Time Well Spent

It’s hard to believe that this part of my journey is coming to an end!  In a way it is much like the end of the school year, a bit bittersweet!  I’m happy that I completed another degree, but it is sad that school is ending.  As this part of my journey is complete, I can only wonder where I will go from here…

Some deeply felt learnings from this program are knowing that with perseverance and support I can accomplish what I set out to accomplish.  I can be an advocate for children and it is a very important part of what I do.  I may not be ready to set out on my own, but there are groups that I can become a part of and learn from.  I have also learned that I have what it takes to be a leader.  I do not have to know everything about it, I can learn and it is alright to make mistakes.  This past year has shown me that I am capable of so much more than I ever gave myself credit for.  Another thing I learned based on this capstone project is that it took kindergarten teachers many, many years to be considered equal to public school teachers.  As early childhood professionals, we have many, many years for achieve this same outcome. 

With the knowledge that it took so long for kindergarten teachers to be equals, my long term goal is to continue to advocate for worthy wages and to see the progress we can make during my lifetime.  I also want to continue to keep learning and putting what I learn into practice, to be leader and an advocate in the early childhood field.

As I stated, it is hard to believe that this program is coming to an end.  I wish all the best to the people I have met along the way.  It seems that we have found our voices and learned how to be an agent of social change.  I hope that we can go out and use this knowledge to change things that we can and advocate for the children and families we serve.  I would also like to thank the instructors throughout my time here at Walden.  There have been many that have helped me see my potential.  I have learned so much with their guidance.  Thank you to all who have touched my life…I wish you all the best!

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

There are many international organizations that support early childhood around the world.  The first one I found is the World Organization for Early Childhood Education.  This organization has committees in over 60 countries including one here in the USA.  Membership includes a variety of people from a wide array of professions such as teachers, doctors, lawyers, students, parents, and many more.  These people work at the local, national, and international level to advocate for the world’s children and families in regards to health, development, rights, and education (World Organization for Early Childhood Education, n.d.).  They also join to celebrate UN International Peace Day, Global Handwashing Day, and Universal Children’s Day.   They have sent supplies to other countries and worked closer to home in New Orleans.  This appears to be a great organization that supports early childhood education.  As I searched this site, I was unable to locate any career opportunities, but there was information on becoming a member.  More information can be found at:  http://www.omep-usnc.org/

The second organization I looked at is ICF International.  This organization is not just about early childhood education, but they “partners with government and commercial clients to deliver professional services and technology solutions in the energy, environment, and infrastructure; health, social programs, and consumer/financial; and public safety and defense markets” (ICF International, 2013).  They work to find and implement solutions and services that will protect and improve the quality of life (ICFI, 2013).  They strive for passion, expertise, and results.  There work in early childhood is in part implementing new standards for providers.  Their Early Education Services (EES) launched a project in India in 2007 to tackle many issues there.  They need national standards for early childhood education, licensing and accreditation system, resource and referral system, and professional development systems in place.  This organization had quite a listing of jobs and career opportunities.  There were many with Head Start, including an administrative support specialist.  This job is out of Atlanta, GA and I have the preferred skills of a bachelor degree and experience working within a Head Start program.  I do not have the experience of providing office and administrative support in a fast-paced environment and I have not charted or graphed outcome data.  These are all things I could learn and get accustomed to and familiar with though.  The thought of relocating would be scary to me!  More information can be found at:  http://www.icfi.com/.

The third organization is Mercy Corps.  This organization is based out of Portland, Oregon.  They work to “alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just communities” (Mercy Corps, 2013).  They put out their accountability to stake holders which has many similarities to our code of ethics.  They promise to act ethically, be respectful of others, are open about what they do, allow stakeholders to be a part of the process, promise to use feedback to improve services (Mercy Corps, 2013).  They work here in the United States and many other countries around the world.  This organization had a lot of career opportunities here in the United States and in other countries.  Unfortunately, I did not find one that I would like to apply for or one that I was familiar with and would not need new skills and knowledge for.  I would like to learn more about their volunteer opportunities.  More information can be found at http://www.mercycorps.org

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

The first national organization I chose is, the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE).  The members of this organization come from the United States and many other countries.  They come together to promote teacher education and preparation.  They had several job opportunities listed in their employment section.  There was one job that caught my interest and that would be a Mentor Teacher at Tufts University in Massachusetts.  I meet the basic requirements and many of the preferred qualifications.  Having more experience in a supervisory role would be helpful in this position and having greater experience with Reggio Emilia and the Project Approach would also be helpful. 

The second organization is, the National Head Start Association (NHSA).  Since returning to work when my baby entered kindergarten I have worked for Head Start in a variety of capacities.  I believe in this program and what it stands for.  Their vision is to lead.  “To be the untiring voice that will not be quiet until every vulnerable child is served with the Head Start model of support for the whole child, the family and the community”.  To advocate, “To work diligently for policy and institutional changes that ensure all vulnerable children and families have what they need to succeed” (National Head Start Association [NHSA], n.d.).  They have a wide range of positions available across the United States.  Unfortunately they have no open positions with NHSA.  I am not up for relocating, so I believe I will stick close to home and look for a position at a local Head Start agency.  I would love to be an education coordinator or perhaps a site supervisor.  I have the qualifications that are needed for either of these positions and when an opening becomes available, I will be applying.

The third organization I chose is, the Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family Mental Health (TA).  This is a partnership collaboration between the American Institutes for Research and the National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health.  This organization has several CoP, including an early childhood CoP.  There were no job opportunities with this organization, but many ways to be involved and many resources to read and use. 

 References  

National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (n.d.).  Retrieved June 1, 2013 from http://www.naecte.org/

National Head Start Association (n.d.).  Retrieved June 1, 2013 from http://www.nhsa.org/

Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family Mental Health (n.d.).  Retrieved June 1, 2013 from http://www.tapartnership.org/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

The first organization that appealed to me was the Michigan Association for the Education of Young Children (MiAEYC).  This agency is committed to improving the education and welfare of children from birth through age eight.  MiAEYC has a couple of local chapters in my area.  According to the website, MiAEYC works for young children, their families, and early childhood professionals. MiAEYC supports the professional development of its members through quality training, materials and services. More than 2,800 early childhood educators and suppliers of children's services belong to MiAEYC in 17 affiliate chapters and 3 local chapters. 

This organization had a couple of job opportunities including:  director of communications and chapter support and a fiscal/administrative assistant position.  Currently I am not qualified for either of these positions and I would also not be interested in either of them as well.  They also listed other job opportunities within the state. 

The second organization was the local Great Start organization; the Barry County Great Start Collaborative which is a partnership of community agencies and early childhood providers who get together to establish and maintain a network of supports and services for young children and families.  They work to engage community partners in planning and coordinating services, promote community awareness of early childhood issues, and advocate for quality early childhood programs and services. 

There were no job opportunities listed on this sight, but there is contact information for the existing members to contact about events or possibly becoming a member. 

The third agency I looked into was my local Department of Human Services.  This is our state agency that works to help families with food, child care, medical, and much more.  I had not considered this as someplace that I would like to work, but when I think about helping children and families I was drawn to this site.  I have been on the other side of the desk asking for help and being treated poorly, I would like to sit on the other side and treat families with respect. 

There were two openings that were in my area, Assistance Payments Worker 8-E10 Mid-Michigan Counties which requires a two year degree and which I could possibly qualify for and Service Specialist 9-P11 Mid-Michigan Counties, my bachelor degree would give me the education; I just lack the experience they are looking for with this position. 

Another consideration I have would be to become a licensing consultant for child care in my state.  There are currently no positions, but it is something I may consider in my future. 

Thank You!!!

Just want to say thank you to everyone for sharing their knowledge, experiences, and insights throughout this course.  I have learned some new skills that I will be putting to work in the classroom and in my own life.  I am facing new challenges in communication and this course has been very helpful.  I hope you all have success as you continue to pursue your degree and look forward to communicating with many of you in future courses.  Good luck to you all!

Team Building and Collaboration

One of the first groups I think of when I think of adjourning is graduating high school.  This was a group of people that I spent a lot of time with.  I formed many close friendships with these people and graduation was a celebration of our accomplishments.  We were setting out into a whole new world with new expectations and unknown adventures.  Some of the people I still talk to and some I rarely, if ever see.  It was a sad and happy time.  I have been a part of several classroom teams that did not stay together and some were hard to leave while others were easy.  The harder ones were the ones where we were high-performing and there was trust, exceptance, and support for everyone.  I am still friends with a couple of the teachers I worked with through the years because of the bonds we made in the classroom.  I also remember being part of an Early Reading First grant and how we had a celebratory dinner when the grant ended.  It was sad because I had to find new employment and because I was going to miss doing what I had done and working with the people I had worked with.  It was also wonderful because so many of the teachers had learned so much and had come so far with the support of the Early Reading First team.  It was good to know that they had the skills they needed to continue what they had learned. 

The hardest group to leave was my current employer.  I was part of an amazing organization and after having a seizure I could no longer do one of my job functions and was forced to look elsewhere for work.  I loved the organization and hated to leave.  One good thing was my determination to go back.  I began working on getting my degree in child development and I am happy to say that I am back with that organization only to find that things are about to change dramatically. 

As far as closing rituals, I have experienced many dinners and a few graduations.  I imagine that I will adjourn from the group of colleagues in my Master's degree program with some sad goodbyes, but also knowing that we all still have our blogs and we can communicate with one another if we need to.  I think adjourning is essential because we need to look back on our accomplishments and celebrate those and even look at our failures and what we may have overcome.  By taking time, we can see how we will move forward and perhaps how we will stay in touch with members of the group. 

Conflict Resolution

I am currently having difficulty with my assistant teacher.  She comes across quite harsh and each time I feel like I've done something good, she always points out something wrong.  We have to have families fill out new child information cards when they have a change of address and move to another center and we have a new child that will be starting this week whose parents stopped into the classroom.  While they were there I had them fill out those new cards and was feeling good about having completed this task!  When my assistant came in and saw the card, she immediately asked me who she could release the child to and why there were not more names listed.  I also have another problem with the bus driver as he gets gas almost every day during class time.  According to our policies and procedures manual, drivers are suppose to get gas before they start their day or at the end of the day.

This week, I am going to have to address these issues and I am very nervous.  I have learned this week that conflict does not have to be negative and I am hopeful that by addressing my concerns, it will open lines of communication and make us a stronger team.  I also know that I do not want to make my assistant or driver feel like I am attacking them, so I will be as empathetic as I can and make use of I statements.  We also have to be mindful of the needs of the children in the classroom. 

Something that stuck out this week in my reading was from The Third Side; "people want to be recognized and respected for who they are".  I know that I want to be recognized and given positive feedback and I do my best to let my staff know how much I appreciate what they do each day and especially when they put forth extra effort.  Our bus driver is new to our program and is still learning every day.  He is starting to interact more with the children and even attempted to do an assessment on a very challenging child the other day.  I have to give him kudos for all he is doing!  I need my staff to also understand that I need to have some of this same kind of positive recognition as well.  I love how the children let me know they love me, but I am struggling to get any positive interactions with my assistant which could make for a very long year. 

I hope that I have the skills to approach this conflict and have a good outcome.  Cross your fingers for me please! 

I have a colleague that has worked in early childhood for a long time and she shared with me that it took her awhile to be able to approach conflict well.  It is still not something that she enjoys, but with her new role as a center supervisor, she may find herself dealing with conflict even more.  In this new role, she sees herself more as a mediator and sometimes arbitrator.