Reflection on Learning

     As another session comes to a close, it is my hope as an early childhood professional that I am able to infuse in my students the passion of learning and to help them soar academically, ethically, and socially.  I plan to provide a safe environment where all students will not feel harassed or different from others, but instead learn from others through a nourishing exchange of conversation.  I want to show my children and their families that they can make a difference in the class, school, community, and the world.  I hope to teach them that through their everyday living and learning experiences, they are discovering their own identities, which contributes to their overall personal development.  I hope to instill in them that we all need to be proud of who we are, despite our differences by learning to respect our differences, recognize one’s bias, and continue to speak up for what is right.

    

     It is amazing how quickly the eight weeks have flown by (the first two weeks a blur with the chaotic start of the new blackboard program).  We should all applaud ourselves for accomplishing this feat alone---YEA!!  And now classmates, I want to thank you for helping me to learn more about myself through these past two months.  I have connected and understood so many of your posts, as I laughed, cried, and contemplated your thoughts.  You all have taught me to be a better person, mother, friend, and teacher.  With your help I am continuing to be taught how to nurture and celebrate my own voice.  Again, thank each and every one of you as you continue on your learning journey and becoming what you are intended to be.  Be blessed and hope to chat with you in the upcoming course!

Impacts on Early Emotional Development

     The area that I choose to investigate was the Dominican Republic.  As a child I visited this nation, which was the first to city to be founded in the Americas.  I was intrigued by its beauty and culture, which was good mixture of ancient and modern times.  As stated this was many years ago, close to thirty, and I am interested to see if any changes have occurred since.

    

     Some of the challenges that children from the Dominican Republic are confronted with include economics, with 55 percent living in poverty, and health issues (ECLAC, 2005).  Despite these inequities, 91 percent of the children are registered for primary school with a decline to 64 percent starting and ending.  In this country, there are several governmental institutions (Directorate for the Care of Early Childhood, the National Council for Children, the National Council for Day Care Centers, and the Ministry of Health and Education) responsible for the fundamental development of children under five years of age.  It is law that all boys, girls, and even adolescents have the right to basic education allowing them to expand their abilities and potentials.  As for the health care problems, children under 12 receive limited services due to inadequate prevention and education.  In 2005 (Office of National Statistics) the Dominican Republic was 95^th in Human Development due to its social deficiencies.

    

     Based on governmental involvement in the early childhood education system, I would say that children’s learning is an important aspect.  Yet there seems to be a disparity between the urban and rural areas.  Even though it is understood that the first years of life are crucial for the development of boys and girls within this country, it is during this period that the ability to think, speak, learn and reason are attained and basic social skills are formed. However, this becomes an issue when children from rural areas must travel to school, which are usually located miles away.  And being that transportation is sometimes nonexistence; children are not likely to attend.  This could cause a discord and have a negative impact on their emotional and social development.

    

     From my exploration on the Dominican Republic I learned that governmental involvement can make a difference in the lives of our children.  There are countless organizations involved in providing the children within this country the opportunity to build upon their foundation of learning.  However, they may now need to focus on providing that same support to the health care conditions for those same children.  It appears that the government is trying to overcome its social and economic underdevelopment by providing assistance to improve and strengthen not only their schooling facilities but their society as a whole, and in turn this will provide children an enormous opportunity educational equality.  I also read many articles where due to the drought of 2007 and 2010; water has been scarce, resulting in many malnutrition children.  We have to continue to ask ourselves, in this era, how we can deprive children of quality education stemming from political, social, and economic failure.  It is essential that every child be provided quality education.

References:

Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). 2005. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/republicadominicana

Office of National Statistics. 2005. National Population and Housing Census.

The Sexualization of Early Childhood

     As I read the article, So Sexy So Soon, I immediately thought of the girls within my class and what they must be going through in trying to relate to and claiming their sexualization, at such an early age.  I do not recall at such an early age having to identify with so many messages from the media, advertisements, and their peers that explore sexualization.  Levin & Kilbourne (2009) shared that children are paying an enormous price for the sexualization of their childhood.  Girls and boys constantly encounter sexual messages and images that they cannot understand and that can confuse and even frighten them. Needless to say, it must be scary especially if there is no one to discuss your issues with, have a listening ear, and guide you in the right direction. 

    A few personal and/or professional experiences I have that further illustrate the exposure of young children to a highly sexualized environment of how prevalent sexualization is in early childhood is a young girl within my fifth grade class.  She is well-developed in the “rear end” and several boys have started to notice and comment on her derriere.  She has become so uncomfortable that when walking into class she covers herself with a jacket tied around her waist.  I also have another student, fourth grade who is being teased because of many friendships the girls within the class.  He is well liked by both sexes, but the girls seem to flock to him.  One day as I was leaving my class, a group of girls were walking behind him and giggle while stating, “not only is he cute, but he has some luscious lips”.  I had to pause and wonder where these students, at this age, would have received this thought from more or less the combination of words.  And lastly, my ten year old son regularly keeps me informed of his ride home from school on the bus.  This particular day he notified me that some classmates (girls) of his were commenting that a specific celebrity had a big private part.  When one of the girls asked “how she knew”, she pulled out her phone and showed a picture of a males private and stated “because there it is and isn’t it humongous”.  All of these examples clearly show that sexualization of our children is having an extremely alarming influence on their knowledge and awareness of gender, sexuality, and relationships.

      Sexualization can gravely harm children’s ability to grow up and have healthy attitudes about themselves and their bodies and to have caring relationships in which sex is an important part (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009).  The many causes of sexualization (portrayals in the media of sex and related issues, marketing of products and clothing with sexual connotations, access to the adult world via the internet, and the lack sex education within our schools has inflicted sexuality on our children before they are ready.  The Association of Psychological Association (2007) did a study of girls and young women and found that sexualization has a negative impact on their self-image and healthy development.  Younger girls are experiencing problems with eating disorders, depression and low self-esteem, as they worry and obsess about their weight and physical appearance, expressing increasing dissatisfaction with their bodies at a younger age than ever before.

     As parents and educators we need to begin talking to our children (girls and boys) about how their experiences, and ours, are related to our oversexed culture.  We have to be willing to share our opinions and take a stance for what we know is harming this generation.   We can offset these harmful attitudes by being proactive and aware of what our children are watching on TV, movies, and reading.  I think it is very important to support our children and show them that beauty comes from within and in many forms.
References:

American Psychological Association. (2007). Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/sexualization.html.

Levin, D., Kilbourne, J. (2009). So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids. New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from http://www.dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

     The “ism” that I might expect for the children and families with whom I work are classism and racism.  Within my small county of 8000, the Hispanic population of 570 (6 percent) is far lower than the national average of 12 percent. (U.S. Census, 2006) within most counties, yet we still show little effort in welcoming our new neighbors.  The county is made mostly of blacks at 81 percent and whites at 11 percent.   The new faces, language, and customs have many threatened and unsure as to what will become of our small town and practices.  Most of the families in our area work minimal wage jobs and mostly at the peach industries that employ men, with women left to care for the children.  The women speak little English as their children are left to translate any material being sent home.  Most assignments or paperwork sent home is not completed or returned to school because the parents are not educated, literate or knowledgeable about the resources available within the community.  This is a common practice whether you are speaking regarding the Hispanic or Black population.  Several teachers, within our school, view parents as lazy, not interested in their children’s well-being, uneducated, and continue to want to be supported by the system (those who do and want to work).

     Recently I had several students (5) to qualify for receiving services through the special education department.  However, three of the parents did not speak English and the students were also receiving services through the ELL (English Learning Program). When the students were given the paperwork to take home regarding the meeting date and time their teachers informed me that “hopefully you’ll be able to get some response because we have not all year, maybe they are too busy taking care of their many children to come out and see about this one”.  It was after this comment that I called the parent, who did speak little English to invite them personally to the meeting.  After several days and no response on the notice, I visited our school’s ELL teacher and asked that she call the parents to see if they in fact were attending the meeting and if they needed a translator.  By the next morning, she was responding that the mother would attend and she would be there to translate interpret, and explain the purpose of the meeting and the services her child would receive. After witnessing and imagining how difficult it must have been for this parent, to speak little English and be in a room of six other adults, who did not understand her or her feelings, I thought how lonely it must feel.  It was at this moment that I scribbled a note to our Director that we could start by making this transition easier for non-English speaking parents would be to translate our meeting notice.  She immediately agreed and had it scanned, translated, and distributed to all schools within a few days. 

     I can vividly recall experiencing racism growing up from those within and outside of my race.  I can still hear the names of “blighty” (black/white), albino (because of my lighter complexion and red hair) and not having anyone to express my feelings too. Teachers were not compassionate in that they often triggered the name calling as they would often say, “Hmmm what color would you use to color yourself”.  It is my hope that we lay the foundation in instilling in our little children the value and acceptance of being different and unique while also acknowledging our likenesses.  When we as educators and adults have more information about who we are educating, we strive to provide the proper resources to become well-informed.  Gonzalez-Mena (2008) tells us, we cannot educate or care for the child without taking the family into consideration.  As teachers and leaders within the community, we must see to it that we are embracing all without stereotyping and thinking negatively about others before we know the facts. 

References:

Gonzalez-Mena, J. (2008). Foundations of early childhood education. Teaching children in diverse setting. 4^th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

United States Census. 2012. Retrieved from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13/1331096.html