Learning about the International Early Childhood Field

             I looked at three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field for my professional and personal development began with the information I gained from researching early childhood on a more global perspective.  I began by choosing the website for the Association of Early Childhood International (ACEI) which is an organization focused on the education, development and well-being of children globally.  They developed affiliations with other organizations that seek to not only provide education to children from impoverished areas, but also include children with disabling conditions.  This opened my eyes to how there is not only a movement to provide quality education to children here in this country, but the need is far greater on a global scale. 

The second consequence of learning was that the advocacy for children’s right to receive early childhood education and the inequities that parents suffer are no different in other countries than here in the U.S.  These inequities happen to families of certain diverse cultures and socio-economic statuses.  In other words, race, culture, poverty and education are standard by which people are judged in other countries and these characteristics determine whether their children have access to the same quality educational opportunities as families from a certain status quo within that country.

The last consequence of learning that I gained from my international research was information I gained from an article about the three most important skills a child should learned that was determined by Asia-Pacific Consultants.  These were: 1) culture; 2) values and respect; and 3) history.  I never thought about how these three skills can impact a child’s sense of self awareness and how they view the world, but after reading the article, I realized that each of these factor into how a child envisions themselves throughout their life and how as an adult these skills teach us how to interact with others on a social and professional level.

One goal I shall work towards is to continue to stay informed of how early education impacts the lives of children on a more global basis.  It is important to be knowledgeable about the education of children here in the U.S. and internationally.   We can use the information gained through research, consultations and conferences to change, improve and develop more resources and growth in how we provide early childhood education to children.  It also gives me an opportunity to develop professional colleagues in other countries that I can interact with and use for personal and professional growth.

Getting to Know Your International Contact - Part 3

           I have not received a response from my email to my ACEI international contact so this week I chose to respond to the website for UNESCO.  The first thing I notice when reading the information is that unlike many educators that have researched learning during preschool age, they surmise that learning takes place from birth through age eight.  Previously it was found that when doing brain research, children’s most formative years were thought to take place from birth through age 5.  Through this program they also look at providing care and early education for children holistically by providing services in health, nutrition, security and learning.  It was stated that countries promote alternative services for poor children and that there is limited or no access to early childhood services and that there is limited resources from the government.  They looked at reducing state support for more privileged families so that there would be a more equitable distribution of resources for those who are more disadvantaged.  This is a program that looks at the inequities among people in this region due to economic status and accessibility to resources.

            I also read a news article about the three most important skills a child should learn according to participants at an Asia-Pacific Regional Consultant Conference which were as follows – 1) they need to learn about culture – culture is a kind of glue, it keeps us together;  2) values and respect. Do we respect our parents and elders enough? Are the gaps here increasing? We need to keep in mind that education comes from home – our families are the first “teachers” in our lives. They are crucial to us so respect and values are important; and 3) history – we should know our past so we can improve our future.”  I feel that each of these areas which they noted is important for children to develop a sense of themselves, what their future will look like and how to develop values and respect for others.  

            I found this website very interesting and informative.  I was able to learn much more about their work to provide early education in countries that many times lack access the resources and quality care.  I would like to learn more about the Moscow Framework, but there will little information available per this site. I plan to further investigate this program.

Reference:

UNESCO (2012). Early childhood care and education.  Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood
 

Sharing Web Resources

Some of the outside links for ACEI led me to the Global Child Development Group webpage.  This site provided information about their mission to promote child development for children under the age of 5 in low to middle income countries.  Their overall goal of gathering evidence to influence policy makers of the links between health, nutrition, risk/protective factors, intervention efficacy trials, and effective programs. 

              The most recent newsletter looked at how the emerging skills for preschool to kindergarten age children can lead to leadership abilities in later years and ways in which teachers can recognize these particular skills.  The website presented an informative article on Child Development in Developing Countries with featured six relevant articles. The introduction describes the conceptual framework, nature of the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 3, and general analytic plan of articles in this Special Section. The articles describe the situations of children with successive foci on nutrition, parenting, discipline and violence, and the home environment. They address two questions: How do developing and under researched countries in the world vary with respect to these central indicators of children’s development? How do key indicators of national development relate to child development in each of these substantive areas? The Special Section concludes with policy implications from the international findings. 

           This website presented interesting and informative facts about child development on parenting interventions in the Caribbean and how lower educational attainment, adult income and parenting can perpetuate the cycle of poverty.  The article reinforces the research that deduces that early childhood interventions are a critical strategy in breaking the cycle of poverty and promotes equity.  This information reinforces the fact that families living in impoverished areas whether here in the U.S. or other countries experience the same inequities because of socio-economic conditions.














 References:
 Child Development in Developing Countries.(2012). The Society for Research in Child Development.  83(1).  Retrieved from:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cdev.2012.83.issue-1/issuetoc

Getting to Know Your International Contacts - Part 2

Since I have been unable to obtain information from my international source, this week I chose to respond to the Harvard University's "Global Children's Initiative which was very informative.  Their strategic objectives are to education decision-makers regarding the science of learning, behavior and health, expand global understanding about how healthy development happens and how it can be maintained and finally to build leadership capacity in child development research and policy in low- and middle-income countries to increase diverse perspectives that contribute to the global movement on behalf of young children.

This will be done in three domains: 
1.    Early Childhood Development which focuses on child development outcomes linked to malaria
       in Zambia and improving quality education in Chile;
2.    Child Mental Health in which the Center seeks to address the gaps in knowledge and service  
       delivery by looking at the state of mental health in China, evaluating family-based  strategies to
       prevent mental health problems in children affected by HIV/AIDS in Rwanda; and
3.    Children in Crisis and Conflict Situations which explores comparable approaches regarding
       child status in post-earthquake Haiti and Chile and using the science of child development to
       address acute malnutrition.

The Center's mission of education and training is at the center of it's overall mission and focus to develop opportunities and building a sustainable infrastructure.  Although it is still in a state of development, the Center's ideology and central premise the to provide information to enhance the education of policy-makers so that children everywhere will have an access to quality education.