Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

 

This week I talk to family and friends to get there definition of culture and diversity. These are some of the definitions I received from others.

Culture is your lifestyle or way of life.

Diversity is the different groups of people

Diversity is the combination of various people, ethnicities, and cultures.

Culture is the history/ background of a person.

 As you can see each definition is different but is what they perceive culture and diversity to be. In this course many aspects of culture and diversity have been studied including those defined above. According to the learning resources culture is referred to as how a group of people live. It is the way we talk, play, eat, and relate to each other. This includes our language, religion, holidays, housing, and food. Culture is definitely our way of life but you determine what and who you are. It is possible to relate to other cultures without abandoning your home culture which is a major influence on how I think about culture and diversity.

References:

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

My Family Culture

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.

 

A description of the three items you would choose

My Bible

Photo album filled with family pictures

My computer

 

•How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you

II would take my bible because it is the foundation on which my family stand. Our faith has brought us through many situations and without Jesus being our Lord and Savior we would be lost. I would take my photo album because it holds so many memories of us as a family over the years. I chose my computer because I have a lot of my family’s history stored on my computer that goes back to when my great-great grandparents were living.

•Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you

If upon arrival I was told I could only keep one item I would be devastated because each item I chose has important information that relates to my family and our history.

•Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,

As a result of this exercise not only do I understand how important my family and culture is but that of others is just as important. I understand the value of holding on to your identity and who you are as a person. Just like we would not want to lose what’s important to us, other family’s feel the same way.

 

 

 

 

 

When I Think of Research

Throughout this course I have learned the value of research and how it makes finding answers to questions effective and possible. This course has helped me find ways to use research to help me find answers to questions I may have pertaining to the early childhood field. Research is designed to help me spend time exploring questions or topics that interest me and breaking them down so that I am able to reflect more on them.

Before this course I have read about research but never fully understood the process. After going through this course I have a better understanding of this process and I also understand the value of the process. Within the early childhood field research is designed to help improve the lively hood of young children, therefore the idea of doing research is more valuable for me now.

The research planning, designing and conducting process takes time and much planning to ensure validity of the results. We have to ensure that the process is done correctly. This process may require you to consult other experts, talk to your colleagues and friends about their views, and even reading about different opinions. The design process is a matter of options and as such is the creative process of translating a research idea into a set of decisions about how the research will proceed in practice (Mac Naughton, Rolfe, & Siraj-Blatchford, 2010). There are also different ways in which the designing and conducting of research can be approached.

I faced many challenges from start to finish because this process was new to me. Forming the research question and ensuring that is was not too broad to be research was the first challenge. The next challenge for me was trying to avoid being bias and eliminating any ethical issues. But after exploring and studying the research process more carefully, I am able to apply what I have learned to my research simulation to ensure I am doing it properly.

This course has deepened my passion for the early childhood field and has given me a deeper appreciation for those who have already conducting some form of research. The research process as it relates to the early childhood field requires that much time work and dedication be put into it.

References:

Mac Naughton, G., Rolfe, S.A., & Siraj-Blatchford, I.  (2010). Doing early childhood research: International perspectives on theory and practice (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

 

 

 

Research Around the World

The website I viewed was Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU) Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

There were many topics of interest listed on this website. Most are final major projects and thesis presented by students from different countries. A few of the projects listed that caught my attention were, Involving Fathers in Early Childhood Care and Development , Assessment of Interaction and Stimulation in Single-Mother Low-Income Families, Assessing the Influence of Different Early Childhood Development Models On Pre-School Children’s School Readiness in Kenya,  and Curriculum Development Using Community Resources.

Because I have had the opportunity to explore international websites in pass courses the information found was not knew but always enhances or builds on what I have already learned. It is always interesting to know what other countries are doing to improve the quality of education they are able to provide to children. This information can also be helpful to others as well. We can always benefit from each other. That is why it is so important to remain in contact with other professionals at home and in other countries.

Any information presented in my course for the purpose of study is always valuable information. Because the information on these websites is always changing or updating I have saved websites for future development opportunities.

http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/major_reports.php

 

Three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field for your professional and personal development (EDUC - 6162 - 7)

Three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field for your professional and personal development

The first consequence is the difficulty being able to actually get in contact with other professionals internationally. I believe that it is important to build relationships with other professionals and share ideas with each other that may be beneficial.

Second although I was able to explore the podcast and websites, the personal connection with an individual would have been an amazing experience and one that I am going to continue to work on.

Third is that I was not able to share, nor receive any experiences personally that may have contributed to an advancement in the early childhood field.

My goal is to achieve excellence in all areas within the early childhood field. In order to achieve this goal it will require being in contact with other professionals nationally and internationally, local and state officials, parents, administrators, and the community.

Research that Benefits Children and Families—Uplifting Stories

Research can bring on amazing results for families. In 1992 my niece was diagnosed with HIV at the age of 4. Over the years she has taken all kinds of medications, has had near death experiences, and has lost her mom and some friends to this disease. After years of taking medication we were told they were no longer working and they wanted to try some new medications that were experimental. My mom agreed to let her take the medicines and each time she went to the doctor her blood test would always show positive results. A few years ago after taking the medicine for a while they did more test and tested her again for the virus and we were told she should no signs of the virus in her system anymore.  Although the medication had severe side-affects that she rarely experienced the end results has given her a chance to live a life free of HIV. There is still no cure for the disease without continued treatment, but this gives us hope that eventually there will be a cure that does not require the continued use of medications.

Your Personal Research Journey

I chose classroom effectiveness as my topic for the simulation. I chose this topic because I am passionate about the well-being of children and them being a valuable part of society. If we slack on their training in the early stages of development we risk them not being successful later on in life. Professionals are the driving force behind their students and are responsible for their educational success. Professionals should be educated, well trained, and have a strong passion for working with children. Our classrooms will consist of children of different ethnicities, cultures, and varying abilities, therefore we have to be prepared to support the needs of all the children we come in contact with. A child’s ability to function within society will rely upon our ability to teach them to do so. Professionals should have some accountability when it relates to a child’s educational development.

As professionals we will not be able to do this without the help of other professionals, administrators, parents, and the community. So, if you have any information that will help me as I research classroom effectiveness it will be greatly appreciated. I will also be willing to share with you any information that my help you with your research topic.