Final Blog Assignment

Final Blog Assignment
Over the last eight weeks It has truly been a learning experience.  It has been great getting to know some one outside of the U.S., but there have been some challenges that have come along with it.  The first consequence I will have to say was not making contact at first with someone, but then about a week later I was able to make contact with someone. The next issue I had was that the contact that I had made with the Early education in Britain was going very great at first, but in the last two weeks I have been emailing my contact Chris and I have yet till this day heard anything back from him again. From the time that we did make contact I learned a lot about the early childhood system in Britain.  It is very similar to ours. There Early education systems focus on the ages of 2 to 8 years old. 

It was interesting to learn that in Britain they are facing almost the exact same issue/trends that we are being faced with in America. They are facing issues with funding and adequate provision of both places and high quality teaching and learning. Another issue that they are facing n Britain is the issue of poverty. Some differences that I found with this is the fact the the government really does not care to much for their poor; they continue to what every the need to do to help keep the entire country up and running they never take into considerations the effect that they are having on less privileged people in their country. Another thing that we have have in common with Britain is that they are still debating the issue of having highly qualified staff working in their nurseries and schools. They are also debating the issue of have set quality standards. It is so interesting to see how much the EC field has common factors that they are facing across the world.

One goal that i have would be to connect my classroom with a classroom in another country so that my students are able to see chow children learn in other countries. It would also give them the experiences of seeing children outside of their norm. I think that it would be a great global experience for my students and the students in the other country. It would be a great way to fins out different teaching strategies and methods that are used in a classroom across the world. 

This semester has been a great semester I wish all of my colleagues very well as they continue on their path through the program.  

Blog Assignment: Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 3

I am happy that I did have the opportunity with connecting with someone out of the country. Chris Hussy from Early Education in London has shared with me a lot of information. it is amazing to see that we are facing a lot of the same issue in the early childhood field. He talked about one of the biggest issues in London is excellence and equity is at the center of things at this point in time.  He provided a lot of websites that provided a lot of different information: 

 

http://www.daynurseries.co.uk/news/article.cfm/id/26/Debate-should-early-years-teachers-have-qualifed-teacher-status

http://sheila-nutkins-author.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/debate-about-ratios-and-qualifications.html

In addition, the regulator Ofsted has come under increasing fire for standardisation issues:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-24079951

http://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/article/1214950/exclusive-ofsted-responds-big-conversation

And more recently, ‘school readiness’ has been at the forefront of agendas:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/10307682/Failure-to-acknowledge-the-concept-of-readiness-in-education-this-is-the-tragedy.html

http://edfaclib.wordpress.com/2013/10/07/guest-blog-post-too-much-too-soon-school-starting-age-the-evidence-3/

Finally – issues over improving the quality within the state sector and comparison to both PISA and other measurements:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/10317154/Good-school-bad-school-what-do-we-measure-this-by.html

Poverty is another issue that was discussed was poverty.

http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/families/childpoverty

In addition, this suggests ways in which this may implemented practically:

http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/families/childpoverty/sharinggoodpractice

   

This is some dialog between us both learning about one another and the EC field in his country:

 

Can you tell me more about your Early Education Program??

Early years education is generally seen as being from 2 to 8 years of age, although we as an organisation support birth to eight and above! Formalised education takes place either with childminders, or in nursery/kindergarten equivalents of various types, before children normally move into mainstream schooling in England at either age 4 or 5. There is an emphasis (in the main) on play and creativity, but also through the developmental stage that a child may undertake, and in turn, preparing them for school too.

How does the Education System Work in the U.K.?

Parents typically may send their children to a nursery or equivalent before formal school starts, this is often a sort of day care. Thereafter, schooling is compulsory from age 4/5 depending upon when their birthday falls – and such education is compulsory until the age of 18, unless there is adequate provision outside of a school environment. There are now many different types of school, depending upon the area, and there are both state and independent schools, which are either free to attend or fee paying.

What are some of the issues/trends that you all are facing with Early Education in the UK??

There are typically many issues, mostly centred on funding and adequate provision of both places and high quality teaching and learning. In recent time, the focus has been on 2 year olds. Interestingly now debate centres on what qualifications are required to teach within such schools and looking to make early years education more robust in this regard. Inevitably, there will be issues involving the other social and cultural factors that impinge on schools everywhere, such as inequality, that serve as barriers to success.

Even though My connect still has not emailed me back yet for this week I wanted to share the information that we have exchanged with you. Overall I leaned that we are facing some of the same issue in the Early Childhood filed. It goes to show how much in common you have with a person from another part of the world.I though it was interesting to learn that both here and in London we are dealing with the issues of poverty, funding, and quality programing. 

Blog Assignment: Sharing Web Resources

An area of the NAEYC website that I have not looked more into has been the newsroom area. Therefore I decided to explore this area and see what I could find. In the newsroom it presented articles of information about new projects that NAEYC as an organization has been working and it also has links to articles about what is going on around the world. Such as an Update of the Government shut down and how it is relating to Early Childhood Education. This article provided a lot of information that relates to the topic that we have been discussing in class this week. The article talks about how the government shut down is effecting vital programs for our young children and their families. The funding from Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG)* may be cut for early childhood programs depending on the state. Some Head Start programs have had to shut their door because the never received funding from the grants that they were waiting on. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)* will not be awarding any new funds. Child Nutrition:will be limited funding available and providers will not be reimbursed for services until 2014 appropriations are made. The  Newsroom section ha a lot of information on different policy updates as well such as the Senate Appropriations Bill. 
Another section of the NAEYC website that I have found to be beneficial has been the family link. In this link it takes you over to a website that provides a lot of information for families. There is information about finding quality and accredited childcare (what to look for and sign of quality), information about child development, reading and writing, math and music. There is also a news letter families can sign up for and even though I do not have children of my own I will be subscribing to this newsletter as well. There is also a section where families can ask any questions they may have from finding care to dealing with behaviors. It gives them the opportunity to talk to some professionals. There are also articles about different strategies to help families with things such as siblings and roles that they play in the family. 
 Being that I am a Pre-K teacher I found a tab on the cite that is strictly for Pre-K teachers. I found a lot of articles that will assist me with dealing with challenges in the classroom and for better classroom management skills. I plan to join this organization by the end of the year so that I am able to subscribe to newsletters and other professional development websites, I have found this website to be very helpful with all of my current and future career goals. I feel it will be of great benefit to become a member. Browsing through the website some more I finally figured out how to subscribe to a news letter without being a member. So hopefully I will be receiving some great articles soon. 
 Overall I think this website provides a lot of great information for Early Childhood Educators and their families. I am learning that if you become a member then you will be able to have more access to journals and articles related to the field. There are only certain things that you can view as a non member, but there is still a lot of vital information.

 

Blog Assignment: Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 2

This week I did email my connect in the UK, but I have yet to get a response from him this week. On the Harvard University's Global Children's Initiative website there was a lot of valuable information. There was a statement made about about educating the high level decision makers and how being rich or poor should not make a difference. I though that this was such a true statement and how it made me think about the education system here in the U.S. 

I read an article about the Zambian Early Childhood Development Project. They  created the first comprehensive assessment tool in Zambia. With this new assessment tool they plan to focus on developmental areas that need  the support, and get better intervention strategies. I think that it is great that they are analyzing the information that they are receiving from these assessments in order to better help the generations to come.

I also read an article called Studying the Effects of Global Adversity, Two Generations at a Time.  This article talked about studying children at a younger age can provide better outlook into their future. There were children that were soldiers in the country of Sierra Leone and Theresa Betancourt is now able to study how mental health issues affect children as adults.

Sharing Web Resources

The organization that I have been working with is NAEYC (http://www.naeyc.org).

What specific section(s) or information seemed particularly relevant to your current professional development?
 Some sections were I found information relevant to my current professional development were: The week of the young child tab, Early Childhood research Quarterly journal, professional development tab, topics tab and the Teaching Young Children Journal for Preschool teachers, basically all the tabs. All of these areas can continbute to my professional development. They provided information on earning degress, articles about all of topics of early childhood education, ways to adovcate and information on types of accreditation that they offer. The even have a journal (teaching you children) that is specifically for Preschool teachers.

 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.
 I found an article in the Teaching Young Children journal called Tips to Help Children Cope with Disasters. This article presented information about how to talk to help children have a place where they can feel safe an normal in an event of disaster. It also provided information about how you as a teacher can help reduce stress in your own life. This article made me want to find out more information about the topic that was presented. It brought up a lot of strategies that could become controversial if a person feels those methods will not work for everyone. 

 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?
 This website provides information to where you can go an attend conferences that are held by the organization to hear about the thoughts of neurosciencetists , politician or economist views of the early childhood filed and the way society views it. There the will discuss issues of funding and factors that contribute to why the early years are so important and so on. The website provides may resources for articles that you can look up. This organization has and uses the same perspectives and economist, neuroscientist and politician because they are a business. They accredited other people to ensure that they a providing quality care to children and teaching teachers that are receiving a highly qualified education. 

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

Afterreviewing this website I gained a lot of knowledge about  a lot of global issues such as:  the issues of funding for programs, children receiving quality care and staff being highly qualified. Under the Public polices tabbed I learn about a number of different issues and trends to advocate for such as American Recovery & Reinvestment Act, different states policies, funding, Quality Benchmarks for Cultural Competence  and Developing Kindergarten Readiness and Other Large Scale Assessment Stems etc...

Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 1

After a rocky start of trying to make contact with someone over seas, I have managed to make contact with one organization. The organization that I have made contact with is called Early Education. This organization is located in the UK. I have been making contact with a person by the name of "Chris Hussey." He seems to be very happy and willing to help me through out this course. According to Chris, the Early  Education program is generally seen as being from 2 to 8 years of age, although  as an organization they support birth to eight and above! Formalized education takes place either with childminders, or in nursery/kindergarten equivalents of various types, before children normally move into mainstream schooling in England at either age 4 or 5. There is an emphasis (in the main) on play and creativity, but also through the developmental stage that a child may undertake, and in turn, preparing them for school too. 
As far as how the educations system in the UK work Chris replies, " Parents typically may send their children to a nursery or equivalent before formal school starts, this is often a sort of day care. Thereafter, schooling is compulsory from age 4/5 depending upon when their birthday falls – and such education is compulsory until the age of 18, unless there is adequate provision outside of a school environment. There are now many different types of school, depending upon the area, and there are both state and independent schools, which are either free to attend or fee paying.
 When it comes to issues/trends they are facing in the UK, he states that, 

"There are typically many issues, mostly centered on funding and adequate provision of both places and high quality teaching and learning. In recent time, the focus has been on 2 year olds. Interestingly now debate centres on what qualifications are required to teach within such schools and looking to make early years education more robust in this regard. Inevitably, there will be issues involving the other social and cultural factors that impinge on schools everywhere, such as inequality, that serve as barriers to success."

Poverty

This Week I have gained a lot more knowledge about the topic, "'issue of poverty".  I have learned that Poverty plays a key role in a child's education. Poverty is an issue that affects children all across the globe. I have leaned that the best way to try and eliminate poverty  in our communities is  by advocating to government leaders, senators, and etc to keep the programs that start children to learning at an early age.  In the UK which is the only country that I have made a connect with, 1 in 6 people live in poverty. Two children in every classroom in the UK are arriving at school having eaten no breakfast. Due to
government spending cuts, along with the rising cost of living more and more people are struggling to make ends meet. As I have learned many countries are facing the same issues with poverty across the globe.

Sharing Web Resources

Blog Assignment: Sharing Web Resources:

The website that I chose last we0ek was  NAEYC (http://www.naeyc.org). NAEYC is The National Associate for the Education of Young Children, There mission is "NAEYC's Mission is to serve and act on behalf of the needs, rights and well-being of all young children with primary focus on the provision of educational and developmental services and resources." NAEYC  goals are 
Their Vision for the organization is as followed:  Improving professional practice and working conditions in early childhood education, Supporting early childhood programs by working to achieve a high-quality system of early childhood education and Building a high-performing, inclusive organization of groups and individuals who are committed to promoting excellence in early childhood education for all young children. The organization offers a great amount of  resources and a lot of different topics to choose from. NAYEC'S Objectives are as followed:

• Providing professional development opportunities and resources for those who work for and with young children
• Convening individuals and groups with diverse perspectives to generate new knowledge and understanding of issues affecting the education and development of young children and their families.
• Setting and publicizing standards that promote excellence in early childhood education and early childhood professional preparation.
• Implementing systems to recognize early childhood education programs and early childhood professional preparation programs that meet NAEYC standards and guidelines.
• Building public understanding and support for activities and services that promote the healthy development and learning of all young children and their families.
• Advocating for public policies-and funding-to support a comprehensive system of high-quality early childhood education for all young children and families.
• Fostering the development of a network of high-performing, inclusive organizations that share the goal of promoting excellence in early childhood education for all young childrenakd

 This is an organization that you can join and become apart of. It allows excellence in high-quality early care and education.  This Organization accredicts childcare center that operate by their beliefs. The Website allows you to access education to best cellar books and provides access to different articles of a variety of topics it allows you to gain some professional development.

When looking for articles I found that you have to become a member which I plan to do a little later in the semester. But while browsing through the website I can across the topic of family involvement. Under this tab that provided information on their principles of  effective family Involvement, There are six that the organization is accustomed to :

• Principle 1: Programs invite families to participate in decision making and goal setting for their child
• Principle 2: Teachers and programs engage families in two-way communication 
• Principle 3: Programs and teachers engage families in ways that are truly reciprocal 
• Principle 4: Programs provide learning activities for the home and in the community
• Principle 5: Programs invite families to participate in program-level decisions and wider advocacy efforts
• Principle 6: Programs implement a comprehensive program-level system of family engagement

Since learning more about this organization I have began to understand how to work in the classroom better. It provides a lot of resources for me to go to gain more knowledge about different situations. Becoming apart of this organization would be of great benefit to me because it something that is stressed about In my State.