Getting To Know My International Contacts

I am continuing to have difficulty contacting international contacts in the Early Childhood field. I have emailed several contacts using the email addresses from the various websites and have yet to find true success. I continued until earlier this week when I made contact with a formal director of  Pastoral del Nino project, Shannon Peairson. Shannon Peairson recommended that I contact Ann Austin for more information. Ann Austin recommended that I contact Elizabeth U de Burro for more information. Elizabeth U de Burro was unable to participate in the weekly contact and finally linked me to the new director of Pastoral del Nino, Hermanna Mercedes Duarte. I have sent numerous emails to both email accounts but have not received a response for any questions. After receiving the run-around from all these individuals I decided to complete the alternative assignment focusing on poverty in China.

The company that I found the most interesting facing similar problems to the United States was China. For example, unemployment and poverty is higher in parts of China just like it is in the United States. The insights that I gained from studying this website include:

• China is the most populous country in the world (World Bank, n.d)
• By 2001, 5%  of country lived below the poverty line (World Bank, n.d)
• Rural poverty fell from 250 million in 1978 to 35 million in 2000 (World Bank, n.d.)
• Economic growth and poverty was higher in Western China (World Bank, n.d.)

The interesting fact that I found was that the poverty level fell sharply because of the cultural and technological advances in different areas of  China that were not readily available in the Western Part of the country. Many of the families were facing the same problems that we are currently facing in this country such as high unemployment and difficulty meeting the needs of their families.

Resources

National Center for Children In Poverty (n.d.) Retrieved on March 19, 2011 from http://www.nccp.org

World Bank (n.d). Retrieved on March 19, 2011 from http://www.worldbank.org/data/countrydata/aag/chn

Sharing Web Resources

The web resource that I chose to study is National Black Child Development Institute and the web address is http://nbcdi.org/. The main reason that I decided to study this organization was because it was the only one list that I had not heard of and the news dealt with issues that are currently happening in the African American community. The primary focus of the organization is to "improve and advance the lives of Black children ad their families  through advocacy and education, " (National Black Child Development Institute, 2011). The organization focuses on using the community to build up families and children through education because all the children deserve a chance to do better.

The one issue/trend from the newsletter that caught my attention was the report on cuts Head Start funding. I am a Head Start employee that works in a facility that is facing cuts and sending representatives to Washington to lobby for the funds to remain. The National Black Child Development Institute encouraged parents and teachers to advocate for the federal Pre-K program that is facing the cuts because it provides free services to many minorities and provides opportunities for education of young children that many families can't afford to pay other places.

The web page provides resources and other archives that focus on bridging the gaps between ESL students and American born students to better help teachers meet the needs of the students. There are also other articles that focus on diversity, demographics, family health care needs and literacy. The website is packed with tons of resources that will benefit families and other early childhood education professionals.

Reference

National Black Child Development Institute (2011). Retrieved on March 11, 2011 from http://nbcdi.org/
(Newsletter: http//nbcdi.org/support/sign-up-for-nbcdi-newsletters/)

Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

I must be honest, the first time I looked at this assignment it overwhelmed me because there were so many choices! Who would I choose? I wrestled with this questions for at least a day before narrowing down my choices to UNICEF Beijing and Global Alliance of NAEYC for South Africa. I began making contact by sending out several emails introducing myself and explaining my reason for contacting them. I have yet to receive any response from either one of these agencies. I have sent out another round of emails and hope to hear something in the coming week but I am prepared to contact another agency if I am not successful with these. I decided on UNICEF Beijing and Global Alliance of NAEYC for South Africa because I love reading and learning how education is viewed in different parts of the world. I believe that this information ca be helpful and can be used in the classroom or with future preschool teachers.

The second part of the assignment was far easier than the second because I love study websites. I wanted to pick a website that I have never visited from previous courses or other professional development opportunities. I decided on the National Black Child Development Institute which is located in Washington, DC. This website contains a newsletter which I completed my subscription and look forward to reading very soon. It also is reporting a current topic that is very personal to me, Head Start Funding Cuts. I am a Head Start employee and our program is facing budget cuts to various areas at this time. I look forward to sharing my thoughts and information learned from the website in this blog.

Childhood Connections to Play

Quotes About Play:
1).  It is a happy talent to know how to play.
                                ~Ralph Waldo Emerson (poet/philosopher)

2).  Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning....they have to play with what they know
       to be true in order to find out more and then they can use what they learn in new forms of play.
                                                 ~ Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood)

Play have evolved  so much from when I was younger but below you will find some of my favorite toys that would hold my attention for hours.

I was the only child (and the first born grandchild) for 12 years so I was able to score any new, hot item that was currently on the market. I loved to play with dolls, especially Strawberry Short Cake and her friends and the My Little Pony series. I loved to spend time outdoors but preferred the pogo ball to my bike because it allowed me to jump around throughout the yard. My parents and extended members were very supportive to choice of toys and loved to watch the performances that I put on with my dolls. My dad would sit for hours listening to my stories about Strawberry Short Cake or My Little Ponies and the different adventures that they would encounter weekly.

The play today is more technology based than when I was younger. My oldest and youngest (boy and girl respectively) children would rather spend time indoors playing hand held games or computer games instead of going outside riding their bikes. I was the complete opposite because I can remember loving the outdoors and transporting my dolls (and their equipment) outside for our performances because technology was not as advance as today's. My middle child is my outdoor fanatic and spends more time outside shooting basketball or riding his bike with friends.

The role of my play during childhood contributed to my creative sense and ability to adapt to ever changing situations. I believe that play in childhood can have a positive effect on adulthood because it allows for exploration of the world and learning the skills needed to survive latter in life.

References

Play Quotes (2011). What they say about play. Retrieved on January 28, 2011 from http://www.scribd.com/doc/22929/play-quotes

Child Development and Public Health (Repost)



Berger (2009) defines immunization as "a process that stimulates the body's immune system to defend against attack by a particular contagious disease. Immunization maybe accomplished either naturally (by having the disease) or through vaccination (often by having an injection). Immunization was discovered many years ago but the concept was made popular by Louis Pasteur during the 1800s. The concept has been expanded for many years, each year with scientist finding new ways to fight against various diseases.

This topic is meaningful to me because the idea of a child suffering from a disease or illness is unbearable, especially with all the technology currently available. Technology has lead to the development of cures for childhood diseases like measles, chicken pox and polio (to name a few) that killed many children. Immunization is a touchy subject for parents, especially new parents because of the horror stories that were broad casted via world wide news and numerous articles. I can remember wrestling with the decision to vaccinate my child was extremely difficult because the side effects were presented before the benefits. Regardless to all the negative information that is presented to parents, the major benefit of immunization is prolonged life of children for childhood diseases.

I have heard and studied the beliefs of immunization in the United States and wondered how other regions of the world viewed immunizations. India is a county that fascinates me because you often see the beautiful tourist sites but you never see the true struggles of the people. Health care is an ongoing subject in the United States with the current arguments over health care bills but very little is hear about this region's health care options. I decided to study India to learn about the benefits of immunization and ways that immunization was viewed this region. According to World Health Organization (2010), health education was a low priority in India due to the lack of information. The World Health Organization created a program in 1985 to fight against pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus and other diseases. By 1990, the program was approximately 90% successful but information is currently being gathered for current statistics. The World Health Organization is continuing to work on educating parents on immunization and overall healthy living patterns.

I would eventually like to work as an advocate for children so this is a topic that I am sure will cross my path eventually. As an advocate your major focus is to provide parents with adequate information to make a decision that benefits the child. Immunization will forever be a subject that will ruffle some feathers but we must come together and look at what is best for all children. I believe that every child deserves the opportunity to enjoy a long life and if this is the method to that long life....every child should be vaccinated.


Berger, K. (2009). The developing person through childhood. New York, New York: Worth Publishers.

World Health Organization (2010). Retrieved on November 10, 2010 from http://www.who.int/en

When I Think of Child Development.....

When I think of child development, here are few quotes that come to mind:

Family is the first school for young children and parents are powerful models.

                                       ~Alice Sterling Honig, Author
                   Helping Children Become More Caring and Cooperative"

 Early education can only promise to help make the third and fourth and fifth years of life good ones. It can not insure without fail that any tomorrow will be successful. Nothing "fixes" a child for life, no matter what happens next. But exciting, pleasing early experiences are seldom sloughed off. They go with the child, on into first grade, on into the child's long life ahead.

                                                                         ~James L. Hymes, Author
                                                                       "Teaching the Child Under Six" 

Testing Intelligence

The development of a child is an amazing treat to watch as a teacher and parent because it occurs in different stages and times for different children. The assessment or testing process of a child in school is only viewed from a cognitive standpoint rather than a holistic viewpoint. It is important to view the child's development holistically, meaning the development of all areas-cognitive, physical, language, and emotional/social development. I believe that the assessment process overall is not applicable for all children because all children do not reach milestones at the same time. I believe language development and cognitive development should be assessed because children need these skills in order to communicate and function in daily life. These skills can be fostered through exposure to reading and constant conversations with family or other adults.

The German educational system is an absolute amazing educational system which begins with preschool which is mandatory from 4 years to 6 years old. According to Wikipedia (2010), German student's IQ are higher based on the number of years that child attends school with girls scoring higher than boys. In Germany, children are required to attend school from 6  to 18 years old mandatory and can decide whether they want to attend universities (which requires another 9 years) or enter a vocational school to develop a trade or skills. To assess what the students learn, students study the same subjects increasing the difficulty as each year or grade progresses. Student attend school year round with only 6 weeks of summer vacation (Wikipedia, 2010) with testing at interval periods of time based on 4th grade reading/math skills and the amount of books that are present in the child's home.

I believe that it is difficult to assess young children but preschool teachers and parents should foster the development of the child through exploration, exposure and encouragement to ensure that the child is developing in all areas.


Resources

Wikipedia (2010). Education in Germany. Retrieved on December 10, 2010 from
http://www.ask.com/wiki/Education_in_Germany#Determinants_of_academic_attainment_in_Germany