International Early Childhood - Consequences of Learning

I really appreciate the opportunity to learn more from my international contact in Thailand. It was a blessing to hear about her passion that she had for her children. I enjoyed learning about the similarities and differences that we shared in education. One issue that I found interesting when I spoke with my contact and as I researched the issue of poverty, was that poverty in Thailand (29.9%) is a problem just as it is in the United States (15.1%). Another issue that I think is important to share about is with policies. After speaking with the international contacts about some of the poilices, she was able to shed some light on some of the issues that we discussed in class in regard to professional development and high quality programs. There is a lot to be learned from international collaboration and research. Hopefully we can take what we have learned from them and share it with others here. Last, I think that we can take what we have learned from our international contacts and our colleagues here at Walden and use some of the strategies and websites that were introduced to us in this class. We are seeing more and more children in our classrooms that speak different languages and this information that others have researched and shared with us can help us as we seek to provide the best that we can for these children. International Goal - I would love to visit the place where my international contact lives and teaches. I think that it would be a great opportunity to actually work alongside her and see her daily routine.

Getting to Know Your International Contacts - Part 3

Some of the professional hopes, dreams, and challenges that my contact from Thailand shared with me with regard to the children at her school were that all children would be able to attend an educational setting and see it through to graduation. Most children can not afford to go to school and if they are fortunate enough to get to go to a school, very few ever get to graduate. Most have to return to their families and work on the farms. She shared that if they were able to graduate, they usually only received the education that took them through the twelfth grade. The few that she has seen graduate she would have loved to see go to some sort of college, but most have had to return to their families and work with them. It is so sad that many of these children will fall back into the same patterns and situations that their families are in.

Sharing Web Resources

When reviewing the outside link The Early Head Start program and it opened up a multitude of webcasts. One in particular that caught my attention was called A Closer Look at the Early Head Start Home-Based Program Option. This webcast examines how this option can help programs expand opportunities for low-income families with very young children, increase access to services, and enhance program quality.

There is also a link to the National Training Institute where you can find information that has been developed to meet the needs of individuals that are working with infants and toddlers in Child Welfare, Early Childhood Education, Early Intervention, Mental Health, Parent Education and Pediatrics. This link allows you to design your own professional development according to your specific needs and can be used for continuing education.

The e-newsletter that I received talked about play and shared a number of resources that goes along with the issue of play and its importance. Here is what was shared on this issue:

The long days of summer mean more time to play—and learn—with the kids you love. These resources focus on the ways children learn through play, both with their peers and with the important grown-ups in their lives.

As I looked into the Zero to Three journal index, I found several articles that depending on what you were researching, could serve as valuable resources. These articles dated as far back as the year 2000. An article that I chose to look at more closely, that was aligned with issues that I have been studying was called Supporting Quality in Home Based Childcare. This article talked about why families chose the type of home base care that they chose and goes on to talk about the regulations, complications and opportunities that goes along with their working with children and families. There is another article in the index titled Children in Immigrant Families. This article is one that I will be using to gain new insights for the issues of this week’s assignments.

International Contacts - Part 2

After talking to Amy Campbell about the issues of equity and excellence in education in Thailand, I have found out many interesting things. First of all, due to issues of poverty in certain areas in Thailand, many children are not able to attend schools. If these children are lucky enough to have the opportunity to attend the schools, they usually only do so until the age of 12 because they are needed to work in the rice fields with their families. Some children live in a type of boarding school where the parents drop them off and return to pick them up at the end of the 9 months. There is not any type of preschool program for younger children, but they have housed some of the younger siblings in desperate situation. The parents that cannot afford to pay for their schooling with money will pay with bags of rice. Most children however, do not finish school and go on to college but return to their families farms where they continue to work in the fields.

Teachers in Thailand are supposed to have a teaching certificate with a bachelor’s degree. However, she said that there are circumstances where the teachers do not have a teaching certificate or a degree, but because of the poor situations that the children live in, it is not pushed. In certain areas, since the parents are not able to pay for the schooling, the teachers that they are able to hire, do not have degrees in education and are hired with a much lower income.

Sharing Web Resources

ZERO TO THREE website had a great video that related to the importance of banding together and rallying for learning as babies. This early learning was compared to building a house which I thought was a great comparison in that when you build a house you must have that firm foundation or else everything else will crumble. This is much like the way we need to look at educating our babies. We must start very early so we can make those early connections and develop that firm foundation.

I did not find anything that I thought to be controversial, but I did notice that there is an article where ZERO TO THREE applauded the President for making babies and toddlers a priority in his 2014 budget proposal, with a substantial investment in early learning. This issue is something that I have found to be of high importance and one that much research has been placed on and that is that we need to start early with consistent, high-quality, evidence-based supports that match what parents need and help parents nurture the early development of their babies and toddlers. This website and the articles included all fall right in line with what we have been discussing and researching over the various courses that I have taken as I seek my early childhood degree. On this website, the video also shares that congressmen have joined in and signed the petition to support early learning, and the article from the president in support of early learning shows us how politicians have shown their support for the early childhood field.

On this website I was able to see that you can choose any state and find quick fact sheets that share information about how each state ranks in child well-being as well as important income facts and statistics. I found it interesting that Tennessee ranked 39^th among all states in the well-being of children. It also shares the Federal Programs that help Tennessee build strong families and grow healthy and productive children. This website is full of information pertaining to the importance of supporting children and families in helping get them off to a great start and is available for all 50 states.

International Contacts - Part 1

I have had the privilege of speaking to a couple of people about poverty in Thailand and how it has affected education there. Nongnuch Sitkongthang is an educator in Thailand at a school for a group of Kindergarteners. She is also a house mother, and has about 50 in children in this house, similar to a boarding school, that she stays in throughout the school year. The children that live there are all ages K through 12^th grade. These children live at this house because their families are rice farmers and live so far away from the schools that they are not able to transport them to and from the school. These children only return home during summers and very long breaks. When I asked about finances and how they were able to support all these children in this house, she shared that most families pay for their children to stay there with rice from their farms because they are so poor. Children all have chores to do and have an inspection daily. This ensures smooth running each day. As I continue to research the issue of poverty, I am amazed at how different countries respond to their own situations. I could not imagine sending my five year old child off to live, some eight hours away, especially when most of these children will return to their parents homes after completing their education, to become rice farmers as well.

When talking with Amy Cate Campbell, missionary working in education in Thailand, shared how these children compare to the children living in poverty here in the United States. She said that children there only know life in Thailand so even though they seem to have so little, they are very happy with what they have and life as they know it.

Website: Zero to Three

The website that I chose was Zero to Three. It can be found at http://www.zerotothree.org

ZERO TO THREE is a national nonprofit organization that provides parents, professionals and policymakers the knowledge and know-how to nurture early development. Their mission is to ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life. They were founded in 1977 by top experts in child development, health and mental health. They are an organization that plays a critical leadership role in promoting understanding around key issues affecting young children and their families, including child care, infant mental health, early language and literacy development, early intervention and the impact of culture on early childhood development. They envision a society that has the knowledge and will to support all infants and toddlers in reaching their full potential.

Zero to Three works together to provide support in all domains of development and work together to promote overall health and well-being in all families and cultures. They do this through research, collaboration, and experience.

I chose the article, Putting Infants and Toddlers on the Path to School Readiness as my current issue. Here is a small selection that I chose to share from this article in regard to what a wise investment it is to support early development.

                At the same time that science reveals the importance of development in the earliest years; program evaluation research is able to highlight effective strategies to improve the lives of at-risk children and their families. Strong relationships can help buffer children from the toxic stress that can undermine healthy brain development. Proven approaches—some beginning during the important prenatal period—can help diminish the gaps and promote stronger social-emotional foundations.