It is hard to believe that another semester is coming to an end so soon! My overall experience in EDUC 8853 has been positive. I have gained knowledge and perspectives from my peers that have helped me grow as an early childhood scholar and practitioner. I have also had the chance to explore various media, and create a presentation through Kaltura for the first time. This experience was both frustrating and rewarding!
Course Material
There are 3 specific topics covered in the course material that I have most enjoyed. The first topic is identity development. I enjoyed exploring contextual factors that influenced who I am today. I have a better understanding of how contextual factors influence young children's identity development after examining my own identity development. Young children who are trying to create their own identity face the challenge of being influenced by "isms." When children are faced with misinformation about who they are and what they should do, it creates difficulty for the child's identity development (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).
The second topic involves overcoming bias and recognizing unintentional microagressions. Bias occurs in the early childhood setting both intentionally and unintentionally. Bias influences identity development and interactions in early childhood. Unfortunately, many early childhood programs and our education system as a whole, both reinforce and reproduce bias (Duke & McCarthy, 2009). The reinforcement and reproduction of these biases emerge through internalized privileges and oppression (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). I was intrigued how unintentional microagressions occur on a daily basis. People on the receiving end of microagressions must deal with psychological stressors. According to Dr. Dearld Wing Sue, microagressions are not usually meant to offend or insult a person, but the hidden messages that are communicated cause psychological stress to a person (Laureate Education, 2011).
The third topic I most enjoyed was building reciprocal relationships with families. I believe the most important step in building reciprocal relationships with families is getting to know each individual family. This would include finding out which cultural group the family identifies with, what language they speak at home, what language they prefer, as well as what type of communication they are most comfortable with, and most importantly, if the family is in need of an interpreter (Hanson & Lynch, 2013). These would be important details to inquire about prior to the start of the school year, and I believe a short orientation meeting would be most beneficial for determining this information.
Applicable Practices
I believe building reciprocal relationships with families while practicing anti-bias education is the most applicable to my work as an early childhood professional. Early childhood professionals must place an emphasis on cultural sensitivity within their programs, as well as changing needs. Knopf and Swick (2008), examined the changing needs of families in our society and provided research based practices for implementing positive family involvement. Early childhood professionals must be tuned in to families changing dynamics, and understand the challenges of these changes. These topics would also have a big impact on creating positive social change for children and families.
References
Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J.O. (2010. Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves.
Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Duke, T.S., & McCarthy, K.W. (2009). Homophobia, sexism, and early childhood education: A
review of the literature. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 30, 385-405.
Hanson, M.J., & Lynch, E.W. (2013). Understanding families: Approaches to diversity, disability,
and risk. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Knopf, H., & Swick, K. (2008). Using our understanding of families to strengthen family
involvement. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35, 419-427.
Laureate Education (Producer). (2011). Microagressions in everyday life. [Video file]. Retrieved
November 15, 2013, from https://www.class.waldenu.edu.
Johanna,
ReplyDeleteThere were so many aspects about this course that have influenced me over the past 16 weeks and it is hard to sit down and discuss the all. I believe I have gained something positive from each discussion and project presented. There have been some frustrations along the way but the positive far outweighs any negative.
I took the information we learned about microaggressions and presented it to my teachers because I wanted us to begin looking at possible biases that exist in the school. It is remarkable how well they received the inservices I presented on microaggressions and biases. In fact, the other day I was in a casual conversation with four of the teachers when one of them made a comment toward a child in the school. Another teacher spoke up and pointed out his microaggression toward the child. We laughed at the fact that now the teachers are becoming more aware of microaggressions. This class has impacted the teachers at my school because now we are all more aware of the things we say and how they will be received.
Darla