Time Well Spent

Deeply Felt

I cannot believe I am at the end of the road, this has been an extremely insightful program and I am so glad I decided to take it here at Walden. Three things that I learned and that are deeply felt include better communication skills, how to include the diversity of my children in my classroom, and how to better service my families.

Long Term Goal

One long term goal that I have is to obtain my Doctorate in Early Childhood. I have not yet decided what school I may go through or when because after being in school and working for the last 10 years, I really need some time to myself and my own family. However, this is something that I realized I wanted to do after obtaining my associate degree years ago. I do know that I want my degree to be in the Early Childhood field so that I may better not only myself, but my children and families as well.

Farewell Message

I cannot believe the time has come to say goodbye. I remember my first class with Walden and thinking “what am I doing?, can I really do this?, will it really help me?” Well I might not have realized it at the time, but the last almost 2 years has been a great investment in not just my future but the children and their families as well. I do not think that I knew how much that I would learn with regards to diversity in the early childhood field; however, it was time well spent. I am looking forward to a break; I have been working on various degrees since 2003. However, I will miss the discussions and blogs that kept us communicating and learning. I will also miss the support and comments from all of you, you have all helped me get this far and I will never forget that. Thank you so much. I hope that you all continue on and do great things in the early childhood field and it really would be nice if one day we did get to work together on a project that will better our field.

Good luck everyone, you will be missed.

Dr. Dartt, thank you for being understanding with me especially at the end, I know I drove you crazy with all my questions but I truly appreciate all the comments and feedback because it brought me to the point where I can finally breathe.

Favorite Quote

“The most effective kind of education is that a child should play amongst lovely things.” ~ Plato (Greek philosopher)

“Play is the highest form of research.” ~ Albert Einstein (scientist)

Quotes about learning and play. (n.d.) Child's Play Magazine. Retrieved from

           http://www.childsplaymagazine.com/Quotes/index.htm

I could not choose between the two quotes as to which one I loved more. The reason why these quotes stood out to me is because of who they are from. These are not resent quotes, these men have not been alive for a long time; however, the truth in their words are as inspiring today as they were when first spoken.

 

 

 

 

 

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

International Organizations:

International Step By Step Association (ISSA)

The first organization I chose is the International Step By Step Association. I was amazed by the web site and found that I loved the things that they do for the early childhood community across the globe. The “ISSA supports a wide array of programs that collectively provide a comprehensive set of educational services and advocacy tools intended to influence policy reform for families and children, with a special focus on the years from birth through primary school” (International Step By Step Association, n.d.). I also was very impressed with the fact that they have trainings for educators through their web site. This is important because continuing training is essential for all teachers. There is also a sample of course activity on the site for educators to examine and see if this is something that interests them.

United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

The second organization I chose was the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. I chose the UNESCO because of the fact that they are working toward “conditions for dialogue among civilizations, cultures and peoples, based upon respect for commonly shared values” (United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, 2011). This is important to me because of the work they are doing for cultural diversity as well as other areas in the early childhood field. They also focus on the following:

Africa

Gender equality

Attaining quality education for all and lifelong learning

Mobilizing science knowledge and policy for sustainable development

Addressing emerging social and ethical challenges

Fostering cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and a culture of peace

Building inclusive knowledge societies through information and communication

(United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, 2011).

Save the Children

The third organization I chose is Save the Children. This is an organization that I am interested in more than just doing homework. I have bookmarked this page not for future reference or to help me finish this program, but so that I can get involved in their work. This site touched my heart and I hope that I continue to follow this site for a long time. “Save the Children gives children in the United States and around the world what every child deserves – a healthy start, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. When disaster strikes, we put children's needs first. We advocate for and achieve large-scale change for children” (Save the Children, 2011). Save the Children also focuses on education, health and nutrition, HIV/AIDS, hunger, newborn and child survival, protecting children and more.

International Step By Step Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.issa.nl/index.html

Save the Children. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm

United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2011). Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/about-us/who-we-are/introducing-unesco/

Job opportunities:

I am still very interested in working for Head Start on a national level, such as National Head Start Association or Head Start Bureau. These agencies are all related; however, are in different areas of the US. I have also found that if I worked for the US Department of Health and Human Services, I could apply to work for the Administration of Children and their Families. There headquarters are positioned in Washington, DC.

As I was researching positions for Head Start on higher levels, the majority stated that a Master’s in Early Childhood is a must along with excellent written and verbal skills, able to encourage and practice critical thinking, self-reflective and empathic, respectful and accepting approach to others, works collaboratively and creatively with others at all levels and areas.