Professional Hopes and Goals (Week 8)

One hope that I have when working with children and families who come diverse backgrounds is to show them love and support. As an early childhood professional I absolutely love working with children and its love that motivates myself to help families and children. I truly hope that I can continue to display love and support so the children I encounter can feel safe and happy. Children learn best when they are happy, parents are more at ease when they know children are safe, and supporting each other makes teaching children more effective.

One goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field relating to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is that we all embrace, respect, and understand that are amongst a nation that is diversified. "Diversity is the one thing we all have in common, celebrate it everyday" ~unknown author. No one should be treated differently about their race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, disability, or social economic status. I feel that ignorance and discrimination steps in when people lack understanding of one another. If we all strive to learn more about each other diversity wouldn't be such a bad thing. However, it takes "US" to create change. One thing I learned in this course is that "RACISM is TAUGHT"!!!! People are not born with ignorance they are taught ignorance. So I believe that if people can taught ignorance they also can be taught love, manners, and an understanding of different cultures

I want to take this time to thank all my colleagues for reading my discussion post and blog assignments, for providing ways that I can better myself, and for being real. I want to especially thank Michelle because each week I was eager to read her blog or discussion post. I learned through her that its OK to different even if it means your difference leave you standing alone. As we were doing this assignments her comments and answers were always different and not really having similar experiences like the rest of the class and I absolutely love it. Thank Michelle for being YOU!!! Jessica thank you for your open mind and I truly hope that I can meet you one day and give you great big hug for being successful and overcoming obstacles in your life. You are truly an inspiration. Thank you Professor Davenna Williams for not just teaching the class but providing new ideas of how we can be better educators. Wish everyone much success in their next class. I changed my ECE program and I looked at my next class and didn't see any of your names so farewell until GRADUATION!!!!!

Welcoming Families from Around the World (Week 7)

The country of my choice is Kenya. In preparing myself to be culturally responsive I would first research and learn background of the country. Learning about the language, culture, how they interact, what foods they and what type of clothing they wear will prepare myself to be receptive of who they are.

The second thing I would do is take a language course online that will help me learn the basic terms of their language like Hi, yes, no, please, thank you, welcome, food. drink, family, children, etc. In Kenya their native language is Swahili. However, they speak English also. In some parts of Kenya their is a new language called "Sheng" which is a language that is a mixture of Swahili and English. So although some may speak English I want to understand Swahili to let the family know I acknowledge their language and make them feel welcome.

The third thing I would do is prepare my classroom so that they can see things from their country. In my current classroom everything is labeled in English and Spanish. I would add their language to the labels so that the children can have a better understanding of identifying things in the classroom. Also, I will post paintings from their country.

The fourth thing I would do is prepare arts and crafts, music and movement, and language activities pertaining to Kenya in my curriculum so that not only am I learning about Kenya but the other children are learning as well. While it is important for myself to relate to the children, the other children in the classroom need to be able to communicate as well. The activities will help everyone get to know another and become more familiar with the language.

The fifth thing I would do is have a welcome to the classroom meeting with all the families. In the meeting I will have all parents welcome the Kenya family and share things about the community that help the Kenya family like shopping centers, local clinics, hospital, library, etc. In addition, I will create a pamphlet with information about child care services such as W.I.C, public assistant food stamps, health insurance, and housing.

I feel that these preparations will help the family feel welcome and little more at ease about coming to a different country. Physically seeing their country paintings, language, and clothing will hopefully give them a sense that we "members of the community" care. Having activities that include the culture will help the students feel comfortable about learning in a different environment. In addition, I feel that letting the family know about what services are available to them will help them get what they need to survive in this country. Many times immigrants come here and no one really help them adapt to our way of living. So hopefully the pamphlet will be a great asset to them.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

I remember watching this movie "A Time to Kill" which was about a 10 year old black girl who was violently raped and beat by two white men. Samuel L. Jackson played Carl Lee Hailey who was the father of the young black girl took justice into his own hands when he learned that the two men responsible would get off. Matthew McConaughey played Jake Brigrance who was Carl Lee lawyer and he informed Carl Lee that the men would get acquitted of the chargers due to deep-seated racism in Mississippi Delta. Carl Lee walked into the court room and shot both men that had raped his daughter. In addition, a police deputy was caught in the cross fire and as a result both his legs were amputated. Carl Lee was put on trial and this is when the story gets worse. Sandra Bullock played Ellen Roark who wants to help Jake on case as result she was beaten, tied to a stake in the wilderness in her own underwear, and left to die by KKK. The KKK also burned a cross on Jake lawn, burned down house and nearly killed his dog. These are all incidents that happen during the trial because Jake and Ellen (who are white) are helping Carl Lee (who is black) and the KKK hates blacks. In the end Jake was able to prove that Carl Lee motive to kill the rapist would have been justified in the public eye if he had been white.

The prejudice that happen in this movie that diminished equity is that KKK believed that their shouldn't have been a fair trial and that just because Carl Lee was black he should automatically be put to death. In the South KKK believed that blacks had no rights and whites ruled everything. In a similar case four white teens raped a black girl and walked away so the KKK believed that in this case the two men should have walked too just because they were white.

Watching this film made me sad. First and foremost the girl was 10 years old. The two men raped her so bad that she can't never have children. The men laughed and smiled as if what they did wasn't  wrong and that the young girl deserved it. I felt like people should never be so mean and evil. What real pleasure are you gaining from raping anybody especially a 10 year old girl. She was still a baby. I'm grateful and thankful that I didn't live in that time where blacks had no rights and many of them lived in feared of whites. The movie just really made appreciate all I have today because blacks didn't always this freedom.

If I had the ability to change anything in this film I would change the laws that allowed four teenagers to walk away from raping a girl. It wouldn't have anything to do with the color of their skin. If you do the crime you do the time. I would change the laws so that it would protect everyone and not just one color group of people. Racism is taught. I can't change the minds of members of the KKK but I would create laws that would protect the people from them. I feel like if the teenagers wasn't acquitted in the similar case than in this case it wouldn't have been any issues. By the teenagers getting acquitted it gave others the impression that "Oh if they can get away with it so can we". That just goes back to the saying of "Monkey See, Monkey Do". However, if the teenagers had went to jail maybe the other two rapist would have thought twice about raping a 10 year old girl.

Microaggressions: Are they really needed? (Week 4)

Currently, I am in the process of finalizing things for my wedding. Looking for wedding favors, table cloths, center pieces, and most of all shoes. I traveled to King of Prussia mall over this past week and went in several shoe stores. Since I am a nice person I will not mention the name of the store where I experienced microaggression. However, I walked in the store with two of my sisters (all of us are African American) and a sales clerks approach us. She says "Is there something I can help you ladies with today"? I simply replied, No thank you my sisters and I are just browsing. A mutual friend had told us that the store had a huge selection on shoes and I was sure to find a pair. After maybe 20 minutes had pass the sales person approached us again. She says, across the mall their are several stores that may fit your budget. Here we only have items for our finer customers. At the time I was not thinking about whether this was microaggression. Microagression was far from my mind. I'm thinking "Oh I know she didn't just try to say I can't afford anything in this store"! See I believe that everyone has a boss. I stood up and asked her could she direct me to her direct supervisor. I'm not about to stand in store and make a scene but what I will do is file a complaint. Not only did I talk to her direct supervisor but I also called her direct supervisor. Clearly, she shouldn't be a sales person of anything because she has inner issues that she needs to address and get help for.

In the moment that this lady microinsulted my sisters and I apart of me really wanted to tell her off. I wanted to address her rudely just like she addressed me rudely. However, I was raised differently and I still carry myself like a lady. I didn't have to scope down to her immature level nor did I have to step outside of my comfort zone. My parents taught me how speak properly and how to address insecure folks. This is why I bypassed her and spoke with her direct supervisor. First and foremost lady you don't know what I can afford, how much money I have, nor any authority to tell me to go to another store. If I came to this store it must have been for a reason. The part of her little insult that really raised an eye brow was "Here we only have items for our finer customers". Currently, as I'm writing this blog entry I'm still lost as to who the "finer customers" are? I will not assume what she meant because that will put me on her ignorant level.

This week experience was just confirmation that prejudice, discrimination, and stereotype people still exist. Learning about microaggression gave me clear understanding of just mean people are and what type of people they are. I have dealt with discrimination all my life and its not so much that I'm use to it but more so I'm better able to deal with it. I do not let it define me nor allow what people say to redirect my thinking of who I am. Telling people off always feels like the right thing to do but will it change anything? Going to her direct supervisor and district supervisor felt like something will change. Now maybe she wont change but I'm sure she will always remember the young lady who got her in trouble and got her wedding shoes for 85% off. I'm a firm believer that "If you have nothing nice to say, don't say NOTHING AT ALL!!!!

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture (Week 3)

Diversity from family and friends.....

• Diversity is the different beliefs, habits, appearances, behaviors, and opinions, and ways of thought of people and how they differ from the person standing next to them.  (African American Female, Christian)

• Diversity - being different standing out from everyone else being separate from the norm. African America Male, Muslim)

• Diversity is people of different ethnic, racial, religious, cultural, age, gender and sexual preference, and class backgrounds  (Caucasian male, Christian)

Culture from family and friends.....

•  Culture is what is in the history of your people and family. The experiences, struggles, and successes of those that came before you. It is what defines you as a people. (African American Female, Christian)

•  Culture is how you were raised, your belief. (African American Male, Muslim)

•   Culture - the way people do different things the meaning of there life (Caucasian Male, Christian)

In looking over all the answers that the three individuals gave I see that they have similarities in their definitions of culture and diversity. When I first began this course I had a very narrow definition of culture and diversity. After reviewing videos and reading over course material I have realized that culture and diversity is much broader. Its broader in the sense of culture includes more than just religion and race. Culture includes race, ethnicity, economic status, language, struggles, how you were raised, and difference in things that people do. This definition is an collaboration of the responses above as well from the readings and video segments. Diversity is what separates us from others, religious preferences, habits, behaviors, and class backgrounds. In both definitions I view culture and diversity as characteristics that makes each person their own individual. 

Culture and Diversity is very important and each person should learn about the next person culture and what makes them a diverse person. This topic has allowed to me to step outside of my comfort zone, mingle with different people, and get to know individuals who I don't know. I know African American Christians because this group of people is who I was raised around. This topic is teaching me that there are so many cultures in the nation that I need to know about especially if I want to continue to work with children. Understanding a person culture will help in building effective relationships. 

My Family Culture (Week 1)

Imagine

~A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. 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 are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, 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.

The first thing I would take is my ipod. This device is light and portable. It holds pictures, videos, and music. Inspirational and gospel music is apart of my culture. I use gospel music to express trial tribulations that I have experience through dance. I have been on my church dance ministry for over 14 years and I couldn't imagine life without music that inspire, motivate, and builds up my character. I would save as many pictures and videos that I can of my family so I can look back on the memories. Although I have memories in my mind it would still be good to have visual pictures to show other people of how my culture interact, dress, eat, and live.

The second thing I would bring family recipe book. This item is very important because it has the foods that my family eat. I'm sure everyone can make bake mac and cheese but its something about when momma makes it that gives it that amazing taste. I feel that this would be important to bring so the other cultures in the country can experience my culture food and this allow my family to eat our culture food. Pot roast, collar greens, mac and cheese, and yams is some soul food I must have at least twice a month. 

The third thing I would bring is my bible. Although I have deep knowledge of this book and its probably accessible every where I feel that I couldn't travel to another country without it. The Holy Bible has been apart of my culture since I could remember. Even as a child going to church they had children's bible that consisted of short stories from the original bible. My culture strive to live a life that is pleasing to God and the bible is guide to help be better Christians. Since my family is going to another country I think it would be important to bring the bible so we could all study together. 

So now I get to this country and they tell me I have to choose only one of my items. Picking three was already hard. Ok ok ok.... So I think I would choose the ipod. Since I can't take the family recipe book or the bible I would take photos of as many recipes as I can. My mother would be with me and I'm sure we could create as many recipes as she can remember. Since this is a new generation Ipod I would hope I'm able to get internet connection and therefore I can download the bible. Its nothing like a hard back but electronic version is just as good.

This exercise was hard and challenging because I really had to think of things that resembled my culture. I knew right away that the bible and gospel music was a major part but I had to think of ways to get it to the next country. In addition I realized just how much i love eating....HA!!! I had to say something about food. I truly love eating soul food but I also enjoy eating Caribbean food. This exercise made me appreciate the things I have and not to take nothing for granted because this situation could very well happen. Also, I asked my family members what items they would brings and their responses were hilarious. However, this assignment showed me how each person viewed our culture and we had the opportunity of creating another family memory.

When I think of Research.......

1. What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?

I have gained many insights from taking this course. One of the main things I learned is to how create a research topic, form it into a research question, and create a hypothesis. In the beginning, I was like I'm just using the same question for everything. I wasn't aware of the difference between the research question and the hypothesis. As I was forming my question I realized that initially the question was too broad and I learned how to narrow it down to be very specific. My research question was "How does standard learning in early childhood effects children social, cognitive, and emotional development"? My hypothesis was "Standard learning in early childhood can have an impact on a child social, cognitive, and emotional development". I learned that a hypothesis is an explanation of something observed or a prediction of something we expect. Also, I gained insights about informed consent with children and adults. I learned that when researching different cultures it is important to know who the consent must come from. In certain cultures the consent may not come from the parents but rather the leader or head of the tribe of the culture.

2. In what ways has your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?  

Ha! In the beginning I was a wreck....Let me tell you....The first two Application Assignments I was like oh boy this not going to work. This might be the first class that cause me to lose my 4.0. I started to pray and even ask people around me what they knew about research. Initially, I'm thinking research is nothing but being in science labs with goggles, lab coats, and gloves. My mind frame was presenting something on a three panel scientific board. My perception of research has changed significantly. Research doesn't necessarily have to do with science. I learned from this class that research can be used in any field. I gain knowledge of participants and how they should be chosen. Previously, I didn't even think that people used children for research. I thought that using children for research would be too much on the child. I have a better understanding of why people do research and that research can either be a good thing or bad.

3. What were some of the challenges you encountered- and in what ways did you meet them?

First off let me just say....I literally read the chapters in the textbook over and over again until things started to make sense to me. I goggled words I didn't know because not all the definitions were in the glossary in the back of the text. The textbook as well as discussion question responses really helped me in completing this class. Some of the challenges I encounter was sampling process, understanding the difference between dependent variable and independent variable, choosing which data collection source would be best for my research. The textbook, application worksheet explanations, and Dr. Todd responses helped to overcome my challenges. I looked at different examples of the variables before coming to an understanding of the difference. When I was struggling with the sampling process I think I didn't really take into consideration what exactly the sampling process consisted of. I just thought oh pick some kids out and call it a day. However, currently I know that the sampling process is very detailed.

4. What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?

 As an early childhood professional I have notice how essential it is for researchers to conduct studies that will not harm, deceive, or break any confidentiality agreement. I understand now how biased researchers can harm children as well as the early childhood field. As an early childhood professional I know that my heart is into children but when conducting research I should be careful not to let my personal views interfere with results of the study. When dealing children especially for me I always want what is best for them but I learned that not all researchers in early childhood have the same mind frame as I do.

In closing, I would like thank my colleagues who took time to read my discussions. I really hope i didn't bore you with how lengthy they were. Your feedback really helped in getting a better understanding of research in early childhood. Dr. Todd thank you for your patience. I can only imagine your thoughts in helping to shape my outline. I feel more confident now to do research compared to how I felt eight weeks ago. The course textbook is definitely a book I want to always keep in my library. I had a great time reading everyone blogs and I hope that you guys share more things outside of the class.

Happy Holidays to everyone. Take these next two weeks to relax your brain from writing papers, answering discussion questions, and writing blog entries. I'm sure everyone could use this break. Until next time.....