Week 4 -Practicing Awareness of Microaggression

A week or so ago, I was in Hannaford. I was in an isle with an older lady. She dropped her pen and I bent down to pick it up for her. As I did that I said, “Don’t worry about bending down. I got it for you, ma’am.” I was only doing it out of kindness but I could see on her face that she was thrown back by what I said. I could see how she might take this as an insult to her age. This happened in everyday life, in a public facility. After I had walked away from the lady I felt embarrassed. After this week, I realized that was a form of microaggression.

One of the biggest things that I took away this week was that prejudices, stereotypes, and discrimination are unintentional. It still hurts deep for those that are the target. It is our lack of understanding and many times our unconscious feeling of superiority and ignorance our society puts out. In terms of the lady in Hannaford, I did make a judgment by her age in my mind. As a teacher I need to think before I speak. I need to put myself in others shoes. Ask questions and find resources about cultures and the prejudices I have and our society has. Prejudices, stereotypes and discrimination are due to the lack of knowledge and superiority that people feel like they need or think that have.

Week 3: Perspectives on Culture and Diversity

 

WEEK 3: Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

                The three people that I talked to were my director, mother, and one of my customers at my second job.

Customer: Culture is “beliefs, religion, way of living, jobs, language, and food. I guess. Diversity is how people are different cuz of those things.

Director: “Culture is everything we do. It ranges from the physical aspects like religion and language to the things we don’t think about. The way we move and look at others” Diversity is differences amongst people. We look and analyze our culture and others and compare and contrast to get our view of the diversity around us.”

Mother: “Culture is like how dad comes to your work on Saturday to have coffee with you. It is the religion and beliefs we hold. It is the way I raised you.” Diversity is “what makes us us and what makes others them and the comparison we make about the two.”

I think that each one of my lovely interviewees had something positive to add to an overall view of culture. I could tell the director was using what she has learned through her classes that she has taken. I felt my mother made a great example of the relationship that I have with my family. The customer added a lot of physical examples of what diversity is.  One think that has been omitted is how our individual culture gives us the mental thinking to make judgments about culture and the diversity among people.

Thinking about what these three people said I realized everyone has their own view about what culture is and diversity is. I think that can create divides and a lack of understanding of others. This can lead to more judgments. But bringing everyone’s definitions together can create a great well rounded understanding of what people perceive that culture and the diversity is among those they interact with.

Week 1: My family culture

The three items that I would bring would be:
1. My kindle. My mom and I love to exchange back and forth books that we have read. This way its one item with lots of books that I love to read.
2. Coffee. My father and I love coffee. We could drink it all day and every Sunday or Saturday he comes and visits me with a cup of coffee in tow. I could make the same cup of coffee the same way he does and it never tastes the same as when he makes it.
3.  An album of pictures of family and memories. This would  include childhood memories and adult memories of friends and family.

If on arrival I could only choose one item to bring it would be the album of pictures. I feel this would represent everything that I have/had in life that made me smile and cry and laugh and get mad. I have something to hold on to.

THis week I learned that family culture is everything. A movement, thought, action, like or dislike or more!!!

When I think about research...(Week 8)

• What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?
• One of the biggest things that I have learned from this course is learning to break apart a research study and analyze the content. This includes the authors, publication, and the whole process of what it takes to make a research study. 
• In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?
• The process that it takes to make a valid, ethical, and sound research study intrigued me. before this class I never thought that the process was this indepth. I knew the parts of a research topic and thought to my self all the time i wish i could do something like this but it looks way to hard. It is hard. However this class has shown me the way that it is done. 
• What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?
• When children are involved the more difficult it is to plan research, design research, and conduct research. Getting consent can set back your research. Creating an environment that is stable, and not overwhelming, and creating a relationship with the children so they feel comfortable working with you but not interfering with the research aspect of what you want are all obstacles i never really considered. 
• What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?
• One of the challenges i had was the week that we learned about variables. I, from the time I started learning about research in middle school to today, I have a hard time understanding the difference between independent variables and dependent variables. This course also brought to my attention variables that are unseen by many researchers and create invalidity in the research. THis is because the researcher did not expect this to weigh on the outcome. THrough lots of help of others weigh in and talking with the professor, I understand how to look for those things and understand variables better. 
• What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?
• I have changed as a early childhood professional. Research is a major part of being a early childhood prfessional. Sharing knowledge through research is how we grow as a field. I want to contribute and learn more. 

Thank you to everyone in this course. It has been a joy to work with all of you. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and understanding of the course content, opinions, and experiences. I have taken away much from this class. I wish everyone the best of luck in all future endeavors!!! Happy Holidays! 

Week 5-Research Around the World!

                The Website that I looked at was the Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU) Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). Some of the topics that this program researches are:  “Building Community Leadership for Quality Substainabilty…” in preschools, nutrition of children (without mothers), parent collaboration for effective teaching, and more(Early Childhood Development Virtual University, 2005). The one that I looked more into was the nutrition of children. It specifically looks at children without mothers breastfeeding and bottle feeding as part of its study. I find this interesting because is it a hot debate among nutritionist and professionals in the United States. In context to some of the infant health issues, this study has shown how nutrition at birth can make a huge difference with health outcomes in the future.

                I was really fascinated with what ECDVU-SSA was what it is all about. The program looks at the “…strengths and expertise that exists locally and regionally” (Early Childhood Development Virtual University, 2005). The program takes into account the peoples opinion and their life. The program works to enhance technology education to support communication with Africa and benefit the education of the professionals, families, communities and children. The program’s ideas creates a great picture of what is to come for Sub Africa.

The ECDVU "generative curriculum" encompasses the following characteristics:

  a learner-focused approach - drawing as much as possible on the learner's experiences in their personal and professional lives;

  an ecological approach - placing individuals, programs and policies into an interactive and dynamic context and seeking to plan activities and interventions to maximize resonating impact throughout the larger ecology;

  a capacity building approach - aiming to strategically strengthen the capacities of participants to effectively fulfill their mandates in their professional position and to be accountable to their constituents and the broader ECD community in their countries. Although most education activities claim this as a general 'purpose', the ECDVU program addresses capacity development in a specific, strategic manner.

  a co-constructive approach - encouraging each learner to draw upon provided curriculum material as well as their own in-country experience and data to derive their own perspectives and applications;

  a multicultural approach - considering ideas, research, and goals pertaining to child care and development from many different cultural sources, including (but not limited to) African and Euro-Western sources;

  a cohort driven approach - encouraging collaboration, reciprocal learning among peers, and consolidation of networks within and between learners representing each participating country.

  an historical approach - exploring 'how we came to be here' vis à vis the evolution of various theories and constructions regarding children and their care and more recent international development activities focusing on children's care and development.

I think that this was really interesting. I felt that these approaches used by ECDVU could be used in many facets of the early childhood field. As we develop our professional careers to keep some of these approaches in mind, especially ones that deal with multicultural approaches.

Reference

Early Childhood Development Virtual University (2005). http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/major_reports.php, http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/generative.php, http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/about.php

Week 2 Research that Benefits Children and Families

If I had no restrictions and no limitations on a research topic where children and families benefited I would chose researching and creating simulation where play, child centered learning, and exploring learning were done from early childhood programs up through high school.

Play changes as children develop. Children will be the center of the learning. Standards would exist but revised for each individual student through lessons. I would observe children's performances in school, stress levels, and success in assessments made by teachers based on their level of learning.

I want to look more into how curriculum, standards and assessment are benefiting children throughout the past 10 years. SInce i have been in school and in college and in the teaching profession, there have been so many changes. Most of these changes have been strict about what children need to learn. Modules have been placed in the NYS education system.http://www.engageny.org/common-core-curriculum

Week 1-My Personal Journey

Hey Everyone! I am looking forward to this simulation! The topic that I chose for my simulation is Potty Training. To go deeper I am looking at what strategies to use in helping children potty train and how potty training affects children socially and emotionally.

The reason why I chose this topic is because I am a toddler teacher with very little experience in potty training. I want to find the best method to use on children and how to create a potty training "program". In the past year many parents have voiced concerns on the toddler program. I came into the toddler position with parents asking my how I am going to do it. I really didn't have any clue. In the past two months I have come up with a plan for children based on what the children's parents want but there are things lagging due to some parents wanting force or some not really worrying. THe problem with both is that these children have to be potty trained before they go to preschool. THe conflicting ideas have created more of a headache. I would love to get a handle on information that deal with potty training and be a source for parents and for other toddler teachers in my school!

This course is been amazing. I feel like I can create a great research project on this topic and become a better researcher in general. I like how the resources have broken down the steps! I am thankful and grateful for these resrouces so far!!!

I am looking forward to reading others process on their topics that they have chosen. Reading everyone's blogs have been interesting. All of your topics are going to be very informative and relatable to the early childhood field and to me as a teacher.

One thing I am going to struggle with is making sure that everything is down with care. I am suggesting to myself and others to get it done with time! Researching cannot be done last minute!!! GOOOD LUCK EVERYONE! LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT 6 WEEKS