Communities of Practice and Career Options

In the field of early childhood education it is essential for both educators and organizations to combine resources in order to best meet the needs of the young children and families we serve. There are several organizations that provide supports and community resources for teachers, these include:

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) as well as its local affiliates. NAEYC provides educators with tools, resources, and local forums or communities to discuss, share and exchange ideas and challenges professionals in the field are experiencing. Through online forums, monthly publications, and conferences members of this community of practice can come together to learn from each other and contribute to the overall well-being of the profession.

The Lucile Packard Foundation has support community collaboration efforts called the 5 C's or the California Community Care Coordination Collaboration. The Lucile Packard Foundation is a charitable organization that has provided grants to communities to set up these collaborative communities to support children in California that have a special healthcare need. Bringing together the different stakeholders to better improve services and communication and interaction among agencies that serve  children and families with special medical needs.

In California preschool teachers have many opportunities for supporting their professional development the California Preschool Instructional Network (CPIN), is one such organization. CPIN provides free professional development workshops across the state, as well as valuable resources on their website. The site also has a discussion forum where early childhood educators can share ideas and ask for assistance from one another.

Within the field of early childhood education there are several career paths that I can take, while I would not dream of leaving my current position, I would enjoy adding to my CV by becoming an adjunct faculty member at the local community college. This position requires a Master’s degree in Child development/early childhood education, human development, home economics/family and consumer studies with a specialization in child development/early childhood education, or educational psychology with a specialization in child development/early childhood education, and The ability to demonstrate clear evidence of a sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, and ethnic backgrounds of community college students.

Long Term Planning

I have become accustomed to receiving phone calls from parents of three and four-year-old children that have been asked to leave a preschool program for challenging or aggressive behaviors. This week though my heart broke when I received a call from a parent of a two-year old that was unsure what to do, because his child was asked to leave a program because she had a speech and language delay. The parent felt the preschool program only wanted perfect children, and no parent or child can live up to unrealistic and developmentally inappropriate expectations. 

This has led me to really look at providing comprehensive services to children, families, and teachers outside of my own program to support children in their current placements.  

Adourning

There are five stages of team development; forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. Each of these as value to the process of becoming a successful team, this includes adjourning. As I first read about these I did not understand that the the fifth stage adjourning was just as vital as the others.

Once a project/assignment etc. is complete you have to move on to the next one, taking what you learned  from the previous team experience and using it to improve your communication and participation in the next team,

This week I completed a month long commitment as a juror on a civil trial, This was a team and we did go through the five stages of building an effective team, but is was as the judge read our decision and said court is adjourned that I looked around at my fellow jurors and realized that I had learned from the other jurors and gained a lot from the experience I dreaded at first. I celebrated the end of a successful trial with several my fellow jurors after we left the courthouse that day. When I left them that night I though about adjourning and what it actually means. It means to break off, with the intention of resuming later. Teams are adjourned and while they may not have the same make-up when they come back together for a new project there will will always be a new project. I will use the problem solving strategies skills I learned from a few of my fellow jurors as I return to my team at work and begin new projects.

Adjourning does not need to be the end.

Non-Violent Communication

Disagreements and conflicts are a common occurrence in families. How we react and respond to these disagreements or conflicts that affect our relationships with that person and how we will respond to similar conflicts with others. I am learning about non-violent communication which uses the belief that we are all born as compassionate beings and aggression and violence are taught and supported by our culture views and influences.

In reading this week I though about a disagreement that my daughter and I had recently. It was a simple issue that escalated because neither of us were looking at the situation objectively. We both had judged the situation, and allowed our feelings to cloud our interpretation of what was actually occurring. As our conflict continued neither of us could hear what the other was saying or needed.

The minor disagreement could have be quickly resolved if I had looked at what was going on without placing a judgement on her actions, and then asked her what  her she needed and worked with her to meet  her needs. Asking her for her needs at that moment would allow me to compromise with her so that my needs and her needs would have been met.

The other thing that would have diffused the situation was if I had maintained respectful interactions in my body language and words. As her parent I have given her the tools of communication and conflict resolution, I need to change how I interact with her to change our relationship to create on that has respectful and responsive interactions.

My daughter and I have since been able to talk about what happened between us that day and how we both could have handled the situation in a more effective way that would have allowed up both to be gratified and satisfied with the outcome

My Communication Style

I get nervous before speaking before a small of large group, I do not see myself as a confident speaker. As I get ready for a presentation large or small I begin to feel my heart race, my palms get sweaty and my mouth becomes dry. This week I evaluated myself in terms of my communication ability, then had others answer the same questions about how they saw my confidence level. I was really surprised by the difference in the results. Those who I asked saw me as more confident then I saw myself. After the questions were answered, one person asked me how I felt I was. I described how I felt before giving a simple department report and the person who was giving me feedback was really surprised by how nervous I feel inside, because it doesn't show outside.
Over the next few weeks I will be presenting at a few different workshops and to help keep my nerves down I practice and practice. The better I know the material the more relaxed I am on the outside, but I am still nervous on the inside.

The second survey I took and had others evaluate me on was on verbal-aggressiveness in my communication.These were fairly consistent between all three survey's I show a moderate level of aggressiveness when communicating with others, More so on a personal level, then a professional level. Knowing this will allow me to develop my communication skills when I am feeling attacked and not respond on the defensive.

Communication in Different Settings

In each realm of my life I have different personas and in each persona I have a different communication style. People often ask if I alter my communication style depending on culture, and I don't think that I do. I do however alter my communication style to my audience. So at work I speak more formally and in a professional manner. My conversations are often surrounding the field of child development. At home I speak to my family less formally and have more causal conversations. I have an intimate knowledge of my family and this allows a more relaxed communication style. When out in my community I have a balance of the two styles, I am more reserved then I am with my family, but more relaxed then I am at work. I think that the key is knowing who my audience is and tailoring my conversation and communication style to the person or group I am speaking to helps me be a more effective communicator.

In order to communicating effectively it is important to remember:
1. Know your audience: It is important to know who you are speaking to and adjust your communication style to the group to ensure that the information you are sharing is passed on effectively.
2. Ask questions: This is important to knowing your audience and to make sure that you are being understood and to determine if any other changes need to be made.
3. Be clear and concise: It is important to not add too much flowery language that can confuse the listener (or reader), and to make sure your message is fully understood.

Non Verbal Communication

Have you ever watched a television show without the sound on? If you have seen the show and know the characters you may be able to tell what they are feeling and the relationships based on their non-verbal communication styles, but what if you have never seen the television show, do you think you could accurately describe their relationships and what they are feeling without hearing the conversation?

I did that this week, I watched a show I have never even heard of before first without sound and then with sound. The center of the show was a young reporter, there was one scene when where she went into a coffee shop saw the line and went behind the counter and poured her own coffee. She was approached by someone who appeared to work there and it looked like she was upset that the main character had gone behind the counter. The to go the facial expressions and body language seemed that she was saying she had the right to go back there because she needed coffee. The two laughed and then it was clear that they were friends.

Watching with sound, I could tell that they knew each other right away and the bantering was not out of anger, but had a more friendly tone, this was not what their body language and facial expressions were saying.

Not knowing or hearing what the characters were, even when the sound was there the facial expressions and body language were not always conveying the same message. It is important to make sure that our non-verbal communication is sending the same message as our verbal communication.

Communication Skills

Communication is a key aspect of our daily lives and interactions with others, in my immediate circle of people there are several people that I would consider effective and competent communicators both at work ant at home. One of these people is my direct supervisor, he is always clear in his  communication, with everyone he comes in contact with. He is always honest and shares information that is necessary to be effective in my work. When he is speaking he is at ease, and provides an atmosphere of collaboration and free expression of ideas  and perspectives without fear of reproach. All of these things I admire in him, but what I like most his is courage to express himself and share his beliefs and convictions with others. I sometimes struggle with expressing my ideals and convictions to other and shy away from communicating my personal beliefs. This is one area that I would like to grow and become more like him.

Discrimination in the media

Last weekend my sisters and I watched a few movies and as I watched them I was struck by the discrimination that I saw in both movies. The first movie we watched was Mc Farland USA, in this movies there were several incidents of racial bias, stereotyping, and discrimination. As I watched this was struck by the strength in the children in the movie, and of my own children who are half-Mexican and have at times have faced discrimination or been stereotyped based on their ethnicity.

My daughters were on my  mind in the second movie The Duff, in this movie the comments and gender stereotypes that were the basis of this movie. As I watched this movie I felt disgusted about how the guys and girls treated each other, and everything was based on the way the girls look and that their looks were tied to their value and self-worth.

The media portrayal of race, ethnicity, and gender perpetuates the message that thin-beautiful white people and traits that are valued. I see how many young people buy into these beliefs and how much damage they do the younger generation. In order to begin to change the mindset of youth, we need to change the messages we are sending them through the media and our own interactions with each other.

Micro-aggressions

This week I was talking to a co-worker about my mom, who we are looking to move into an assisted living senior building or other such facility. The person I was talking to is of another ethnic group. As we talked about my mom the second I mentioned an assisted living or senior  home her body language shifted slightly and she said "Are you sure you want do do that, My mom would come live with me if she couldn't be on her own anymore". I felt that she was judging me and something was wrong with my family because none of my siblings are offering to take her in and care for her.

Since reading this week about micro-aggressions and biases, I felt more comfortable about telling her that I understood that different families have different cultural values and believes on to best support aging parents, and what is right for my mom, may not be right for hers or for my in-laws.  Since studying Micro-aggressions I have been much more aware of how I treat others and take an additional second before I say something that might be judgemental or biased against someone.

Discussion about Culture

This week  I attended a diversity training and had a great conversation about culture and diversity with several of my colleagues. For many culture was described as the aspects of their personalities that make them unique. There was a general consensus that culture goes beyond race and ethnicity,  and can be described as the customs and values that unite a group of individuals.

Some of the aspects that were discussed as part of culture were religion, family values, respect for elders, views on parenting, education, the way we dress, food preferences, and political affiliations. Then we looked at the iceberg model of culture.

This led to more discussion of culture, and how some did not realize how we look at and view individuals with special needs. One person shared how he was always told that he needed to be tough and not to cry when he was hurt. He said that this was how it was for all of the boys in his family. He struggled when he had his son and wanted him to be sensitive and be able to express emotion, but felt pressure from his family to not caudal him and "make him tough".

As I listens to the discussion, I though about how my value system is shaped by culture. This includes how I approach problems and thoughts on illness. As an early childhood educator it is important to understand how families view illness.  For some families there is the belief that being cold can cause illness and bundle their children up. It is important to respect the differences of all families and in order to do that we need to understand our cultural beliefs and biases.

Family Culture

In the field of Early Childhood Education we are often asked to examine our family cultural views are the importance of cultural items. This week as I look at cultural and diversity I was asked if I needed to be evacuated to a foreign county what three small items would I take and why. This was hard for me to answer, because I don't feel that I have any tangible items that are of cultural significance to me. There are several things that are of sentimental value to me and my family, including pictures, but don't carry any cultural value to me, My culture is ingrained in me, it cannot be reduced to trinkets or items. It is who I am to my core, my attitude, ideals, and views on life, politics, parenting etc. These traits I would carry with me wherever I go. If I had to pick one tangible  item I guess it would be my wedding ring, I would take this because it is a part of my social identity and a way to hold my family close to me.

When I think of research...

Over the last several years there has been a growing understanding for the need quality research to benefit the field of early childhood education. There has been much political discussion on the importance of the high quality early childhood education, not only to support school readiness but also to support the future of our society. As I embarked on research I felt that only those advancing the field and work research universities in the field. As I read literature on my issue, I saw the importance of including professionals at every level in the process. Classroom teachers need to understand their role in classroom research, and that they are researchers investigating and discovering what the children in their care are showing them and each day. 

In planning research it is important to look at all of the factors and implications of the research topic. I learned that all research has intended and unintended consequences, and all of these need to be considered. As I looked at the why and how of working with children that have challenging behaviors I needed to look at several factors and take several things into consideration. This caused some challenges and I needed to continually examine my own beliefs and value systems to avoid bias in the process of design my study.

This has been a great process and has allowed me to grow in my own competency level in the field. I learned that every person in the field needs to be an active participant in advancing quality through research.

International Early Childhood Research

Around the world the field of early childhood education is booming with research about supporting the physical, emotional, and social development of young children. This week I spent time reading some of the research projects that were done by graduate students at the Early Childhood Development Virtual College in Sub- Saharan Africa. Many of these research studies were about parent education, engagement, and collaboration. These studies were conducted in different African countries, but all researchers understood the importance of the family in early childhood development.

As I explored the research papers and the ecdvu.org website I found that the trend was community building and working with the families, this is not only important internationally or in developing nations, but something that we need to spend more time researching how to support children and families in our own communities.

On the ecdvu.org website there are country profiles for the students who were part of the first Master’s program. I strongly recommend that when there is extra time in your day that you read some of the research as well as the country profiles.

Focused Research

This week I was asked to imagine that I had unlimited funds and resources to conduct research that would have a lasting impact on the field of early childhood education. As I pondered this I thought about autism research primary in developing therapies to address social-emotional impact of autism in girls as that is a subject that close to me, but as I thought about my week meeting several advocates for Head Start and knowing that many members of our Congress are not convinced of the lasting benefits of Head Start I decided that if I could I would conduct a longitude study on the positive effects of Head Start on low income children and the working poor.

Head Start currently serves over a million children a year providing more than just an early start for school, but also provide medical screenings and nutrition, as well as parent education. They provide a vital service to the country, but is already underfunded leaving several communities who are in the most need of quality early education without it, and programs currently in operation are always in fear of losing funding. If a long term study that looks at the the fiscal impact of Head Start be able to show policymakers that the return on investment on early care and education is worth the initial cost both fiscally and and on  society as a whole could be conducted I think that it would have a lasting impact on the field.

Research Simulation

Early Childhood Research

All early childhood professionals are researchers, we continually research and investigate what children are learning and how to add the the environment to aid in their learning. It takes time and practice to become a proficient researcher. Over the next several weeks I will be conducting a research simulation on working with young children who have challenging behaviors, specifically how the education level of a teacher impacts how young children develop self-regulation and the emotional language to work through challenging behaviors.

In my role as early education director I receive calls almost daily from parent who have children who have been asked to leave another preschool due to behavior problems. This increase is of interest to me as I plan and lead staff development workshops on how to support these children and their families.

As with most things assistance and support is key to success so in order for me to have a successful simulation I need and ask for support from my colleagues not only through literature, but from stories of challenging behaviors in different early childhood settings.

International Early Childhood Education

Over the past several weeks I have been looking at quality early childhood care and education both in the United States and internationally. It is through this research via it be through international contacts, professional organizations, newsletters, blog posts, videos, or pod cast this has consequences both for the profession and myself personally. These consequences can be both positive and negative.
1. They say knowledge is power, but it is actually what you do with the knowledge that is power. When you aware of an issue you have a choice to act or to ignore. It is through the action of those working in the field that we will begin to see change and this change will impact the globe for years to come. There are so many opportunities to become part of the international world of early childhood education to help improve the lives of children everywhere.
2. We live in a global world and that means an increase in communication of needs, issues and successes in the field. We need to communicate with one another and collaborate for change.
3. As humans we tend to make comparisons and I have seen this in many of my readings and research. We compare the systems of early care and education in countries around the world. We need to use this comparative research to determine what systems and standard yield the best results for children and create a universally recognized set of criteria in which to measure quality and effective programs around the world.

I have though a lot about where my career is taking me in the field and as my life situations have changed over the past several months I feel that I need to begin to look beyond my local community and have a larger impact on the field than I can do at the local level. I don't know what this looks like right now, but it is something that I will be spending a lot of time looking into.

United Nations and Early Childhood Education

This week I have been struggling with the idea of quality in early childhood programs. As a nation we the United States has not developed an agreed upon standard that defines quality in early childhood education. If we as a developed nation can not agree what quality care looks like how can we help develop policies and support developing countries in providing quality early care and education. The United Nations has a website dedicated to Early Child Care and Education at http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood/.

The United Nations website discusses the lack of a universally agreed upon criteria for quality in early care.The greatest hindrance for including the United States in increase access to quality care bringing together resources both public and private to support services as is the case in Singapore, where most preschools are run by for-profit corporations and registered with the Ministry of Education that provides support for low income families. Most children in grade 1 in Singapore have had at least one year of preschool. There needs to be some degree of collaboration between the public and private sectors.


While exploring the United Nations website I came across a policy brief that really made me think about how we determine the value we place on early care and education. The Brief entitled What is your image of the child? discusses how our view on children shape ideas and policies on early childhood education. If we don't view the child as whole, able, and complete then we approach early care different and place lower value on the investment of early care. 

I do feel that the view of early care is changing around the world, but it needs to start in the field itself. Teachers need to look at what their views of children are and the value they place on children and early childhood education. If we view ourselves as more than mere babysitters, then we will raise the quality in our own classroom and then we can begin to change the field.

Digging deeper in the field

I often ask myself, am I doing enough for the children and families I serve on a daily basis, lately this I have changed this to wonder if I am doing enough to help the field of early childhood education? What contributions an I making and how can I become an advocate for change? As I searched deeper into the NIEER website I had those thoughts and questions in mind. This week I looked at the videos on the website and watched several videos on the benefits of and barriers to quality preschool education. There was one video that really struck me, it was titled The State of preschool 2011: On the edge of crisis, this short video showed that while enrollment in preschool has increased funding has decreased. This lack of funding means lack of access and a limit to quality. This has been a key area that needs to be addressed by individuals working directly with children daily. Teachers and program administrators need to follow quality standards and become strong advocates for Universal preschool and national standards for quality.

Here is the link to the video

http://nieer.org/publications/nieer-videos/state-preschool-2011-edge-crisis

Global Initiatives

The Global Children's  Initiative is an organization that was established to use a collaborative science-based research  base to help improve the lives of children around the world. They have several partnerships with organizations  around the world. One of the partnerships  they have is with Nucleo  Clencia Pela Infancia  (NCPI). The NCPI is a Brazilian initiative to increase the knowledge of how lifelong health and wellness begins in early childhood.  The NCPI is working to build a scientific  community around child development  to work with with policy makers to improve the lives of all young children  in Brazil. The other important two task that  the NCPI is working on is to take the research to build social policy and build leaders in the field, also since it is a global partnership  they have to translate all research to Portuguese so it is accessible  to all Brazilians.

Being an early childhood  educator  in the United States it is easy to get caught up in the needs of our own communities, which is important,  but we need to become a global community and be part of a global  conversation about addressing the needs of young children around the world.