Week 4: Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

There are many national organizations dedicated to the well-being of young children and their families.  For my blog post this week I chose 3 that were most interesting to me.  From there, I researched different job openings within each organization.  Although I am currently working in an early childhood setting that I adore, getting information about possible openings and opportunities for the future is beneficial.

The first organization I chose was the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  I see them as the largest and most influential group working for the education of young children on a national level.  NAEYC was also interesting to me because I love the articles that come from their magazine Young Children.  I was interested to see if there were openings for freelance writers to get articles into the magazine as that is something I think I would enjoy doing in conjunction with teaching. 

The openings for NAEYC currently available include proposal reviewers for the National Institute for Early Childhood Professional Development expo, consulting editors for Young Children magazine, and website advisory panel members.  After looking into each I found the position of proposal reviewer to be most appealing.  The position only requires experience and expertise in the early childhood field.  It entails reading through proposals for presenters and writing reviews of them.  Then, with the help of other reviewers, you would be responsible for choosing a certain number of presenters to go to the expo or conference.

The second organization I chose was Zero to Three.  It is a national organization that works to aid infants, toddlers, and families.  I was interested in Zero to Three because their mission aligns with the importance of early care.  On their About Us page I learned that they believe, “early experiences set a course for a lifelong process of discovery about ourselves and the world around us. Simply put, early experiences matter” (Zero to Three, n.d., para. 2).  This is one of the foundational ideas that got me interested in early childhood during my undergraduate studies and it is still a driving force for me today.

Job openings for Zero to Three include graphic designer, project director, community coordinator, and program director.  Since these were pretty vague titles I had to look further into the descriptions of each.  I am not overly interested in any of the positions as all would take me to Washington, DC or Connecticut.  If I were to move for one of the positions I would be most apt to apply for the community coordinator position.  The job involves coordinating with community services within the Safe Babies project.

Finally, I chose the organization National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE).  This was not an organization I knew much about but I was interested to find more.  Their purpose is to promote professional growth for educators working in the field of early childhood.  My focus with my Master’s through Walden was educating adults so this seems like a good organization to look into.

The job openings for NAECTE include faculty and assistant professor positions at different settings.  The assistant professor in early childhood education was definitely of interest to me, despite the location.  When I was doing my undergraduate work I was very interested in one day teaching a course in early childhood at a local college.

The experience of looking into different positions has been very educational.  I have appreciated the opportunity to look beyond my comfort zone.  While I am currently happy with my location and position as a Kindergarten teacher it is great to know what else is out there.  I can see myself looking into other positions, like the ones I’ve researched, as I move further along in my career.  

National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators. (n.d.). Retrieved January 29, 2015 from http://www.naecte.org/

National Association for the Education of Young Children | NAEYC. (n.d.). Retrieved January 18, 2015, from http://www.naeyc.org/

Zero to Three (n.d.). Retrieved January 18, 2015, from http://www.zerotothree.org/

Week 1: Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

There are many state and local organizations and agencies that affect young children and families.  Some of these organizations were easy for me to list quickly while others took a bit of time to discover.  I appreciated the opportunity to explore these resources further.

One organization that comes to mind immediately is the YMCA.  I have worked with children in many different capacities at the YMCA from swim instructor to birthday party coordinator and everything in between.  Through my work with the YMCA, I have gotten a chance to see the amazing things they do for young children and their families.  Their mission is to, “put Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind and body for all” (Benton Harbor-St.Joseph YMCA). 

While all YMCA branches operate similarly, I feel that my local YMCA is especially child and family focused.  They host many family events such as movie nights, game nights, and pool parties that are available at a very low cost to local residents.  Child care is provided on-site as well as for before and after school programs housed in many local schools.  All of the opportunities provided for families are at a reasonable cost but scholarships and financial assistance is also an option.

Currently my local YMCA has job openings for personal trainers, janitorial staff, and lifeguards.  As none of these openings speak to me I decided to think of positions there that I would be interested in should a vacancy present itself.  I would be very interested in planning summer programming for young children.  Summer camps through the YMCA are incredibly well run and I believe my Kindergarten teaching experience has given me a solid foundation in planning learning opportunities.  Coordinating the different before and after school programs would also be an interesting position.

The second organization that I explored was the Michigan Head Start Association.  “MHSA is the unified voice providing advocacy and leadership linking the Head Start community of parents, programs, and partners” (Michigan Head Start Association).  This organization focuses on education, advocacy, communication, and collaboration in the realm of Head Start. 

This organization was interesting to me because it works to unite the focus and mission of all Head Start programs in Southwest Michigan.  I love the idea of bringing programs together and working to support them in order to more effectively serve young children and their families.

Currently there are several job postings in this organization.  One that I found interesting was the position of Children’s Program Manager at a Head Start facility.  The job description noted that the person hired would be in charge of the day-to-day oversight of the early childhood programs.  I felt that I had many of the necessary job requirements including an ability to, “prioritize and complete tasks within a timely manner” (Michigan Head Start Association).

The final organization that I chose was one I had not previously heard about but found in my searching.  “Child Care Resource works with parents, child care providers, businesses and the community to improve access to quality child care and early education so that every child enjoys safe, nurturing and inspiring care” (Child Care Resources).  I love that their mission is all about making child care accessible for all children.  We know that early education and care is so important yet many families are unable to afford child care.

From the Child Care Resource website links to many interesting resources about helping families find child care as well as advocating for healthy lifestyles for young children.  I was especially interested in the Training section because it linked to places where educators could find professional development opportunities on the subject.

Benton Harbor-St. Joseph YMCA. (n.d.). Retrieved January 17, 2015, from http://www.bhsjymca.org/

Child Care Resources. (n.d.). Retrieved January 17, 2015, from http://www.ccr4kids.org/en-us/aboutus.aspx

Michigan Head Start Association. (n.d.). Retrieved January 17, 2015, from http://michheadstart.org/

6164 Professional Hopes and Goals

When I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds I hope that they feel important, valued, and well-cared for when they are in my classroom.  I love the quote above by Jimmy Carter.  It speaks to the idea that we are all different as our are values, hopes, and dreams.  When he compares it to a beautiful mosaic you can tell that he values these differences and sees them as important.  I want families to know that I am on their side and will do anything I can to make them feel welcome and valued in my classroom.

One goal that I have personally is to address issues rather than shy away from them.  When I think of past conflicts between children in my classroom I realize that there have been many missed opportunities to teach about diversity, equity, and social justice.  I tend to move past a conflict or the mean words of a child by telling them that what they said is not okay.  My goal would be to dive deeper and work through the conflict more thoroughly so that both the child who said something and the victim know why what they said is hurtful and not acceptable in our classroom.

I would like to say thank you to all of you for your help during this course.  The thoughtful posts, probing questions, and meaningful discussions allowed me to see things from many different perspectives.  I've enjoyed learning and growing with all of you during this course.  Good luck in your future coursework!

6164 Week 7 Blog

For the purpose of this assignment I am going to imagine that I have a family moving from Spain and enrolling their child in my Kindergarten class.  This has happened several times before, but without advanced notice I will say that I don’t feel I was as prepared or as culturally sensitive as I could have been.

I would want to first prepare myself by researching their country of origin and finding out as much information on the family as possible.  Being well-informed will lead to a better understanding of where the family is coming from culturally, linguistically, etc.

Another thing that I would consider quite important is ensuring that I am able to say the child’s name correctly.  Sometimes names have special accents or can be hard to pronounce.  It would be important for me to know how to address the child properly so he/she felt welcome and valued.  My brother’s name is Nasser and it is commonly mispronounced.  He gets frustrated when people don’t even try to say his name the right way.  I also previously had a student from Spain who went by his middle name instead of his first name.  All are important things to know ahead of time.

The family’s language of origin would be something important to know as well.  Assuming that a family from Spain speaks Spanish could be a mistake, however well-intentioned.  I had a student from Spain a few years ago and it turns out he and his family spoke perfect English.  While they had lived in Spain for a few years they were there for the husbands work and had previously lived in the US.  Checking to learn real information instead of making assumptions would be important.  If the family did speak another language primarily I would be curious to know how much English they know.  If the answer is no or limited English, I would be looking for a translator to help bridge communication.  I might also learn a few words or phrases to help ease the child into the classroom and better communicate with parents.

Learning what holidays are celebrated by the family would be another step.  Our school calendar follows Christian holidays as far as days off go.  If the family practiced another religion I would want to know and be aware that they may miss days or celebrate alternatively.  It would also be imperative to know their religious practices if they had any effect on the child’s diet.  I have previously taught children who had religious beliefs that prohibited them from eating both beef and pork.

Finally, I would want to know about the culture of their country as well as their family culture.  It would be important to know the roles of family members and their views on education.  If one parent was the spokesperson more than another I would want to know that.  Views and values on education are important to understand when they are different from my own.  I have had families who have very high expectations of their Kindergartners and others who do not value the lessons taught in hands-on ways and would prefer worksheets.  These are all things that are important to know.

My hope would be that these preparations would give me a foundation on which to form a relationship with the family.  Even if the information I gathered was not all accurate, the family would see that I am trying and that I value them as a part of my classroom community.

6164 Week 6 Blog

During the summer I work as a receptionist at a summer rental property.  My job entails answering phones, responding to emails, and working with guests when they come to check in.  My boss is an amazing, kind, and funny woman.  That being said, she has many ideas about people that I would say are not “politically correct” and customer service is not her strong suit because of this.

Today my boss took a call from a woman with a very heavy Russian accent.  She apologized for her rough English to start the conversation.  When the woman spelled her name for her reservation I heard my boss comment to the woman that it was sort of a crazy last name.  Later she said, “You are very hard to understand, did you know that?”  The woman was embarrassed by her limited English to begin with and I’m sure the comment did not help.  After hanging up my boss commented that she hated calls from “those people” because she could never understand them.

This interaction made me feel very uncomfortable.  On one hand I wanted to say something to stand up for the woman on the phone.  On the other hand I was worried about upsetting my boss by bringing up something that she had done.  It was a very awkward situation and I ended up not saying anything.  While I did not encourage her behavior I also did not stop it, which is how things are allowed to continue.

The comments my boss made diminished the equity of the woman on the phone.  She was made to feel inferior because of her broken English.  To set the situation right my boss would have needed to be more culturally sensitive and respectful or the woman would have needed to say something to combat the behavior. 

6165 Week 6 Blog

The adjourning phase of group or team work is when everyone leaves to move on to other projects.  I have had a few groups that I was sad to leave but there have been others that I was more than happy to put an end to.  I think that high functioning groups are definitely more difficult to leave than ones where there is turmoil and conflict. 

This past school year I was part of an excellent team comprised of three Kindergarten teachers (one from each Elementary school in the district) and one building principal.  The goal of this group was to change the way that our schools place children into Kindergarten.  When teachers place children in all other grades a lot of thought is put into the decision.  In Kindergarten, however, we were just getting the luck of the draw.  One class may be riddled with behavior problems while another had extremely high achievers.  We set out to balance classes through a screening day, but our mission was to make it as welcoming and inviting as possible.  We did not want parents to see it as a test or something their child would pass or fail.  Instead, we wanted to welcome families in, spend time with children, and thoughtfully place them into classrooms based on their disposition, skills, needs, and previous schooling.

One thing that I loved about working on this group was their passion for the work we were doing.  Each member was strongly committed to doing what was best for children and families.  I also loved that our group was comprised of only 4 members as it was easier to make group decisions with a smaller number of participants.  When we got ready to leave the group I was quite sad to see that our time had come to an end.  I was proud of the work we had accomplished, though.  To end our sessions together we kicked off the screening that we had designed.  It was impactful to see all of our hard work in action!  We also decided to meet a few times each school year to tweak the program we created as well as to add components to make it even better.

In other groups the adjourning phase ended with a celebration of sorts.  Usually this was dinner out or a get together with the other group members.  During these events, group members always shared stories about our group work and looked back at where we started.  This was always powerful because sometimes in the midst of the work you lose track of just how much you did or changed.

When I think of adjourning from the group of colleagues I’ve worked with during my Master’s program it does sadden me a bit.  While I will be thrilled to no longer think of due dates for discussions, blog posts, and applications, I will miss the fellowship.  There have been many instances where I have heard a new idea from an assignment and directly applied it to an activity in my classroom.  Other times I have been challenged in my thinking by the assignments and the comments from classmates.

Adjourning is important because it allows the group to find some closure.  You get to look back at where you started and re-live the journey.  It allows the group a chance to celebrate successes and thank the other members for the parts they have played.

6165 Week 5 Blog

On my Kindergarten team there are two other teachers that I collaborate with on a daily basis.  I have found that I have trouble expressing my opposition to a new idea or plan they suggest.  My tendency is to come off as rude or defensive when my goal is actually just to share my opinion.  One thing that I plan to try is looking for a broader range of solutions.  Instead of just saying I do not like an idea or plan they come up with, I should be ready to suggest alternatives.  This might make turning their idea down go better as I will have provided alternate solutions.  The other tactic I will try is suggesting a compromise.  Perhaps we can try things the way they suggest for a specific period of time.  After that time we can get together and talk about what worked and what didn't work.

Has anyone else had trouble expressing their opinions in a group?  I find that there are things I am passionate about and when I share my views on them I sometimes come across too strong.  Is there a happy medium between sharing my views and keeping the peace with others?