Competence in Communication

A parent of one of my students this year had demonstrated excellent communication skills thus far.  There are many things to discuss with this family regarding their child as some social-emotional issues have surfaced.  We (teacher & parents) have been in contact with at least three other professionals regarding screenings and observations for this particular child.  Each time that the mother hears back from another professional she emails me immediately.  She always follows up the very next time she sees me (at pickup or dropoff each day) to be sure I got her email and to ask for my thoughts, comments, concerns, etc.  This parent has been very diligent in contacting various professionals even when they do not respond in a timely manner.  She understands the importance that good communication can play in her life, my life, and the life of her child.  There is nothing like a motivated mother!!!

Professional Hopes and Goals (final post for this course)

Already in our discussion board this week I made note that microaggression was a new term for me.  An understanding of this topic is probably the most important thing I am taking away from the course.  I find myself much more aware of microaggressions as they occur around me and even find myself pointing them out to certain people (many of which have no idea either!).  As I continue in the world of education it is my hope that I can teach the kiddos in my classroom more about differences.  The more I talk about them and address issues in the classroom, the less likely they are to fall into the trap of being so influenced by our society and the subliminal messages.  I hope that they carry with them an awareness of what it means to be a leader, that it's okay to be different, and a love and respect for everyone around them.




My goal for the entire field of early childhood is this:

To be intentional about educating teachers in the areas of diversity, equity, and social justice. 

It is not a good thing that this is the first time I've heard about things such as microaggressions and many of the "-isms".  Educators need to learn how to identify these things and how to address issues before they are in the classroom - not after undergrad studies.  Not after teaching for a few years.  Not after half of their grad work.  Professional development opportunities need to exist before this point.  Prospective teachers need to be learning more about these things in their undergrad prep work.  Then they can greatly influence the lives of their students so that they know from a very young age how to handle differences in a constructive manner.



Thank you so much, colleagues, for your encouragement, support, challenges, and feedback as we worked together these past 8 weeks.  You all have helped me to grow tremendously.  I look forward to working with you more in the future!

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.

"My" family's country of origin:  Spain

Childcare Setting:  Lower Elementary School Age Summer Classroom at a Daycare Center
 
 Ways I plan to be culturally responsive towards this family:

1.  Hold a Family Fun Day:  At some point during the summer I would organize and set up a day that could involve the entire family of this facility.  It would include a carnival-like atmosphere with games, crafts, food, face painting, and a spot for socialization.  I would ask for input from any parents/families as far as things they would like to see at the event and also add in of my own that would initiate conversation and interaction.  The point of this day is to get families involved in a fun time together.  Parents would have the opportunity to interact, help if they wanted to, and feel comfortable in the environment.

2.  Family Reports:  Each week I would pick a "Star of the Week".  This student would do a small presentation about their family or a few presentations throughout the week.  This could include anything they wanted but I would give suggestions such as: picture poster, favorite family game, foods, books, movies, etc.  We would get to know each family throughout the summer from the child's perspective.

3.  Family Interview/Conference:  Hopefully before this child started attending the program, or shortly thereafter, I would ask to meet with the family and/or parents/guardians.  I would ask questions about their background, religion, beliefs, general lifestyle, and encourage them to tell me as much about their family as they are comfortable doing so.  This would give some excellent background on the student and their family and give insight.

4.  Classroom Community Activities:  I would be very intentional about the language and activities I plan for our classroom.  I want to build a strong community of students.  I would use a lot of "we" and "our" as I talk about the room (rather than "my" or "I" as teacher).  We share ideas, the space, time, materials, food, games, and many other things.  The classroom is ours to take care of and share no matter your name, religion, background, or language.

5.  Snack:  During the family interview I would ask what some common snack items are in their country of origin.  I would let the family know that if they ever wanted to make anything (the child's favorite, etc) they may, or they can give me a recipe or give suggestions and I would get that snack sometimes.  I would do this with all families - students could take turns bringing in snacks that they like.
 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

I can't recall a time that I experienced bias, prejudice, or oppression first hand... I can, however, think of more than a handful of times when I've see it online, in movies, books, and on TV.  

I remember one time when I was watching a movie on TV... it was a special feature... about the first African-American girl to attend a public school... Ruby Bridges was her name.  I just had to go look it up quick!  This was awhile ago, probably when I was still in middle or high school.  Anyway, I remember feeling just awful for the way that others were treating Ruby.  She was so young and innocent yet these adults were treating her like garbage.  I can remember tearing up at some points in the movie.  I didn't understand how anyone could be so cruel to another human being.  

Ruby had just as much of a right to attend that school as did any of the other children.  The way that people treated her had to make her feel as if she just wasn't worth it.  Things did change throughout the course of the movie.  I don't remember all the specifics, but do remember reading more recently that Ruby remained in that area of New Orleans and raised her own family there.  She stood up for what was right and made a huge difference for everyone.

Practiving Awareness of Microaggressions

I was at the mall earlier this week and decided to sit and do some "people watching".  It's always so interesting this time of year.  All kinds of people were walking around... some doing Christmas shopping and others seemed to be just walking laps.  I sat down on a bench that had 3 others with it in a square around a huge potted tree.  A couple of girls sat on the bench adjacent to me and I had fun listening to their teenage conversation!  :)  Four girls came walking towards us doing some shopping and I heard this comment from one of the teenage girls sitting near me: "Now those girls probably know how to play some good basketball!".  I had to chuckle because I knew at that instant that I could use the comment somehow this week for our course.  The girls that walked by and "probably know how to play some good basketball" were all tall (at least 5'11'' - 6'-something), African-American, and dressed in athletic clothing.  Two of them wore sandals while the other two wore what did look like basketball sneakers.  I have no idea if they play - we are in a college town and they very well could play for the team. 

I found myself wondering if I would have thought the same about the tall girls that walked by had the teenagers not made any comments.  I guess I'll never know!

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

It was interesting asking people about their views on diversity and culture this week.  Two people I talked to had similar definitions - that culture is more to do with food and holidays while diversity is the differences between people.  Both of these persons gave examples of diversity as different races (in different words, but in general that's what they were saying!).  These persons were both from a pretty conservative background and lifestyle in general.  They still live in the small town that they were born and grew up in and I wasn't surprised by their definitions at all.  So many aspects of both diversity and culture were omitted from these two person's definitions!  They gave the stereotypical definitions.

The third person that I talked to was culturally different from myself in a few ways.  His definition of culture was that it is everything around you that you consider normal.  Like things that you take for granted and just assume that it's just the way it is for everyone until you travel or hear other people's stories and realize the differences that exist.  Diversity was defined as the blending of different cultures.  I found these definitions interesting and definitely different from others. 

It was an interesting week as I considered surface and deep culture... but talking to people that I know and interact with on a regular basis was even more interesting. 

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.

Three items that I would take with me:

1. Bible - Our family is built on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ.  Without Him we would be nothing.  We hold the Bible very near and dear to our hearts and lives and recognize the importance of being in The Word on a daily basis.

2.  Laptop Computer - Our computer holds almost every detail of our lives: medial records, financial records, important documents, family photos from the past 10+ years, recipes handed down from family that have gone on before us, genealogy information and documents, and the list goes on.  Technology has really played a major role in our lives and is an easy way to store a lot of information that otherwise would take up a lot of space in the filing cabinet.

3.  Family Item - I'm not entirely sure what my choice would be here.  My husband and I both have many quilts and knick-knacks that have been handed down to us from our grandparents that represent our families.  I think that I would have to be "in the moment" to choose which one really holds the most meaning and value.  I would definitely grab one of these items though in hopes that we could hand them down to the next generation some day.

If I was told on arrival that I could only keep one personal item I would be devastated.  All the items hold a lot of value and meaning.  However, I would make the decision to keep our Bible as the other two items are material possessions that - in the end - won't really matter as much as God's Word.

As I considered items to take along I had to throw aside many ideas that came rushing to mind simply because the more I thought about it the more I realized that many of the items are things that can be bought all over the world.  Cell phones, clothing, shoes, dishes, cameras.... they are all things that I could very easily replace no matter where I end up.  Though many cultures are very different than my own, many devices are universal.