goodbye

As an undergrad I took a lot of research classes because my major was psychology. I did not like them at all! I even had to take one of them over again, so my love for research was just demolished right there. I really struggled with the concepts and how to apply them. I think that one of the reasons why I struggled so much is because the research classes I took were in huge lecture halls with 200+ under graduates, and the information was simply told to you with no explanation. What I like about this course is the fact that we have been able to apply our learning throughout the entire course, all leading up to the final research stimulation. By applying what we learn each week it has given me a greater understanding of research methods, and I feel like I have gained more knowledge about this subject in the last 8 weeks then in any of the classes I have previously taken. Through the research stimulation I have come to an understanding that conducting a research experiment is hard! There is so much that goes into it, and I give the people that do it a lot of credit. I am happy that I have learned more about this area because now I can take what I have learned and  carry it with me for life. I want to stay current with the research that is being conducted about early childhood, because I feel like so much can be applied to the classroom, and to how we as ECE professionals teach and help the children grow. I want to operate a center where my staff is encouraged to learn about research and for me as a director to provide them with research findings that can help them improve as teachers, and help their children grow as well. I think that as an early childhood professional we have to encourage the use of research more, and more childcare facilities should offer a training about research, and how it applies to ECE. Without research we wouldn't know half of the things we know now about children and learning.

Early childhood Australia

The first thing that I noticed when I got to the website of Early Childhood Australia was their mission statement. In their mission statement they promised to advocate for the quality, social justice and equity in all of the issues that surround the early childhood field from birth to eight years. There mission statement was short, but to the point and gave a little insight on what is important to the early childhood field in Australia.

The next area of the website that I navigated to was the research section. I found  a lot of information on research that is being done in Australia now related to the early childhood field. The research I found ranged from issues related to diversity to dealing with bullying. It seems like the Australian ECE fields deals with many of the same issues that we deal with here in the United States. Below I posted some of the research articles that I found on the website:

Respecting diversity: Articulating early childhood practice

Children's resilience: Working with the Early Years Learning Framework

Learning and teaching through play

Stars are made of glass: Children as capable and creative communicators

The Early Years Learning Framework: Building confident learners

The Early Years Learning Framework: Getting started

Optimistic carers and children: Pathways to confidence and wellbeing

Nurturing the spiritual child: Compassion, connection and a sense of self

Dealing with bullying together: Prevention and resolution

Portfolios: Documenting a journey

Treasures and collections: A touch of magic in the early years What  I really liked about this website is that it was jammed packed with information, resources, links to affiliated site, newsletters, books, and many other ways to stay connected to the ECE community. I found it similar to the sites we have here in the states. I liked it and it felt comfortable to navigate through, and it seems like they are doing a lot in Australia to enhance early childhood education. http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/

Imagine...

Imagine that you possess the means and the knowledge to conduct research studies about any topic in the early childhood field. Imagine further that you are not restricted by the reality of the present. Imagine that your study will make a major positive contribution to the well-being of children and/or their families. What topic would you choose? What can you imagine the positive contribution(s) would be?


If I could do a research study that would make a major positive contribution to the well-being of children and there families I would have to continue on my journey to find out more information on Autism. The positive contribution that I would hope for is an way to determine the source of Autism and what causes it. If it is genetic could it be tested before the birth of a child, if autism is caused by vaccinations like some believe then why are these vaccinations causing this. I want to narrow down the cause of Autism and get to the source to find out why it is on the rise. This would be an extremely complicated research study, and would have to be narrowed down even more. I think that I would mainly focus on the genetic link to Autism and see if there is a strong correlation, and if there is what can be done to prevent Autism.

Final blog

Post at least three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field for your professional and personal development 

1.  I can use the information I have learned about the international ECE field and help with advocacy efforts.
2. I have gained new resources and references for future classes and my career
3. Lastly I can use the information I have gained to educate others

Post one goal for the field related to international awareness of issues and trends and the spirit of collegial relations

1. My one goal is to become an advocate for other nations who are trying to betters their countries educational system by fighting for high quality childcare.

UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education

I visited the UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education webpage because I have not received any response from the Early Childhood professionals. This website was very informative in regard to  international early childhood education and I have learned a lot from it. The Convention on the Rights of the Child which was analysed in this article and asked if what difference has it made to children’s right to education? Turns out states have to reflect these obligations in their Constitution and  take strides towards enhancing education policies and strategies.


I also learned about the challenges in Brazil in regard to integrating care and education. This article focusing on the issues of integrating child care and education.  Apparently in 1996 there was a policy imposed to integrate administrative responsibility for day care centers for 0-3 and preschool 4-6 into the education system.  This article focuses on why there is still a gap in this system of integrating school and care, even though there is a policy in place.
The article goes on to talk about how important it is to bring these two sectors together, but that is not something that will happen over night, and it will take some time until care and education are integrated.  This article showed me that the government in Brazil is trying to make their early childhood educational system better, it is going to take some time but they are making the effort.


http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001457/145735e.pdf




www.unesco.org

Education World

• Follow some of the outside links that you have not yet explored. Where do they lead?

Some of the outside links connected to this website were social networking sites like twitter, facebook, and an RSS feed. Having links like these ones are useful in getting more individuals to view this site. These outside links can help education world gain in popularity.

• Thoroughly search one area of the site. What do you find?

The New Teacher link was extremely useful, once you click on the new teacher link it brings you to a section where you can find a lot of good resources. Many of these resources provide guidance for new teachers in the form of articles, forums, discussions, opinion articles and job search advice. I clicked on many of the resources and found them to be extremely useful and reassuring for potential teachers. Great Job Education World!

• If you receive an e-newsletter, follow a link related to one of the issues you have been studying. What new information is available?

The last newsletter I received from Education World, early childhood newsletter was about celebrating earth day. The newsletter discussed earth day, recycling and  lesson plans regarding earth day. This newsletter was not relevant to what we are discussing in class this week.

Education World

• What specific section(s) or information seemed particularly relevant to your current professional development?

One section that I can relate to professionally at this moment is Education World, Current Events section. One of the articles is entitled "The Pink Slip Club". The reason I decided to discuss this article is because this is what happens to be relevant in education in my community now. Pink slips are popping up, and budget cuts are being made. My area is in a crisis, and the Schenectady School District plans on cutting teachers, the arts and music, and also making class sizes larger. This is not helping education, this is not helping our children learn. I  do not want to see children in a classroom of 40 with an overworked teacher, not getting the attention they deserve. This would be a horrible move for my city, and I hope they work something out, and the teachers advocate for this cause!

• Which ideas/statements/resources, either on the website or in an e-newsletter, did you find controversial or made you think about an issue in new ways?

The article entitled  "Pink Slip Club", made me think about the issue differently, but did not change my views on the matter. This article put "pink slips" in a different light, and even had teachers discussion the matter in a positive way. Some of the teachers mentioned in the article viewed pink slips as a good thing, because it kind of gave teachers a warning to do better, and they would get hired back eventually but they would have to work hard and prove themselves to get their position back. I think that is a bunch of bull, these teachers did work hard, through college and work hard everyday in the classroom, I do not think teachers should view this issues in a positive way, they earned their job and shouldn't have it taken away in order to prove themselves.

• What information does the website or the e-newsletter contain that adds to your understanding of how economists, neuroscientists, or politicians support the early childhood field?

Some of the articles in the e-newsletter demonstrate ECE from differnt stand points. This news letter discusses the economy ( The Pink Slip Club),  and  also discusses politics with a piece on no child left behind.  Both of these articles helped me gain a better understanding of the economics and politics of ECE.

• What other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field did you gain from exploring the website or e-newsletter?

I was touched the most by the article discussing the Pink Slip Club. The article brought out a lot of emotion because my city is going through this right now and I have family that could lose their jobs. Also it shows the economics of education, and the harsh reality of it.