Through our blog assingments we were asked to make contact with two international professionals in the field of early childhood education. I made 3 contacts to international professionals and did not receive a response from anyone. I was really looking forward to hearing from someone in South Africa to find out how childcare is being met in that country. I am not sure if the international contacts that we were given are aware that students would be contacting them to get information. I feel that it should have been setup prior to our assignment and it would have been easier to communicate with them.
Although I did not make contact with an international professional, I did enjoy reading the post from my colleagues who did get information. By reading their post, it gave me a pictorial of what is happening in their country. But I also gained valuable information from the alternate path of international contact. By reading about China's poverty and to get information on the World Conference that was held in Russia in 2010 that focused on poverty and hunger, gave me a better understanding of globally what is being done to help children that are in poverty.
A lot of times we get caught up in what is happening here in America and forget that all children around the world is suffering and the need for better early childhood education is needed. This assignment opened my eyes and gave me the opportunity to learn about other countries and how they are focusing on young children. I look forward to learning more about global initiatives and how I can be a part of it as I pursue my goal of becoming a professional in the field.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Getting to know your international contacts - Part 3 Alternate
Once again since I have not made contact with an international educator I went to the UNESCO website where I found some interesting things that the organization is involved in in relations to early childhood. Since one of my professional goals is professional development, I looked at articles that were reflective of my goal.
1) The first World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education took place in Moscow, Russia Federation on September 27-29, 2010. They addressed the topic of every child getting a good start in life. They looked at how to prepare children to transition from home to school and how to develop in society. UNESCO and the City of Moscow sponsored the conference where over 1,000 participants attended.
2) On June 24-25, 2010 in Moscow, Russian Federation there was an international conference that addressed developing teacher training policies. Education ministries (I like that title) from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and the Russian Federation have been invited. The conference gave those countries ideas and tools to help plan and manage ECCE programs especially those for disadvantage groups. The conference lead into the World Conference held in September 2010.
3) The UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Childhood (Oct. 2004) gave information on the two core professions - Teacher and pedagogue. In New Zealand, Spain, and Sweden the teacher is the core profession but in other Nordic countries, pedagogue are the core professionals. Pedagogy is a tradition in Continental Europe where they address the whole child. Sweden in 2001 changed the workforce by bringing the three education professions together ( pre-school, school teacher, and pedagogue). They are now considerd teachers working with children from birth - 19 yrs old. Danish pedagogues are not school teachers but professionals who work with all children. All countries with core professions have assistants working with early childhood services. Workers in early childhood services in all countries have the challenge of changing of the core profession being looked at as a subsitute mother, looked upon as less socially valued (even with a higher education), and the comparable pay and conditions of core profession to those school teachers.
It was enlightening to find that throughout our world we all have the same challenges on what is best for our children and how early childhood educators can best help all children have an advantage in life.
Reference:
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood
Moss, P. (2004). The Early Childhood Workforce in 'Developed' Countries: Basic Structures and Education. UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Childhood. Thomas Coram Reserach Unit Institute of Education University of London.
1) The first World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education took place in Moscow, Russia Federation on September 27-29, 2010. They addressed the topic of every child getting a good start in life. They looked at how to prepare children to transition from home to school and how to develop in society. UNESCO and the City of Moscow sponsored the conference where over 1,000 participants attended.
2) On June 24-25, 2010 in Moscow, Russian Federation there was an international conference that addressed developing teacher training policies. Education ministries (I like that title) from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and the Russian Federation have been invited. The conference gave those countries ideas and tools to help plan and manage ECCE programs especially those for disadvantage groups. The conference lead into the World Conference held in September 2010.
3) The UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Childhood (Oct. 2004) gave information on the two core professions - Teacher and pedagogue. In New Zealand, Spain, and Sweden the teacher is the core profession but in other Nordic countries, pedagogue are the core professionals. Pedagogy is a tradition in Continental Europe where they address the whole child. Sweden in 2001 changed the workforce by bringing the three education professions together ( pre-school, school teacher, and pedagogue). They are now considerd teachers working with children from birth - 19 yrs old. Danish pedagogues are not school teachers but professionals who work with all children. All countries with core professions have assistants working with early childhood services. Workers in early childhood services in all countries have the challenge of changing of the core profession being looked at as a subsitute mother, looked upon as less socially valued (even with a higher education), and the comparable pay and conditions of core profession to those school teachers.
It was enlightening to find that throughout our world we all have the same challenges on what is best for our children and how early childhood educators can best help all children have an advantage in life.
Reference:
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood
Moss, P. (2004). The Early Childhood Workforce in 'Developed' Countries: Basic Structures and Education. UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Childhood. Thomas Coram Reserach Unit Institute of Education University of London.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Sharing Resources
I viewed the National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI) Child Health Talk Spring issue. There was an article entitled "How can children be obese and hungry at the same time?". In 2001 13% of children between 2-18 years old were considered overweight. Since then the word "overweight" has been changed to "obese" and the number has increased from 13% to 17%. For black children who are obese the numbers are 22.7% for girls and 17.3% for boys.
Along with obesity is the rise of food insecurity - households that struggle to put food on the table. About 35% of Africian-American children families are struggling to put and keep food on the table. Dr. Bill Deitz was the first person to explore obesity and in 1995 had a publication that offered a theory that "the body's desire to hold onto calories in times of plendty in anticipation of upcoming scarcity and/or the possible over-reliance on higher calorie foods that are often cheaper". Both hunger and obseity can be a result of low-income and not living in an area where healthy foods are available. Fast-food chain are plentous but offer little nutrition.
The article enlighten me that there is a call to look closely at low-income children and their dietary needs that I am providing them at my school. We have started a vegetable garden so that children can watch vegetable grow and have the ability to eat their harvest. Fresh fruits and vegetables may not be available at home daily but we can provide the means instead of can goods that will help in a healthier body and hopefully help reduce obesity. I really enjoyed the articel and would recommend to others to read.
Resource:
Askew, W.L. (2011). How can children be obese and hungry at the same time? Child Health Talk. retrieved from http://www.nbcdi.org/ on April 9, 2011
Along with obesity is the rise of food insecurity - households that struggle to put food on the table. About 35% of Africian-American children families are struggling to put and keep food on the table. Dr. Bill Deitz was the first person to explore obesity and in 1995 had a publication that offered a theory that "the body's desire to hold onto calories in times of plendty in anticipation of upcoming scarcity and/or the possible over-reliance on higher calorie foods that are often cheaper". Both hunger and obseity can be a result of low-income and not living in an area where healthy foods are available. Fast-food chain are plentous but offer little nutrition.
The article enlighten me that there is a call to look closely at low-income children and their dietary needs that I am providing them at my school. We have started a vegetable garden so that children can watch vegetable grow and have the ability to eat their harvest. Fresh fruits and vegetables may not be available at home daily but we can provide the means instead of can goods that will help in a healthier body and hopefully help reduce obesity. I really enjoyed the articel and would recommend to others to read.
Resource:
Askew, W.L. (2011). How can children be obese and hungry at the same time? Child Health Talk. retrieved from http://www.nbcdi.org/ on April 9, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
International Contact - Part 2
I am sorry to say that I still have not heard from an international contact but I am happy to report from the Global Initative from Harvard University.
Un Buen Comienzo (A Good Start) is a collaborative project in Santiago, Chile to improve the quality of early childhood education through teacher professional development. I like the name of this project because when teachers provide "a good start" for young children, they are setting a foundation for success in their lives. Their goal is to have the project in 60 schools and they currently have international actors and actresses to work in the project for a two year commitment. The Center on the Developing Child provides some funds for the project.
Jack Shonkoff, the director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University was the keynote speaker at the first World Conference on Early Child Care and Education which convened in Moscow, Russia on Sept. 2010. He spoke about brain science in relations to child development. The conference focus was on meeting the 2015 Millennium Development Goals that were setup in 2000. The goals consisted of ending poverty and hunger, every child worldwide has the opportunity to complete a primary education, and reducing child mortality. Director Shonkoff spoke about what "toxic stress" can do to the developing brain and how early life experiences can affect lifelong health problems.
The last insight I want to mention was the intergrated international approach to child survival, health, and development in early childhood that the Center on the Developing Child launched as the Global Children's Initiative. They want to gather researchers and practitioners from around the world to focus on:
reframing the discourse around child health and development
supporting innovative, multi-disciplinary research and demonstration projects
building leadership capacity in child development research and policy
I think this initative will help early childhood professionals to put more focus on the whole child and how globally working together to improve the health and well-being of all children around the world.
References:
Harvard University’s “Global Children’s Initiative” website (http://developingchild.harvard.edu/initiatives/global_initiative/),
Un Buen Comienzo (A Good Start) is a collaborative project in Santiago, Chile to improve the quality of early childhood education through teacher professional development. I like the name of this project because when teachers provide "a good start" for young children, they are setting a foundation for success in their lives. Their goal is to have the project in 60 schools and they currently have international actors and actresses to work in the project for a two year commitment. The Center on the Developing Child provides some funds for the project.
Jack Shonkoff, the director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University was the keynote speaker at the first World Conference on Early Child Care and Education which convened in Moscow, Russia on Sept. 2010. He spoke about brain science in relations to child development. The conference focus was on meeting the 2015 Millennium Development Goals that were setup in 2000. The goals consisted of ending poverty and hunger, every child worldwide has the opportunity to complete a primary education, and reducing child mortality. Director Shonkoff spoke about what "toxic stress" can do to the developing brain and how early life experiences can affect lifelong health problems.
The last insight I want to mention was the intergrated international approach to child survival, health, and development in early childhood that the Center on the Developing Child launched as the Global Children's Initiative. They want to gather researchers and practitioners from around the world to focus on:
reframing the discourse around child health and development
supporting innovative, multi-disciplinary research and demonstration projects
building leadership capacity in child development research and policy
I think this initative will help early childhood professionals to put more focus on the whole child and how globally working together to improve the health and well-being of all children around the world.
References:
Harvard University’s “Global Children’s Initiative” website (http://developingchild.harvard.edu/initiatives/global_initiative/),
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