Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope I have when working with a diverse population is to always find that human connection needed between me and the family in order to make them feel I care enough for them....... this includes giving them the repect and empowerement they need to become the whole person they have the potential to be. .

Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as though you were working for your real master and not merely for humans…… translation from Colossians 3:23

One goal I would like to set for the Early Childhood field related to social justice and equity is that every educator, administrator, parent, and anyone around the child is aware that there is not one “bad “ , “unworthy”, or “unclean” child out there . When a child is born it is a blessing that comes pure to us like blank pages in a book. it is up to us what we write in those pages and what memories we create in that child’s mind to retain for the rest of their lives.

I want to thank all of my colleagues for their comments and for being part of my intellectual growth through the sharing of your personal stories, experiences, opinions, and knowledge.  I wish you all many blessings in both your professional and personal endeavors you might embark on in the future!

Welcoming Families From Around theWorld

The fictitious family I chose is from China.

Five ways in which I can help them directly is to;

1.     Empower the parents and the student. I will make sure I recognize the strengths and focus on the strengths to combat the weaknesses.

2.     Link them to available resources. This is important because many parents feel totally lost when they are in a country that is not their country of origin. As an educator, I can build a database that will allow me to share resources of people I have networked in the past with which that can help these parents.

3.     Respect their culture and customs. To achieve this I will incorporate materials into the class that reflects such customs and observes them.

4.     Become better versed and informed about their traditions. To do this I must read, research, and interact and ask the family questions. I can also do this in the form of questionnaires.

5.     Create an environment where they feel welcome and there is no place for oppression and marginalization. These preparations will benefit me and the family because we will both learn new things about each other and we will have collaborative communication where we both feel at ease. I can increase my knowledge by keeping up with up to date information of what is going on in their country.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

The memory that I experienced as a child feeling oppressed was when a teacher in summer school would not want me in the swim team. After many try outs, another mother told my mother that she did not want me because I did not have blonde hair and my complexion was not as white like the other five girls so I would stand out. As a 12 year old child, this made me think my hair color was ugly. Although I felt this oppression, this also gave me the determination to keep trying until the coach eventually recognized my talent and allowed me to be part of the team. Incidents such as these during my childhood allowed me to become the resilient person that I am now. I never felt sorry for myself but instead I always felt like I had to prove to the world that I was better than how they perceived me. This fostered in me leadership skills and helped me endure a world of discrimination and prejudice. My main protection factor was my family’s love around me all the time this was going on. I never felt ashamed of who I was or felt inferior to anyone, like I had mentioned in the past, I was not aware I was poor because in my mind I was always rich with a beautiful family and a childhood full of laughter.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

A microaggression is any verbal behavior or action that leaves an individual with feelings of inferiority. Sometimes people do this unconsciously and do not mean any harm as such was the way with one student I had.

While subbing, I was teaching in middle school a science class when a student told me it was okay to talk in Spanish. After I asked him why, he said "because I see you "struggling". He was referring to my accent when he mentioned "struggling". I acted defensive and told him that I was not struggling because I had been speaking English for the last 38 years. ALthough this student did not mean any harm, unintentionally he made me feel inferior.Yes, I do have an accent which I do not want to get rid of. My husband even finds it sexy. in this occassion I was the recipient of a microinsult.

My perception has been changed when it comes to cases like these now. After reading the required reasources, I understand the students behavior better. If I would of read the resources before this happenned, I would of reacted in a totally different way and not defensive.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

The person I interviewed for this assignment is a coworker who comes from Saudi Arabia. Her name is Mrs.Ansari. Her definition of culture is everything that encompasses her since the minute she was born up to the day I was standing in fron of her asking this question. The aspect of culture discontinuity was included in our conversation because although she did not mention this term, she stated that many of her customs had to be left behind when she came to the United States 20 years ago. One very important thing for females in her culture is to always have her hair hidden. She mentioned is extremely disrespectful for them to show their hair in public to someone else besides her husband, Other males should not see her hair, it wold be the equivalent of an American woman showing her breast in public as stated by her.  My thinking after talking to her is that everyone has their very valid reasons to do what they do. To some people that don't understand this, the custom might seem pointless; but it is in these situations that we must understand and respect everyone. I thought it was very sad that she mentioned her daughter being bullied at school because she was "different". Mrs.Ansari then explained that Saudi Arabia women are professionals just like American woman and they should not be perceived as submissive woman or sometimes even called "abused wives". To Mrs.Ansari, she describes herself as an independent very intelligent professional and not as a victim of abuse.

My Family Culture

 

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. 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 can only take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you hold dear and that represent your family culture.....

If I was in this dire situation my choice of the 3 items would be my Bible, my guitar, and one of the hundreds of photo albums I have.

I would take my Bible because I understand that there are parts of the world where Christianity is not accepted, or is illegal.Therefore;I could probably end up in a country who does not know Jesus Christ. By not having a church to attend, my Bible would be very important to me to help me stay connected to the Word. If I were asked to describe this I would tell the person aking that I fervently believe in God's promises and I would have the Bible to refer to everyday.

I would take my guitar because it is a guitar made by the hands of my father specially personalized for me. I grew up listening to my father play the guitar and at some point in his life, the guitar was his instrument to earn a living. My father would walk to different restaurants and play songs and accept tips from the people dinning.Although this happened before I was born, everytime I see a guitar I remember him and I am very grateful God chose him as my father. Growing up,I can remember all the family reunions with my father singing with my uncles and playing the guitar and accordion. The guitar brings very sweet memories to me and I love my guitar because it was handmade and crafted with love specifically for me.

The third item I would take would be a photo album. In this photo album, I would place photos of relatives I would no longer see and of memories of happy times. This album would help me remember my very happy life in the United States I once had.

If upon arrival was told I could only keep 1 item.......

I would definetely keep my Bible. This one book would ensure me that I have something to look forward to and that I am not and never will be alone, no matter what part of the world I am in.

The insights I gained from this assignment is that material things are not important but what we hold in our minds is. I have my very special guitar but it is only an object. I have my father who I love dearly and whom I can count on for a shoulder to cry on if I need it or someone to put up with my laughter or silliness over dumb things....

When I think of research.........

I think that although  research is very complex and involves many steps, it is undeniably necessary for any society to improve their lifestyles and learn how to confront social issues.From now on when I read something that is backed up by evidence based research I will be more appreciative of all the work that entails.

My ideas of the nature of conducting research have changed because now I can see any topic can have many variables and although researchers try to make it specific, those extraneous variables will always be present in any situation.

The lessons I learned in the planning of Early Childhood is that the researcher must have very strong ethics, work collaboratively with other researchers, and always be open for unexpected outcomes.

The challenges I encountered were the terms used because before this course I was not very familiar with many of them. The way I faced these challenges was by doing further research on the terms and not just what the textbook offered. Sometimes the terms can be more understandable when they are simply worded differently.

My perceptions of an Early Childhood professional have not changed. I always knew that individuals who work in this profession are hard worker dedicated individuals who want to make a difference in tomorrow’s generation. And now, all of the students from this class are joining them in this worldwide effort, including me.