented person and often build relationships with others. I do agree with the description about remaining very trusting of other people and this could be a slight downfall, which is one of the insights I gained from this assessment. I believe that I trust others as I would want them to trust me and if I don’t receive the same amount of trust back or find myself in a situation of mistrust. I become less of a communicator. I would like to share my blog with a few of my colleagues and ask that you post comments of your thoughts I greatly appreciate them. Thanks!

 

Cultural Diversity And Communication

As I consider the many traits of culture surrounding me around my family, church/family friends and co-workers both civilian and military I honestly find myself communicating slightly different. I have a diverse background of cultures of African American and Pilipino. My husband is Native American, and my Brother and Sister in law are Caucasian and Vietnamese.  My co-workers are from different parts of the world including Japan, Argentina, Philippines, Korea, Mexico and some of my friends include people from Jamaica.  I communicate differently based on the comfort level and the environmental setting I come in contact with. (Those that are a part of my communication circle) For example, the way I communicate with a Captain (military personnel that holds the position of a leader) at work while wearing the uniform will be slightly different if I were to have lunch with her in civilian clothing at a public restaurant. Also another example would be talking to my (Baptist) church family. When I great my pastor and discuss issues and questions that are happening within my life the answer most likely involves prayer and faith even though in theory sometimes I think the pastor has “all the answers” I have to word things differently to make sure I’m being respectful towards the pastor as well as the situation. Subconsciously I know I’m unable to just bluntly say what I want to a pastor. As work around many different cultures at work I come into contact with several people that have different religious cultural backgrounds as well as talking different languages to one another. I speak with them respectfully but also am mindful about their background so I’m not offensive. For example a few weeks ago I spoke with a co-worker from Argentina who expressed her concern about her daughter dating someone outside of her religion (catholic). She asked me what this particular belief meant and I was completely honest with her and told her I wasn’t sure but to do some research on her computer. Based on what she found she disagreed with her daughter’s boyfriend’s belief. We had a discussion on different beliefs and I told her “Well, you are the mom and if you do not agree with your daughter’s boyfriend’s belief then you should speak to her.” I felt she was venting to me as well as asking me “why this and why that? And this is what I believe and this is what his belief should be” I continued to be respectful as possible trying not to impose on her daughter’s choice of a boyfriend but I kept on letting her know to talk to her daughter if she was uncomfortable with it.

            From what I learned this week about communication the three strategies I would like to use is to be an effective communicator is to first be a little more understanding of each person’s communication context whether it be (background, gender, beliefs and age). Next strategy is to not only gain more knowledge of the people I’m communicating with but be mindful of verbal as well as non-verbal cues people display as they communicate with me. And the last strategy I want to work on to be an effective communicator is to be an active listener. I believe the hardest part of my communication is being an effective listener. I will be honest and say a great majority of the time I speak to other people I’m a bit selfish about the other person giving them their full blown attention to me and listening to my issues rather than me listening to them and helping them with their situations too.

FAMILY COMMUNICATION

For this particular assignment I chose to watch a show that I’ve never seen before it is called “BLUE BLOODS” my husband apparently records this show and enjoys watching each episode. He told me that this is a drama show about the New York Police Department and a majority of the New York Police officers are siblings and the Chief of Police is literally the biological father. He told me it is a key component to the story.

            Based on the way the characters in the story were communicating as (I watched the story in silence)

I felt each person in the story were friends. I saw mutual communication happening in the story. I assumed each character had a mutual relationship. I only saw towards the end of the episode a male and female share a hug and kissing each other. I thought maybe a few characters that were in the story were not in a relationship and were angry with each other. It seemed as if they were arguing because their mouths were wide open as they talked. And there eyebrows were down and scrunched up. I saw a few males quickly walk into a room and storm out. I also saw several characters take a deep breath after talking with one another.

 I made a few assumptions while watching the episode in silence. I assumed there was a relationship between this woman and man because this woman kept talking to this man who was sitting in an office chair and that maybe they had a relationship and now going through a divorce I felt she might have been an ex-wife because there was another gentleman in the room with glasses that I assumed to be a lawyer.

The next assumption was of a man and woman working with each other as friends but it seemed the man wanted to date this woman (police officer) because he smiled each time he spoke to her and she smiled talking to him also. Later in the episode they met each other at a bar

The last assumption was a relationship between a different man and woman because the man ended up saving her at the end because the suspect held up a hostage situation in the courtroom and by the look on his face getting down on his knees looking and pleading to the suspect to let her go was heartfelt.

Now watching the episode with sound

            Each of my assumptions was stomped as I watched the episode with sound. With the first assumption of the man sitting in the office chair having a relationship with the woman standing at the office door and the man with glasses being a lawyer was almost right. The man with glasses was a lawyer but not a divorce lawyer he was a representative of discussing information between the NYPD and the media. The woman at the door was his office assistant just giving her opinion on the situation.

The second assumption about the man wanting to date the police woman was correct. I however saw that the relationship will stay mutual because the man and woman are “partners in the police force” and they didn’t express any physical affection towards each other.

And the last assumption about the man having feelings for the woman being held hostage by the suspect was stomped because they were not husband and wife they were brother and sister. The man pleaded for the suspect to let her go because they were family. That moment surprised me and I should have took into consideration what my husband said at the beginning that the man sitting in the office chair is the chief of police. I thought only his sons were part of the police department. Not knowing that his daughter was also a lawyer working in the city.

            Overall I believe my assumptions would have been more correct if I had been watching and learning about the show well. I learned communication between people is difficult to read especially when the relationship between each character is not known. It helps me to believe when working with children and families the importance of building not only personal relationships with the children and each child but meaningful relationships in which to understand each child and families situation a little better. This way early childhood professionals are displaying concern and flexibility to meet the need of the family.

Displays of Great Communication

 

The first person I think about when it comes to displaying great communication is my good friend and co-worker. (I will call her Toni) When I first met Toni I just got hired onto the before and after school program as an assistant. Toni immediately displayed many characteristics of an active person. She was always smiling and having friendly conversations with children and their families. I also observed her personal interactions with children and saw how every child that attended the program responded with an excitement to see Ms. Toni as she walked into the room. I was drawn to her immediately and subconsciously followed her throughout the program. I liked how excited her facial expressions were when a child would come up to her to show her a project they completed. What really caught my attention is how silly she would be with the children and how easily she handled defiant and sometimes difficult children. A few days later I discovered that Toni is a military wife, mother and owned a home business. I also found out that she had been working at the program as well as having a second job at the school as a recess monitor off and on for 5 years. She then welcomed me into her home and I met her two beautiful girls and husband. I saw her prepare dinner for her family and then jump on the computer to maintain her home business. Toni then invited me to watch her host and set up a booth at an event to support military spouses. I watched her invite clients with her friendly character, eye contact and subtle promoting ability. She was always available when customers needed her and I even accompanied her when she would personally deliver her product to customers. I found all her positive characteristics as an effective tool (In my opinion everything she did to help children and families either at home, school and personal life had a personal meaning) I saw quality with her relationships and I thought to myself “WOW” how does she do it? To make a long story short throughout the time I spent working with her and getting to be close friends. I felt Toni set a high standard for multitasking women and encouraged me to model some of her behaviors and communication skills. I admit when Toni moved to a different location I tried following a bit in her footsteps and they were BIG shoes to fill. I filled some areas but not others.  

One Hope When Considering Children and Families (By Ms. Jay)

Throughout this course I believe I learned several perspectives on diversity equity and social justice. When I start to consider early childhood education, the community, children and families I hope and envision a world not only accepting differences between people and children but also recognizing the fact that discrimination, prejudices and other forms of micro-aggressions exist.  I hope that as an educational professional I can begin to teach (or advocate) for social justice not just inside the classroom but also with co-workers and people I interact with daily (in the community.) I know I may not have all the answers but I most certainly will continue to learn and be excited about diversity, different cultures and reflect on my progress in order to improve personally and professionally. The number one goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity and social justice is to see the field change for good. And by change I mean change perspectives, change attitudes, change teaching methods, change activities, change professionally, change personally, in order to celebrate diversity, equity until finally eliminating discrimination and any form of micro-aggressions happening around the world. So that our children, the next generation can live, learn, work and play peacefully.  I know this goal can take many years to accomplish, but I believe we can do it!

I want to take some time out to say thank you! To all my colleagues that participated in sharing their comments, insights, and personal stories with me including blog and discussion posts. I greatly appreciate them and they helped me personally and professionally. To professor Ferrari, Thank you for all the hard work (with comments towards course work) in helping my understandings throughout this class. I wish all my colleagues the best as we continue our educational journey.

A warm welcome to a child and family from Turkey (Ms. Jay)

As a caregiver working at a child development center I imagine having the responsibility (and being the point of contact) of preparing to welcome a new child and family from Turkey into an early childhood development center. With first, having feelings of nervousness and excitement at the same time. The best way I would prepare for this family (and considering what I learned from this course) involves creating a “Supporting Families Checklist” and on the other hand a personal culturally responsive checklist.”

(Please read through my checklist and share some of your thoughts.)

Key Ways	Supporting Families Checklist (How am I Supporting Immigrant Families?)	Personally Culturally Responsive (How am I being culturally responsive?)
1)      Research	Considering proper greetings as a way of establishing respect	Familiarize myself with the culture and language of Turkey
2)      Learn	Learning some familiar or basic Turkish Language is a way of establishing common communication supporting both parties whether in a form of letters (in writing) or a translator  One example maybe a translated packet on the parents sharing the child and family “likes” and “dislikes” traditions, values, beliefs etc.	As I learn the language and establish a common form of communication between myself, the child and family members in the form of having a program translator, (translated documents)in a form of writing or  translating coming directly from the child I’m attempting to bring a warm and welcoming environment for both the child as well as the parent/guardian.
3)      Consider	The history of immigrant families and views of other professionals to provide families to adjust to new culture	As I consider by Derman-Sparks,L.,& Edwards, J.O. (2010) "the history of immigrant families and the views of others as well as challenges with other professionals, I can understand the views of immigrant families and provide “enough time for children and families to adjust to unfamiliar cultures and lifestyles” (p.74) as well as my personal adjustment to the child and program structure
4)      Apply	By applying these (Key Ways) within the program I support the family with hopes of maintaining respect and common courtesy within both cultures.	By applying each (key ways) method within the program and socially interacting with the child and family maintaining a positive relationship.
5)      Evaluate	By consistently responding to the child and family along with communication and observation I can support the family by asking them to share their concerns/goals for their child attending the program. Then consider their views and also evaluate/ alter activities so the needs of the child/family are met.	By constantly asking for feedback from the family, I’m able to evaluate my progress as a caregiver and keep record of the events and share my experience with other professionals.

(Overall I struggled with this post because I felt many of the key ways to support immigrant families blended together.)

   The three ways I hoped my methods benefited the family from Turkey was that our porgram established a warm, welcome, safe and comfortable environment for the child.  That the interactions between the caregivers, other staff members and the family were positive. And I hoped the family felt that our program helped them gain as well as built trust, and mutual respect for both parties. I also hoped the program supported their needs in regards to feeling their cultural values, beliefs etc. were important and valued despite differences.

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National  Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Having to Witness Personal Biases (Ms. Jay)

I remember watching several films about diverse people and many aspects of “Living-isms” Such as Racism, sexism and classism. Some films with stereotypes were made to make people laugh (commedians) and others to grasp different perspectives of diverse people with life changing events involving interracial relationships, and relationships between men and women in general. Each film helped me realize stereotypes exist in society and how people react to them. However, one film that touched me recently was called “Skin”

 

 This story is about a young girl growing up with white parents. I didn't read the synopsis of the story I just put the movie on and watched it. When I saw the child, my first thought was ok, not a problem she was adopted but I was mistaken. Sandra (the young girl) was born with a slightly darker skin color than her parents.  On the outside of her identity society classified her as a “black child” The film shows her struggling with her identity and where she fits in society. I will include video of the movie trailer because it explains her life story better.

Please watch the trailer

Surprisingly The film was also based on a true story. Towards the end of the movie there are clips of the real Sandra. (I will not spoil the film for anyone who has not seen it)

 After watching the film ( contributing to this assignment) I believe it diminishes equity because people were not accepting of the fact that the child belonged and was born into a family. Society was looking at skin color instead of the child and considering the child's emotions and responses to society. Throughout the film I felt emotions of pain for her and relating to some similar experiences she had for example people staring at her because she looked different and feeling awkward ( of not knowing how to respond) to different situations.

 I believe watching the film will help professionals and adults and parents realize “some of the experiences children have growing up.”  I want to envision ( As I learned through this film about racism stereotypes) turning future learning opportunities with children of diverse backgrounds and families as equals as much as possible. Bringing  a sense that we are all human beings first. ( Men and women) (children are all children first)  and the thought of respecting differences is key for a better society. I keep in mind children learn about their identity and about society really early in life.

I recommend this movie (If you have time to watch it) to any adult, colleague looking for better understanding of racism and microagression, Although the rating is PG-13 I strongly suggest to stick to the rating as far as ages of children and encouraging parents to watch the movie along with their teens and discuss situations. Below is a link to another video of a short behind the scenes look at the actors discussing the concept of the movie.

Reference/link

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0964586/