Many times
environmental, social and economic challenges that are apparent in the early
childhood education field are often global in scope and require collaborative
solutions that would require involvements of professionals, or organizations
all around the world.
Knowledge
of the international early childhood field can only benefit one as a
professional, as well as for personal growth and skills obtained by individual participants.
Learning about how other cultures allows me to develop a better understanding
and insight into issues or concerns that affect the early childhood community,
this will also enable me to gain a better viewpoint for similar problems in my
own local community. The exposure to social/cultural differences, new
educational methods, systems and unique global perspectives will give me the
opportunity for a broader viewpoint from a global perspective. The cross-border
relationships that have the potential to be formed may also be helpful towards
becoming the foundation of future transactions or collaborations. Acquiring knowledge in this
field will arm an individual with cross-cultural skills and an international
perspective of that of empathy or learning to see through the eyes of
others from different backgrounds. Learning about ECE globally will enable me
to:
- Learn new skills like cultural awareness and leadership for my future career
- Gain skills in cross-cultural communication, flexibility, and problem solving
- Acquire authentic global outlook and perspective on ECE
Goal:
Develop international connections, and learn new skills of cultural awareness,
and leadership. Also gain skills for cross cultural communication, and
collaborations through partnerships.
References
Educational
International Early Childhood Education. (2014). Retrieved from: http://www.ei-ie.org/en/websections/content_detail/3265
The NAEYC website contains a plethora of outside links,
related to child welfare, education and resources within the field of early
childhood. This includes links to the (NACCRRA) National Association of Child
Care Resource and Referral Agencies, NAEYC accreditation site, as well as many
links to articles within its site that pertain to important early childhood
issues.
This week I had the opportunity to
examine a podcast that interviewed Los Angeles Laker, Pau Gasol who is acts as
a special ambassador for UNICEF along with the Nelson Mandela Foundation. He
discusses the importance of their initiative, towards a global campaign towards
the critical need for awareness in early childhood issues internationally.
Among many of his efforts with the organization, he shed some light on the
problems in South Africa, which are effecting many children under the age of 5.
A large amount of young children, are quite simply not able to even attend
school, due to both minimal institutions, and the precedence of either helping
at home or working to help support their families. There are also even large
issues that cause education to fall to the wayside including health issues of
malnutrition and outbreaks of malaria. The organization is continuously making
efforts to combat these problematic roadblocks by building more schools, and
providing clean accessible water and meals to students and families.
Ultamitately, Gasol stressed the significance of making the issue of awareness in
ECE globally a priority for everyone. He’s even written an ebook that’s
available world wide in three different languages called “Give a Day” a
children’s book that contains the theme of being fortunate to young readers, and
establishes a message of circumstances of other children in different parts of
the world. 
Sharing Web Resources
As I closely monitored the podcast, I was able to perceive some compelling points of view relating to the topic of teaching students who are in poverty. Many students simply cannot focus on academics because there basic needs like shelter or food are not being met. The problem is not as simple as the individuals not having jobs as explains the majority of people are working but the issue is that they are simply not earning. An example of this is at fast food chains like McDonalds the average person in employment is 34 years old, and makes minimum wage. Teachers must be empathetic and willing to be supportive of the needs of their students who are in poverty. Circumstances of trivial matters like homework not being done, seems insignificant when students are dealing with real-life situations like gangs or not having a proper place to sleep. Prior to this assignment I hadn’t realized if the many different tiers, circumstances, and types of poverty. The aspect of poverty cannot be lumped into one category there are many different types, situational, generational, relative, and even urban/rural poverty. Additionally, communities in poverty have their own culture, and it can be extremely difficult for teachers who are entering these neighborhoods from middle or upper class environments to relate or have a genuine understanding of the conditions. Also knowing of the supports outside of teaching, like outreach programs can help students beyond academics. I have been exposed to the term, “situational awareness” as Nancy Blair rationalizes the need for educators to be aware of difficulties that students may be faced with like “how to bail someone out of jail?” or “Where the best dumpsters are to get food?” which are often questions that poverish individuals may have to ask themselves verses the average person who may have no clue. The whole child concept states “A whole child approach, which ensures that each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged, sets the standard for comprehensive, sustainable school improvement and provides for long-term student success.” (wholechildeducation.org 2014). The key question in mind is how in reality, can we in the education community hold expectations for students in poverty stricken environments to acquire knowledge when in most cases their very basic needs are not being met. The very question still remains unanswered, however the educators in the podcast identified many crucial points on the perpetual issue.