Disagreements

It has been a very interesting past few weeks at work. I work at a place where everyone tries to be the boss and win over the director by telling on everyone else. I work as a Pre-K teacher, and I do just that. I come in go to my room; do not come out until lunch time, not even to use the bathroom. A few weeks ago one of our part time workers went and tried to get her son into another center and the news got back to the director. The director got the separation papers together and then had a bright idea to promote this individual to a supervisor to make sure we are doing the right thing. The problem with that is, she has no education in the field, and only was working 10 hours a week so didn’t have much insight on how things was to handled. So we all have been having some disagreements with her, because she have been telling us the wrong information and then the director is coming to us wanting to know why we are doing something.  I feel like she should have given that position to someone who has some background in the field.

            On Friday my co-worker and I had a busy day. We were overseeing 46 kids with no help, very much over ratio. The new supervisor was sent into room to help for about 15 minutes. She came back in the room a little later and tried to write us up because we left the radio out. My co-worker started explaining to her that we just got into the room and it was left out from yesterday and she started smiling saying it was still our responsibility to put it up and she was writing us up. My response was do what you have to do but on that write up make sure that you include that you was also in the room this morning and missed it too. She was so mad, because I was right even if I was wrong for talking back.  

            I could have handled that so much better with different strategies. I think the fact that I am not a big fan of her is playing a role in how I respond to her. I could have tried the escapist strategy, which would have eliminated the direct conflict that occurred between us. I could have just said okay and waited to see if she brings the write-up, instead of letting know how I felt. I could have tried to compromise with her and see if she would listen. I could have also simply just smiled, that way it doesn’t offend anyone or let her know my true feelings.

Similarities and Differences in Communication

I am a very straight forward communicator that does not like to get interrupted. I was very surprised by the reaction that I got from how others evaluated me. A few similarities that was discovered were the fact that I have to get my point across in the conversation. The differences were the fact that I was told that I can cut someone off in a second, if the conversation is not going the way I want it too. I was so shocked because I didn’t think that I did that. My aunt gave me an example of when we were having a discussion with a family friend about President Obama. He was discussing the presidential debate and how Obama was not coving the basis, and I disagreed. She went on to explain that I was cutting him off and rolling the eyes at his responses. It was very interesting to hear about how I was reacting. I was also told that I don’t let people finish their sentences. Now I knew I could have a strong opinion, but I never knew just how bad I could be.

 The self-concept has incredible power to shape your communication with others (O’Hair and Wiemann, 2012). With that in mind, I gained some insight about my communication. Other people gain a lot of their impression of me through my self-concept. We develop a self-concept by thinking about your strengths and weakness, observing your behavior in a wide variety of situations, witnessing your own reactions to situations, and watching others reactions to you (O’Hair and Wiemann, 2012). I also gained that I have to be willing to listen to what other people say and not think that I am the opinion that matters. The third insight I will discuss is how critical we can be with ourselves. We assess our communication whether it is for our weakness or our strengths; some examples are self-actualization or self-denigration.

 

Reference

O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

Communication and Culture

Cultural diversity occurs everywhere like in our neighborhood, school, workplace, shopping center, and just about anywhere. Many things make up culture like race, religion, gender, age, and etc. I communicate with every culture, but at times I do find it difficult to communicate with people from another culture. Strangers, people different from us, stir up fear, discomfort, suspicion, and hostility (Beebe, Beebe, and Redmond, 2011). It can sometimes make me feel a little funny. I always thought that because I was from another culture living in the United States that it would be easy to understand all the cultures, but I was wrong. It is easier for me to communicate and understand cultures from the dominant culture and the islands because my family is from Trinidad. Over the years I realized that if I couldn’t understand someone I would smile and pretend that I knew exactly what they was talking about, even when I didn’t.

 Over the past three weeks I learned that I could communicate with people from another culture through nonverbal communication like facial expression or sign language.  Facial expression can tell a lot about where the conversation is headed and how well I understand, so I have to be very mindful of that. I will also ask more questions, so that I have a better understanding on what the individual is saying. It would help to clarify meaning and interpretation of messages (Beebe, Beebe, and Redmond, 2011). The third strategy that I could do is “small talk” to help build a relationship. When a relationship is formed it helps everyone involved in the conversation feel better and it can lessen the tension that could arise.

 Beebe, S. A., Beebe, S. J., & Redmond, M. V. (2011). Interpersonal communication: Relating to others (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Television show with/without sound

 

The show that I watched was the Jamie Foxx show with my husband. He always watches this show and I decided it would be the perfect show to use for this blog assignment. With the sound off it was very interesting to only watch the expression of the actors. At first glance I thought that the main character’s which was Jamie and Fancy was in a relationship. The reason I got that conclusion was because they was hugging and touching a lot. The other characters was all looking at them and saying things to them. At one point in the show she started rolling her eyes and walking off on him so I assumed that they must of got into a argument of some sort. When I cut the music on, my husband was eager to catch up on what he missed with the sound off, because he loves that show. I was pretty much right when it came to the whole set up of the show. Fancy and Jamie had hooked up but he didn’t make it clear that he was the girlfriend. She got mad about it, that’s when I saw her doing all the hand motions and walking off on him. In the end they made up. I think it wouldn’t of mattered if I was watching a show that I know well, because nonverbal communication can tell a lot about what it going on.

competent communication

I work as a Pre-K teacher at a small Christian school that goes up to the 6^th grade.  The 5^th grade teacher is the head teacher of the center and has been for the past five years. She is the most effective communicator with parents and teachers that I know. If any teacher has a problem and approaches her with it she is mutual on all sides and keeps everything private. She keeps drama out of her life. I remember one time I was so mad because my check was short and she was able to calm me down with a few words and a smile. She makes the parents feel like they could come to her for anything. I wish I could communicate with the other teachers the way she does. For example if we are mad at something it shows, if she is mad about anything she smiles and nods her head in acceptance. I can’t do that if I don’t agree with something my nonverbal communication behavior shows very negatively.  

Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse background is their need not be judged. I have many reasons and examples of how often people from a diverse background get judged before anyone gets to know them. It can affect the child in many ways, like mess with their self-esteem and their communication skills. As a child moving from the islands at a young age I can remember my first day riding a bus and a little girl said don’t talk to her because you would not understand her. Now I have never seen or talked to this girl before, but because she heard my mother speak, she assumed I had a strong accent like her. As adults we do the same thing, a lot of times, not realizing it. We should be quick to love and slow to love.  

 

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to the issue of diversity, equity, and social justice is to become active in different cultures around the world. A regular child care facility is only concerned with what happens in that particular center, and nowhere else. For example, a chat line could be incorporated when different teachers, directors, and parents can communicate via internet about different aspects of the early childhood field. It can serve to be a learning experience.

 

I would like to take this time to thank all my colleagues and professor for taking time out to comment and add to all blog. I have learned so much over the last 8 weeks that this was the best class I have attended at Walden. So much new information was gained and I was able to grow as a person from it. Thank you again for this great journey and I hope everyone reaches their goal in life, whatever direction it may be.

Welcoming Families From Around the World

Scenario

You are working in an early childhood setting of your choice—a hospital, a child care center, a social service agency. You receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you know nothing about will join your group soon. You want to prepare yourself to welcome the child and her family. Luckily, you are enrolled in a course about diversity and have learned that in order to support families who have immigrated you need to know more than surface facts about their country of origin.

·         Costa Rica is the family’s origin.

 

       Five ways in which you will prepare yourself to be culturally responsive towards this family:

·         I will first look up the country and learn as much as I could from the internet.

·         I would also go to the library and find a book that could be passed around to the different teachers in the center so that they are aware of their culture.

·         Any traditional snacks that may be eaten a lot in Costa Rica, I will purchase and hand it out on the child’s first day of school.

·         Since the language is different, Spanish, I would learn the basic words like hello, nice to meet you, your child is in good hands, have a nice day, etc.

·         I would take a look at their education system like the statistics, overall layout, ranks, etc.

All of the preparations will benefit not only me, but also the family. I will do so much research like searching the internet, scamming through books about the customs and lifestyles of their culture, and looking into their education system I will be prepared mentally as well as physically for the student. I could only imagine how it would feel as a parent to bring your child to a center that speaks a different language and is the dominant culture. I would practice saying some statements in their native language so that it would put them at ease a little bit. My mother always said that food is the way to anyone’s heart. The snack would just let the family and the child know that we can incorporate any culture into the school.

 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

               I can think back to an incident that occurred at my job about four years ago. It was around the time Obama was running for presidency, before he got elected. The pastor and the director made it clear that they were republican, but never those they were against the democrat because he was African American. All of the employees at the jobs had different views, but kept it to themselves to climate any bias or argument. It was a week before the elections and the director heard two of the employees talking about how strong of a speaker Obama was, and he went off. She got so loud talking about why is it being discussed in the workplace, he is not getting elected, he’s a liar, and went on and on about how bad he was. She walked around to every employee and told us if we discuss the presidential race we will get fired.

            To put icing on the cake, the day after Obama got elected, she was more pissed. One of the African American teachers had the students color a printout with his face on it to add to the wall of presidents. The director went to her room and demanded that she took it off the wall and throw it away, without any explanation at all. When the teacher asked her why, she fired her. Her reason was she was disrespectful to her. It was so many ways it diminish equity. The main reason it did was because this whole incident would have been eliminated if he was not African American.

            So many feeling went through my head when I say the even unfold. I just sat there and thought that no matter how many years past so people only see color. Because we know the whole issue was the color. Just the other day one of the church member (I work there but do not go to church there) said that the pastor talked about how Obama is not for Christianity. And now the members are all mad about it, but they didn’t take the time to research it to see if they were correct. The pastor is a very influential person and using that to his adventure.

            So many things could be changed to turn this incident into a greater equity. For one, I firmly believe that politics should be left out of a place of employment and the church. Everyone is entitled to have their own views and should not have to get discouraged or mad because someone else is trying to force their beliefs I on them.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

 

I work at a Christian Daycare, and have been employed there for over the last five years. I am an African American and most of the employees are of the same race, but the administrators are Caucasian and church members. The administrator places all the children with behavior problems in my classroom and then explains to me that she would get fewer complaints if they are with me. She said the other teacher appearance alone might get her complained on. The other teacher is darker skinned, and has other challenges based on her appearance. I felt like it was unfair because it is a lot for me, and if she felt so strongly against the other teacher she should pull her aside and discuss it with her.

Over this week’s reading I have realized that there are a lot of hidden messages that could be misinterrpertated very easily. In the example above the director shouldn’t have discussed her feelings about the other teacher to me, not everyone has the same views when it comes to their appearance. An example of a stereotype that I have experienced is that all light skin individuals are stuck up. I have had people walk away from me, because they didn’t know how I was going to respond. We as individuals need to stop judging people and take the time to get to know them.

Through all the observation experiences this week many parents look at daycare as just a daycare and not as a learning entity. Quality education is what we need to expand the minds of the new generation. The way all the children with behavior issues were assigned to my class was unfair and should be divided into all the classes.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

I talked to three individuals about various questions as it relates to diversity and culture. The individuals were:

·         My aunt who is a 48 year old, African American female, who lives in Memphis.

·         A co-worker who is 20 years old and of Spanish decent.

·         My husband who is a manager who has a number of individuals under his supervision.

 

Their definition of culture

·         Aunt: The background of someone.

·         Co-worker: The background and foundation of a person.

·         Husband: The way a person was raised and the beliefs they abide by.

 

Their definition of diversity

·         Aunt: The mixture of people of different races in a close environment.

·         Co-worker: The combination of various cultures that comes together to form a finished product.

·         Husband: Individuals from African American, Hispanic, Caucasian, and etc. that gain information from each other.

There are some aspects of culture and diversity that was studied in this course that was included in the answers from the various individuals. All of the individuals I spoke to have similar definitions of culture and diversity. All of them were simple and not expanded much on. The word culture refers to how particular groups of people live (Sparks and Edwards, 2010) during this course I have come to understand that this topic includes much more than just race and gender but also includes language, social status, religion, and even the individual sexual orientation.

 

No aspects have been omitted, because the course has offered so much information on culture and diversity.

 Other individual’s definition of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics in one main way. When individuals think about culture and diversity, what comes to mind is people’s background. It is so much more that applies to this topic, but many of us define it by what society say.  It includes the language we speak, the religion we practice, and the clothing, housing, food, and rituals/holidays with which we feel most comfortable (Sparks and Edwards, 2010).

 

Reference:

Sparks L. &Edwards J. (2010).Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourself. Washington, DC.

My Family Culture

Imagine the following:

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you hold dear and that represent your family culture.

       A description of the three items you would choose:

·         Photo Album with pictures of my children growing up and family in general.

·         The Bible so that I can read and study the word.

·         A laptop so important documents could be saved.

       How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you:

·         A photo album compiled with numerous pictures of my family. I would want to remember my children as they are were growing up.

·          I would take the Bible as the second item because I am a strong believer in my faith. The religion might be different, but that don’t mean I have to change mine.

• A laptop would be third items that I took because all my important documents could be saved in the word document. I do understand that it is a possibility that we would never be able to return, but information like marriage license, birth certificates, social security information, and etc. should be kept.
 
 

If I could only keep one item I would keep the Bible and give up the photo album and computer. The Bible can’t be replaced because that is our study guide for our existent. The photo book would be missed but the children would be present with me so I have to keep the memories just that. The laptop is also important but hopefully the information wouldn’t be needed or the new country would provide us with new documentation.

        

It took time for me to consider the three items that I would take with me because I take everything for granted now that I am older. As a child I grew up in Trinidad and nothing was taken for granted because the culture was different. I got spoiled as I got older. My family is Christians and that would never change whether or not I leave an environment.

When I Think of Research...

       Research was always an area that I was unclear and unsure about. I always conducted and wrote research papers but didn’t know how in debt it was. In the field of early childhood research can aid so much to understanding different topics as it relates to children. There are a few areas on the topic of research that I have gained insight on. The first is ethics as it pertains to research. Research contains many risk and researchers have to keep it at a minimum. The different research approaches is another area I gained insight on. The mixed method, qualitative, and quantitative are all different approaches that a researcher can use when a study is being conducted.

Research is always changing, because of those ideas about the nature of doing research also changed. Research can be conducted in the past or present, so with that in mind researchers have to think about how the data is collected. Some forms of data collection can be observation, interviews, various sources, books. For example, if the data source is interviewing then the researcher needs to make sure that they interview the children appropriately.

When planning, designing, and conducting research there are certain things that have to be kept in mind. First the researcher has to decide what approach they are going to follow. For example are they utilizing the qualitative and quantitative design? Also, having an understanding about the different variables plays a big part when it comes to conducting research. I used to always mix up variables before entering this class.

Challenges were encounter throughout this class. As I stated before, I am not an expert as it pertains to research. I had to keep a dictionary near at all times, meaning I had to look up many of the terms to have a clear understanding. Luckily, the charts that we had to do weekly helped me with terms that were giving me the most trouble. Another challenge was eliminating any bias views that could arise, but through the reading I found different ways that it could be eliminated, like having more than one researcher reviewing the data.

An early childhood professional doesn’t just take care of children, but they bring new views and ideas to the field. Research plays a very important role when it comes to informing parents, children, and teachers to new information.  I am very glad that I had the chance to take this class, because it doesn't matter what position that you have in the early childhood field, research will help you in.

Research Around the World

I found three  current research topics that caught my attention on the website http://www.eecera.org/

        

1. Understanding children from 0 to 3 years of age and its implications for education. What's new on the babies' side?

It pertained to the changes that occurred in the past years with babies to toddlers. Society is changing and so is the knowledge about the new generation.

2. What young children give to their learning, making education work to sustain a community and its culture?

It related to the field of early childhood and how it is  always changing and the policies need to be changed accordingly.

3. Promoting language in under 3s. Assessing language development and the quality of adult intervention

This topic goes into detail about toddler’s language development and the adult’s role in promoting it.

     This website was new to me, and at times rather difficult to navigate. I did gain a few insights and ideas from exploring the site European Early Childhood Education Research Association. The first thing that was gained was how inspirational and known this journal is. I never thought a European journal would have such a large impact in the United States. Another thing that was surprising was that the website provided a link for the “The Korea Institute of Child Care and Education”; I was definitely not expecting that.  

Research that Benefits Children and Families—Uplifting Stories

There are so many uplifting stories about research that benefits children and families. I have not had the pleasure of experiencing a real-life example of research benefits to children and families. I have found many interesting stories online about how it can benefit children. One story about homelessness caught my attention. The reason for that is that it always touches my heart to hear stories about a child of parent who beat the odds and succeed in life, despise not having a place to call home.

On Walden library database I found an interesting article called “Lessons learned from children who have experienced homelessness.” Key themes that emerged from the research include: the need for services to engage with children as individuals in their own right, to listen to and acknowledge their stories, to have services that meet their individual needs, to act and respond when children feel unsafe and for workers who can provide support to children to talk to parents about what is going on (Moore, McArthur, and Noble-Carr, 2011). When we hear the tem “homelessness” we know that for children it can affect their health and wellbeing. The research question was: what do service systems need to know about how children perceive and experience homelessness in order to achieve better outcomes for homeless families (Moore, McArthur, and Noble-Carr, 2011)? The reference group included six children ages 8–12 who had experienced homeless with their parents were recruited through homelessness services (Moore, McArthur, and Noble-Carr, 2011). Some good points was included in this article like Children need a continuity of care, Children need to know that they and their families are safe, Children need adults to respond, Children want services to recognize their family’s strengths and help build upon them,  and Kids may need adults to help them communicate. A key theme to emerge from this project was the need for services to engage with children as individuals in their own right, and listen to and acknowledge their experiences (Moore, McArthur, and Noble-Carr, 2011). The research went on to conclude that children have feelings and want people to recognize that they need services available to them. The children in this study focused on what their parents could do rather than what they couldn’t and wished that services would do this too (Moore, McArthur, and Noble-Carr, 2011).

 I am learning a lot about the research process.

 References

Moore, T., McArthur, M., & Noble-Carr, D. (2011). Lessons learned from children who have experienced homelessness: what services need to know. Children & Society, 25(2), 115-126

Your Personal Research Journey

Evidence based practice is the topics that I decided to look further into, when it comes to the field of early childhood. As a current teacher in the field I like to explore different practices that are put into effect to aid children. One reason I like this topic is because it a topic that has two sides. Evidence based practice can have an impact on children health, the community, and on the field as a whole. I have never heard of this practice until the last course that I took last semester that had a reading assignment on the topic. I learned from the article, but I want to look further into the topic, and I couldn’t think of a better topic to focus on.

My personal experience with the simulation process has been a learning experience. I was clueless about what to look for when it comes to locating good and reliable research articles. Conducting the research chart provided me the information that I needed to know. For example, I now have clues on what to keep an eye out for when conducting research, like author’s info and writing style. One of my biggest issues was making sure the research wasn’t bias.

The internet is my best friend. I used Google when conducting research, but I just look for research articles that meet the criteria’s. Since I started at Walden I have been utilizing their research database to locate the articles. It has a ton of information and breaks them up into different criteria’s so that I could narrow my search. If anyone has any resources that can aid when it comes to this topic, please feel free to let me know.

Final Blog: Consequences and Goals

The past eight weeks has definitely been a learning experience. I have learned about so many things, and my contacts in South America and Trinidad shed light on so many topics for me. I didn’t just learn from my international contacts, but also from my peer’s contacts. There were some consequences of learning about the international early childhood field; some was intended, unintended, good, and bad.

Consequences:

·         Obtaining information about the various processes that is used in different countries.

·         Understanding how the issue of diversity was handled.

·         That poverty is a problem that occurs not just in the United States, but in all countries. Some countries more than others.

·         Forming relationships and a bond with the international contact for future connections and friendship.

It was so much to gain from the women that I kept asking questions just to learn more about their education system. All countries are different but we have small issues here in the United States, compared to other places. We don’t have to worry about air condition, like in South America.
One goal for is to increase awareness of various issues that surrounds the early childhood field in all countries. We could learn from professionals in different countries, or the other way around.

Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 3

I got some more information from my contacts about the issue of quality and thei goals in the field. It is very intereting to learn so much about South America and Trinidad.

Mrs. Lisset Hernandez Wrote:

Regarding your question, many people get into the teaching field. We think it is one of the most beautiful careers a person can choose. The children are well behaved but of course there are some who aren't and that makes you work harder with them, and that is the challenge in the field.

In regard to the quality of the professionals in the field, the children have the same teacher from kindergarten to 6th grade, but from 7th grade to 12th grade they have a teacher for each subject. That allows the teachers to know and understand their needs.  They also have a subject called: Pre-Military Instruction. A man from the army comes in and teaches them the basic things about being in the army such as: stand, march, salute and some others but it is only taught from 10th to 12th grade. My professional goal is to continue working in the field of education. I enjoy working with children and would continue doing it.

Mrs. Krystel Theodore Wrote:

Education holds very high standards in our society, so the quality of our school system is fantastic. Children usually begin formal schooling at the age of 4½ -5 years old.  As a member of the United Nations we have also adopted the E.C.C.E curriculum as well as standards.

All Classrooms usually are 20-30 students to 1 teacher. And of recent through the On-Job training program by government has allowed Teacher’s Aide or Teacher’s Assistant in classrooms to assist teachers, which is one opportunity for professional development. However this is not always the case. All schools are supposed to have a P.T.A association. In terms of the support system of these groups I cannot say but they are very supported in some cases according to the school. There is also a group known as TUTTA (Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers Association) this group represents the teachers of Trinidad and Tobago. They also play a major role in decisions made regarding education along with the Ministry of Education which governs the education system. My goal is to become an overseer in one of the primary schools. That is what you might call a principle in the United States.

Sharing Web Resources

While surfing the web looking for various information about The Head Start Association I came across http://www.education.com/partner/articles/nhsa/

 This link was focused on the National Head Start Association and provided articles pertaining to the National Head Start Association. The National Head Start Association is a private not-for-profit membership organization dedicated exclusively to meeting the needs of Head Start children and their families (National Head Start Association, 2006).  It caters to more than a million children in a given year. The Association provides support for the entire Head Start community by advocating for policies that strengthen services to Head Start children and their families; by providing extensive training and professional development to Head Start staff; and by developing and disseminating research, information, and resources that enrich Head Start program delivery (National Head Start Association, 2006). I wanted to learn more about the topic in various areas. It had a number of articles about what is needed before the program starts (checklist), entry requirements, and helpful hints for teachers, and family transitions. All of the articles are related to helping individuals who is in the head start program.

One aspect of the website http://www.education.com/partner/articles/nhsa/.
That interested me was the article about the first step to prepare for kindergarten. It contained so much helpful hints for parents that would assist them. It discusses the foundation that should be in place for the child, like the list of requirements and deadlines that should be meeting. With my first child I was clueless with what was needed for them to begin school, and was calling someone every minute with questions. This article provides a number of assistance.

 National Head Start Association. First Steps to Prepare for Kindergarten (2006). http://www.education.com/partner/articles/nhsa/

Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 2

I asked both of my contacts different questions to get more of an idea on the differences among the countries. One contact is Mrs. Lisset Noles who is currently living in Venezuela (South America). My second contact is Krystel Theodore which lives in Trinidad and Tobago. Both of the contacts are eager to answer my questions and in return I let them know how things are done in the United States.
Both my contacts answered the question about the issue of play. I explained to them how play was not included in the curriculum like it used to be, and she explained to me how play is viewed in South America.

Mrs. Noles Response:

In my country, the students are allowed and encouraged to play because we believe that builds skills, relationships and helps them socialize. They play different games such as: Hide and Seek, Circle Tag and some others. They also have Physical Education as a subject and they play different sports which help them learn how to work as a team.

 Ms. Theodore Response:

In Trinidad play is very much encouraged and included in the daily lessons. Play is a huge part of our culture and students can gain information from each other. Parents encourage play more than the teachers. For example, when children get home they are to do homework and then go out and play. Students can’t watch television and go to events until the weekend.

 I also asked her if she could explain the procedure on how schooling works in Trinidad, in regard to the age they start and etc.

Re:
Children usually begin formal schooling at the age of 4½ -5 years old.  As a member of the United Nations we have also adopted the E.C.C.E curriculum as well as standards. Children then move on to Primary School. In Trinidad and Tobago we have government schools as well as religious based body type’s schools that are usually government assisted as well as private schools where parents pay fees yearly or by the term for their children to attend.  In the Primary school system you begin from infants I to II then move along to STD 1 through 5 preparing for S.E.A (Secondary Entrance Assessment). To you that would be high school to us it’s called Secondary school. It is the same as primary school in terms of government, religious and private. In Secondary school in your fifth year you write an exam (CSEC) OR GCE which is kind of like S.A.T however it deals with all subjects areas taught in school. (math, language arts, sciences, -bio, chem ,physics, integrated science,  agricultural science, social-studies, history, Spanish, French, literature, art, physical education etc. technical education (wood work, technical drawing and many other. After examination which is a Caribbean examination done by students of the Caribbean you graduate with your certificate of subjects passed with their respective grades and move on to tertiary education.

Sharing Web Resources

The National Head Start Association has so much to with my professional development.

I am a kindergarten teacher presently, but was a pre-k teacher for two years prior. Most of the head start students are just starting school and it is important that the teachers are well prepared to educate them. This week they offered an Early Learning Webinar which contained information about high-quality preschool and structures to improve outcomes for students. That is a great thing that is offered, because anyone who is registered can sit in the pleasure of their own home and learn about the field.

 I looked more into resources on the website that made me think out the box. The Disaster Relief Fund was very interesting for a number of reasons. I always was under the impression that it was just for individuals like 911 victims or hurricane Katarina. I learned the funds are now used to assist Head Start Programs, staff, and families who become victims of natural disasters. So I see now that it assists in a broader way than I first imagined. On the website was a link to an article written by the New York Post which has some very interesting information about how some individuals think on the head start program. Some people believe it doesn’t work. The article went on to say that after test and research the results didn’t show that the head start program is affecting the children in a positive way.

The website has so much information. Every time I look at it I find more information that catches my attention, and make me want to learn more. So many kids participate in the head start program that I think funding should be increased.  

National Head Start Associationhttp://www.nhsa.org/

Getting to Know Your International Contacts

I was having trouble finding any international contact that would respond to me, so a friend and my family helped me. One of my co-workers is from South America and knew Lisset Noles, who has a degree in the early childhood field. My mother, who is from Trinidad and Tobago, gave me the contact information for Krystel Theodore who teaches in the school system on the island. Within the week my two contacts was responding actively to my questions and concerns about their experiences.

My first conversation with Mrs. Lisset Noles she just told me about her background.

She responded:

This is Lisset Noles and I am honored to answer all the questions you may have about the early childhood field in my country. I am from Venezuela (South America). I decided to become an English Teacher because I believe it is a great Language and it is very useful wherever you go around the world. I teach elementary school and high school. The class size may vary but it is normally between 15 to 20 students per classroom. Sometimes, it could get as large as 25 to 30 students or small as 10. I teach them everything related to English in a way they can learn how to write it read it and speak it. I use different technical tools such as: flash cards, music, extra work, quizzes and games related to the lesson they are learning each day.
I hope I was helpful in answering your questions and please do not hesitate to ask me anything about this field. Have a great week!

Her response to the issue of poverty in South America was:

 Regarding poverty, it is a big issue in my country because it is not a developed country. All public schools don't have air conditioning in the classrooms so it is hard for the children to focus on their studies because of the heat. The resources are low and it's hard for the teachers to do their job well but they still do their best and use what they've got. A lot of people don't earn a good salary at work so they can't send their children to school and that causes for children to misbehave and turn to a different person when they grow up. Some private schools are in a good condition but it costs money. Some families are willing to make a sacrifice though so their children will be comfortable and happy in their schools

Krystel Theodore is a special needs teacher in Trinidad, which is an island in the West Indies. She has been in the field for over five years and enjoys everything about it. When it comes to the issue of poverty she responded by telling me:

 In Trinidad and Tobago the education system is modeled after the British education system. Education is free and is compulsory. Each child is expected to go to school and utilize these services offered. Even Tertiary Education is paid for by governments for nationals of Trinidad and Tobago by accredited universities and colleges. Students all wear formal uniforms to school representing their specific school with the school’s monogram.

Education holds very high standards in our society. We grow up being taught about its importance and it is expected of us by our parents and families to do well. Government invest yearly in the education system, however there are still flaws within the system in particular governments concern or lack thereof on the issue of special education. For me as a special education teacher, at a private school there is a growing demand by parents of special needs children that is not being given the attention needed to facilitate this group of children. This leaves parents having to either pay for their child’s education or educate their children themselves. In other cases there are many children like these who are simply neglected because parents are not educated about the services available or are ashamed.

 There is so much to learn about the issue of poverty. Poverty is an issue in every county, but I was very impressed to see that all countries provides education for the children no matter if the live in poverty. In Trinidad the government even pays for an individual to attend collage for free that was very impressive to here.

Sharing Web Resources

The National Head Start Association (NHSA) provided and offers different services to the Head Start and Early Childhood Education communities. The website for this organization is http://www.nhsa.org/ and everyone should take a minute or two and check it out. The whole idea behind head start came to light in the year 1973 and has been expanding since then. Parents can find a head start program which meets their criteria or individuals could look at for a job. NHSA provides a number of programs designed to directly enhance the operations of Head Start and Early programs and enrich the lives of Head Start students, parents, and staff (National Head Start Association, 2012). NHSA is also behind some very valuable and helpful programs like GO SMART. GO SMART is a program to improve the health of children ages 0-5 years of age and their families through the development of a physical activity program.

One current issue from the newsletter that caught my attention was Major Outcomes of the Deal on the Debt Limit. It meant a few things for the head start program. One was that the program was going to have to work super hard to avoid cuts and the second thing is that they had to make sure that funding wasn’t cut altogether. The good thing that came out of the deal was   the extra funding for Pell grants, since Pell grants come from the same bill that funds Head Start. The website also had a something that caught my attention was that head start association offers scholarships and awards for students and teacher. For some reason I just always thought that since the head start program deals with young children I just assumed it ended then also.