Foundations of Early Childhood

The person that comes to mind as a competent communicator is a trainer I had the opportunity to study with. The trainer was an experienced early childhood educator, a master trainer, and advocate for young children. Her command of the topics she presents captivate your attention and arouse your desire to learn all you can about children and early care and  work toward equality of care for young children. Her passion for young children’s well-being add to the trainings relevancy. Her trainings always motivate me to do my best and work harder for children. To possess the communication skills she has would be a benefit to my work as an early childhood educator. In my work as an early childhood mentor I strive to invoke my passion for young children’s early care among the ECE I work with. 

“Dominator culture has tried to keep us all afraid, to make us choose safety instead of risk, sameness instead of diversity. Moving through that fear, finding out what connects us, revelling in our differences; this is the process that brings us closer, that gives us a world of shared values, of meaningful community.” ― Bell Hooks , Teaching Community: A Pedagogy of Hope The issue of diversity and social justice brings about an array of feelings and thoughts, some good and other’s not so good. But it is one that is needed. For too long have bias and discrimination churned the attitudes and actions of one culture’s dominance over others. While there have been many strides in equality her is still much that needs to be done. I strive to be a competent early childhood professional. My work with children and families puts me in a position of making a difference. I will work to help children understand differences and to speak up in the face of adversity. Early childhood educato...

 Welcoming Families From Around the World Family’s country of origin : Burkina-Faso There are over 60 ethnic groups in Burkina-Faso, while French is the official language there are a variety of languages and dialects that are spoken. The Burkinabe are accustomed to moving around and intermixing. They have a strong sense of community wherever they live and feel it is a duty to help one another.  The country has a high tolerance for different religions half of the Burkinabes are Muslim  with 15%  Christians (mainly Catholics). Life in Burkina-Faso is harmonious, unlike several of their neighbors who have experienced war and unrest. Knowing the family’s ethnic relationship will enable me to narrow down the specifics of their language, cultural customs, and beliefs regarding children, their education and interactions with adults. To achieve this I must familiarize myself with pertinent facts related to the family’s’ actual ethnic group.    ...

 The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? A recent news story focused on the events of professional sports members being harassed by other team mates. The victims were ridiculed, called racial slurs, homophobic language although no one was reportedly gay, one was even subjected to sexual explicit comments made about female members of his family. The overall tone of the comments were demeaning toward the victims as professionals and human beings. The victims were not very forthcoming about the abuse, because they feared retaliation from others on the team, including coaches. In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity? In the workplace there should be a reasonable expectation to be protected from harassment by coworkers. Workplace po...

Describe at least one example of a microaggression which you detected this week or remember from another time. In what context did the microaggression happen? What did you think and feel when you observed the microaggression or when you found yourself as the target of a microaggression? “ We have been socialized into a society in which there exist individual, institutional, and societal racism”  (Education.Inc., 2011, p. 3) . An exchange between my 5 year old granddaughter and a family member as we rode in the car. “Where did you get those glasses? asked my granddaughter. Family member responds, I bought them at the Korean store”. My reply is “Is that the name of the store?” The owners of the store are Asian, hence the references to Korea. I am sure no disrespect was intended, but this is an example of how normal it is to refer to people according to their race. These are messages we learn as we from family, everyday interactions and observations of the world around us. ...

  My interviewees included older male, a young female and my friend who is French. Their definitions included the common references of race, religion, family traditions, and language. Mixing were family relationships, work, emotions, and economic status (Edwards, 2010) . Joe, African American male 59, defined culture as a way of life for any group of people and diversity as differences among a group of people. Shay, female, Bi-racial, 5, defined culture as” The way I take care of my Papi and love everyone in my family”. Cristel, female, French, 31, states “Culture involves a person’s race, religion, and their way of life, language and family traditions. The various groups of people and their customs and beliefs are characteristics included in diversity”. Culture is complex, as it defines and influences our social identities. To fully understand one’s culture it is necessary to lay aside any presumptuous attitudes about a person’s race, socio-economic status, sex...

My Family Culture A description of the three items you would choose  Choosing three items to take on a journey that will most likely be permanent presents a difficult challenge. Other than my family what items are needed for this journey to the unknown? The three items I chose were: My Bible Photos of family during family gatherings My bean pot and beans (to plant) How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you I would take my Bible to insure our family is able to maintain a connection to the cornerstone of our culture, our faith in God. The photos of family celebrating happy and sad times to help with  feeling connected to my extended  family. The bean pot was my son’s idea, when I shared this assignment with him his reply was “You have to take some beans, because you don’t know what kind of food will be available. Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item ...