When I Reflect About My Collegial, Professional Learning Community

During the past few weeks my knowledge and understanding about the early childhood system has grown tremendously. The first thing that I have to acknowledge the support and understanding of our Professor. I would not have made through this course if it was not for her understanding. She has been a prime example of understanding the needs of her students. Second, sharing information with my colleagues and understanding from different perspectives was definitely a great experience. Understanding that no one person has all the answers we are able to use what we have learned from each other and this course to help enhance our systems. Sharing information among other colleagues and learning how to utilize this information to improve the overall development of young children is an awesome opportunity.

Through this course I have been given information on different organizations that can be helpful in making my advocacy efforts more effective. Most of these agencies specialize in understanding what it will take to improve our early childhood educational system. They offer support, training, valuable information and funding to help early childhood programs provide the best service possible.

My main goal is to utilize this opportunity that has been given to me to be the best representative of young children I can be. I will take what I have learned and incorporate it in the work I am already doing to help improve early childhood programs. I will also share my experience at Walden with other professional and those looking to make a difference in the field.

My Hypothetical Family Situation

My hypothetical family situation is based on a family who found out at an early age that their child is deaf. The family consisted of a mother and grandmother, who were the primary care givers and one sibling. Not born with any abnormalities the child was considered normal and healthy. Around the age of three the family begin to notice a difference in how the child responded to them. Concerned about what might be going on they consulted the child’s pediatrician who referred them to an ENT that determined the child had a profound hearing loss. The family is now faced with decisions that will have a major impact on how well this child develops.  

Questions:

1.      Do you think I have given a complete picture of this family and their lifestyle?

2.      Does this situation seem real?

3.      Do you have any suggestions on resources available that might be beneficial for this family to utilize?

4.      What obstacles will this family face once the child enters into school.

My Hypothetical Family Situation

My hypothetical family situation is based on a family who found out at an early age that their child is deaf. The family consisted of a mother and grandmother, who were the primary care givers and one sibling. Not born with any abnormalities the child was considered normal and healthy. Around the age of three the family begin to notice a difference in how the child responded to them. Concerned about what might be going on they consulted the child’s pediatrician who referred them to an ENT that determined the child had a profound hearing loss. The family is now faced with decisions that will have a major impact on how well this child develops.  

Questions:

1.      Do you think I have given a complete picture of this family and their lifestyle?

2.      Does this situation seem real?

3.      Do you have any suggestions on resources available that might be beneficial for this family to utilize?

4.      What obstacles will this family face once the child enters into school.

The Political Will to Improve Early Childhood Systems

As I studied my resources this week, I noticed several strategies that the different organizations use to improve early childhood systems. The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) a national, nonpartisan, anti-poverty nonprofit advancing policy solutions for low-income people was one of these organizations. CLASP is driving important policy change that helps poor and low-income people, including expanding access to post secondary education and workforce training; improving jobs through paid leave and fair scheduling; providing affordable, high-quality child care and early education; increasing education and employment for youth of color; and strengthening programs to help meet basic needs (The Center for Law and Social Policy, 2010). CLASP support policies that expand resources for child care and early education initiatives at the federal, state, and local levels. They also study the relationships between child care subsidy systems, Head Start and Early Head Start, state pre-kindergarten programs, and other birth to five early education efforts, to advance ideas that ensure these systems address the full range of needs of children and families. 

Their work provides high-quality child care and early education that can build a strong foundation for young children's healthy development and ensure that children have all they need to thrive. This knowledge is the driving force for CLASP to promote policies that support both child development and the needs of low-income working parents. Which is the part that appeals most to me. We have to help those who are not able to support themselves, but we also have to ensure that what we are doing benefits the whole child.

Reference:

Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). (2010). Retrieved from http://www.clasp.org/