Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope that you have when you think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds (any format and any length) One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is to leave the biggest impact in their lives. I would love for them to feel like they have actually learned something from me (which I have no doubt in my mind that they would not be able to). I also hope that when I am working with children and families that they won’t be afraid to talk to me when a problem comes up or with a certain situation that they may be faced with and don’t know how to handle it. One goal you would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice (any format and any length) One goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to make sure that all educators will treat everybody equally. I think that treating everyone equally is the most imperative thing that we (professional/early childhood educators) can and should do. Another goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to make sure that I remain knowledgeable of the course material that I have learned in this course. I would love to be able to teach it to others one day when I become an early childhood educator. A brief note of thanks to your colleagues I would like to thank all of my colleagues for all of their insightful post that they have written over the course. I would also like to thank you all for taking the time out to respond to my post and for giving my positive feedback. I really enjoyed you all over the course and I wish you all the best of luck as you close out this course and move onto the next. Good luck on your journey while you pursue your Masters in the early childhood post and I pray that you all succeed and become successful in whatever you do in life. Always remember to be the best you can be and be sure to give 100% and more in everything that you do.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like.

            One memory that I had of an incident where I witnessed prejudice of someone else being a target of it was when I was at the airport. I witnessed one of my classmates from Medical School being discriminated against. She was an Ethiopian who wore a head wrap and when we were going through she got stopped and pulled to the side. They pulled her to the side and after they pulled her over to the side they said that they were testing her for gun powder residue. This was not the first time it happened to her. She told us every time she goes through security she gets stopped.

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

            This specific incident diminished equity because all they saw was the fact that she had a wrap on her head. It wasn’t fair because they didn’t stop any of us and we all are considered to black that were together, but maybe they thought she was of some other ethnicity.

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

            I felt bad for her because she didn’t deserve to be treated like terrorist. I hope that one day that all of this prejudice ends one day. I know that it will never end because of the world we live in and the people that are in it.            

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

            I believe that the people that are being taught and brought up to change their ways. No one is born prejudice, bias, or anything of that nature. They are taught those things from their parents, those who care for them, and/or people they grew up around. Not only that, they people who are being told to single out the people at the airport need to change too. If she was able to go through with no security going off then she should have been able to just continue with her day at the airport.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggression

Describe at least one example of a microaggression which you detected this week or remember from another time. In what context did the microaggression happen? What did you think and feel when you observed the microaggression or when you found yourself as the target of a microaggression?

One example of microaggression that I remember from another time was when my friend from medical school was stopped at the airport in security a few months back. It was a bunch of us that was leaving to go home for break. I can remember my friend being behind all of us and we all went through security with no problem.  We all were beginning to walk and we noticed that Roza was nowhere in sight.  So we stopped and waited for her for about a minute or town and then we saw her walking up towards us. We asked her what happened and she said that she was stopped and was being checked for gun powder residue on her. She wasn’t even upset because she said that she was use to this happening to her when she goes to the airport. She is an Ethiopian and she wears a scarf over her head and to me this was ridiculous. She is always being racially profiled as being a terrorist when she goes through security at airports.

In what ways did your observation experiences this week affect your perception of the effects of discrimination, prejudice, and/or stereotypes on people

                My observation experiences this week affect my perception of the effects of stereotypes and discrimination on people makes me feel very disgusted when I hear and see these things happen to people. Sometimes I wish that everybody in the world could just wake up and see that we all are equal. I also wish that people could see that this behavior is really unacceptable and not only that they should see that the same thing that are doing to these people (the ones that are prejudice, discriminating against people and stereotyping people), the same thing is going to happen to them.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

Their definition of culture

After asking a few of my family members what culture meant to them, one of them defined culture as being something that we as people all have to develop to. The other two defined culture as something that we are just naturally born in and have the ability to adapt to no matter what race ethnicity one may be. One person that I would say who I believe is culturally different from me is my two nephews. They are somewhat culturally different from me because they speak totally different from everyone in the family, even their own parents. They are very proper and I just do not understand where they get it from.

Their definition of diversity

      When a few of my family members were asked to define what diversity meant to them, each of them gave me a totally different answer. One of them said that diversity meant that each and every person even in the family is all different from one another because of the way they act. For example, they said that my nephews seem to be very diverse from everyone in the family because they are the only two proper speaking ones in the family. Then another one of my family members defined that diversity means being able to express yourself in a way that makes you feel comfortable. My last family member said that being diverse means displaying several different social identities or as many as one can have.

Which aspects of culture and diversity that I have studied in this course are included in the answers I received—and what are some examples?

            An aspect of culture and diversity that I have studied in this course are included in the answers that I received for culture was the fact that there are different ways to define it. Culture does not have to be perceived as a person that is of a particular race has to belong to a certain culture because of that. For example, in a sense refers to how particular groups of people live and every day, in every action, we express our particular group culture and our individual relationship to our culture (Derman-Sparks and Edwards, 2010, p. 55). As for diversity, the aspect that has been included in the answers that I have received was the fact that being diverse has many social identities that come along with a person. It is the total opposite of culture. For example, our social identities are what make each and every one of unique and diverse, which was something that I learned by reading the course materials and getting a better understanding of it.  

Which aspects have been omitted—and what are some examples of such omission?

            The aspects that have been omitted were the fact that they say that no one mentioned that culture can be broken down into several different subcultures. For example, there is dominant culture, which means that it’s a culture of the people who hold the social, political, and economic power in society and necessarily or always meaning the culture of majority (Derman-Sparks and Edwards, 2010, p. 57).

In what ways has thinking about other people’s definitions of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics?

            Some of the ways that other people’s definitions of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics is that they make me see how everyone does not view culture and diversity the same way. Also it gives me a deeper understanding as to how I can relate to different ideas of what it means to belong to a culture and how I can be very diverse in my own culture and still feel comfortable knowing that my social identities are what make me part of a culture and being diverse.

Reference

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 description of the three items you would choose

• If there was a major catastrophe that almost devastated my country and I could only take three items with me would be my phone, my bible, and my bank card.

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

• I would take my cell phone with me because it would be the only way that I would be able to get in contact with my family. Not only would I be able to get in touch with my family but it would be a way for me to stay updated on all of the information and destruction that has gone on. It would also allow me to know if I would be able to get back to my country once everything has settled.
• I would take my bible for religious regions. My bible really means a lot to me because I would need some other way to stay in touch with God. He is my main source and provider and I know that he would be able to keep me calm and give me a peace of mind, so I most definitely feel that I need to be able to read and stay close to him. In another way other than praying.
• I would most definitely need my bank card. I would need my bank card because that is the only way that I would be able to buy things that I would need. I would most definitely need food and water and hygiene products.

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 I were to be told that I could only keep one personal item and had to give up the other two items that I bought with me, I would most be upset, frustrated and a little stressed out. I would be upset because my phone I most definitely need to make sure I know everything that is going on with my family. So, if I did not have my phone I would not know how I would manage. I would not be to upset if I did not have my bible because with the technology now and days everything could be downloaded on my phone. I would be able to download a bible app on my phone. If I had to leave my  bank card, this would really suck because I need my bank card on my that way I could have food and  water.

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

• After doing this exercise the only insight that I have gained is the fact that I really value my family a lot. My phone is the main thing that I feel would be the item that I would feel most upset about if I could not have that particular item on me. 

When I Think of Research…..

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

                The insights that I have gained about this research was learning how come up with independent and dependent variables. I also learned about how to make up my own hypothesis question and construct a research paper just by using the questions that I did from the last assignment from week eight.

•In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?

                The ways that my ideas about the nature of doing research changed as I begin to do research was a number of ways. One of my ideas about the nature of doing research changed was by learning how to become a better research. Also I think that my idea of doing research has changed because it helps me learn so many different terms that I am able to use doing my research.

•What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?

•What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?

                One challenge that I encountered through this course was trying to come up with my own hypothesis.  The biggest challenge that I encountered during this course while dealing with was trying to narrow down my topic. That has been the biggest challenge because every time I tried to narrow it down it was still too broad. Not only was it to broad but it was also such a hard topic that I picked that made it really hard for me.

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

                The way that my perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course has come a long way. I feel a little bit better trying to do research now than I have ever before. Before doing this research I had felt like I had struggled a lot just by trying to come up with my own topic. Now I am feeling a little bit more comfortable on working with resources to help me do my research. 

Well to end this last blog, I would like to thank everyone who has responded to back to me and that have given me positive feedback. I would also like to thank Dr. Joyce for all of the positive feedback that she has also given to me and for the corrections to help me become a better research writer. To all my colleagues, I wish you all the best of luck on the rest of your journey.

Research Around the World

What are some of the current international research topics?

There were quite a few current international research topics that I chose and the one that I chose to discuss about was from Nigeria.

The topic is to the international research:

 Assessment of the Caring Practices in Two Motherless Babies’ Homes in Abia State, Nigeria and the Development and Delivery of a Nutrition Training Program to the Staff of These Homes to Improve Nutrition of Children in Their Care

What surprising facts/insights/new ideas about early childhood did you gain from exploring this international early childhood website?

Some surprising facts and insights about early childhood that I gained from exploring this international early childhood website was that when a child was referred as being in a state of bereavement, it was assumed that both parents were dead (Akomas, p.6). Today, there are a variety of definitions:

• A child who has lost both parents.

• Someone or something that lacks support or care or supervision.

• A young animal without a mother.

• A child deprived of parents by death or desertion.

• In general there are variations in the age up to which children are considered orphans (14, 15, 18 and 21 years old) and the patterns of parental death (both parents die, either parents die, or death of mother only).

 

What other noteworthy information did you find on this website?

Other noteworthy information that I found was that complementary feeding is the period during which foods or liquids are provided along with continued breast-feeding. This usually starts when the baby is six months old. Complementary feeding is poorly done in developing countries, due to lack of information about what foods are appropriate, how much should be given, how they should be given, and their inadequacy in quantity and quality among other problems (Allen & Gillespie, 2001) (Akomas, p.10).

 

 

 

 

Reference

Akomas, O. Assessment of the caring practices in two motherless babies’ homes in abia state, Nigeria and the development and delivery of a nutrition training program to the staff of these homes to improve nutrition of children in their care. Retrieved from http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/documents/major_projects/Akomas%20Final%20UVic%20LP.pdf