TIME WELL SPENT

As this course has come to an end I would like to wish all my colleagues the best in their future endeavors, there have been some rocky roads as this journey has come to an end. I enjoyed the beginning of the journey with great pleasure but oh at the end, but in all actuality we made it. In this program, as a  passionate and committed educator, I must build nurturing relationships with the families and children to meet the goals of success for them. The need of all children should be meet with strategies that are developmentally appropriate. Diversity shouldn’t be an issue for any educator being that we aren’t biased about the families and children we teach. Our passion is to focus on the betterment of families and children. My passion for this field has grown enormously knowing that I can advocate for social change.

My long term goal is to advocate for improving the lives of children and their families and for a better change in this society. “It takes a big heart to shape little minds”

https://worditout.com/word-cloud/2182846

 

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

Learn 4 Good

Pre-K & Kindergarten Teacher

Tokyo, Japan

Job description

An enthusiasm, caring Kindergarten Teacher

This private international institute located in one of the quiet residential areas of central Tokyo, the capital of Japan. The kindergarten department of the school offers excellent early childhood education to all student in order to help them to acquire knowledge in all different areas to become a good person with interpersonal skills.

Position Requirements

Bachelor in Education

2 years minimum years of experience

Must be Western trained ( USA, Canada, UK,)

Must be English Native Speaker

I would love to work in an early childhood program in Japan, I am very qualified and have the experience. I would be a great asset to their program and besides, I have two grandbabies that are of Japanese descent that is early childhood age. They live in Atsugi, Japan an hour away from Tokyo.

 

Panama Teacher

Partners of Americas, through a program funded by the United States Embassy in Panama, is looking for U.S. education professionals interested in volunteering in Panama during the summer of 2017 in an expense paid professional development program training and coaching Panamanian teachers of English.

Requirements

U.S. citizen residing in the United States

Minimum age of 21

Holds a degree in Education

At least 1 year of classroom teaching experience

Demonstrate flexibility and ability to adapt to new environments and challenging circumstances

Demonstrate leadership, maturity, flexibility, responsibility, and commitment

In this program I will learn that language and cultural learning has the power to bride the divides between communities and unlock the economic social and educational potential of our hemisphere.

Knowledge of a second language is increasingly important to our globalized world, we promote language learning as a means to expand access to new cultures, provide a competitive edge in the workplace and promote mutual understanding across borders.

 

 

 

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

Infant/Toddler CDA Instructor-Coach

Job Summary: The Infant/Toddler CDA Instructor-Coach is responsible for assisting 20-25 child care teachers in meeting the educational requirements needed to attain the Child Development Associate’s Credential through direct instruction. He/she will be responsible for teaching the CDA classes, and mentoring and supporting candidates in successful completion of the requirements to attain a CDA credential.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide instruction on CDA competencies aligned with CLASS and Teaching Strategies Gold

Facilitate Professional Learning Communities (PLC’s) to deepen understanding and implementation of CDA instruction and to develop CDA Portfolio

Support CDA candidates to attain their CDA’s within a year of completing the program

Qualifications Requirements

Master’s degree in ECE

5+ years professional experience in field of education

LA Pathways Trainer Certification

NAEYC—— Early Childhood Specialist

The Early Childhood Specialist will provide professional expertise in ECE and development through assisting Head Start and Early Head Start Programs with consultation, training, policy and procedure development and state- wide agency collaboration.

Duties and Responsibilities

Working knowledge of the Head Start Child Outcomes framework and Head Start Program Performance Standards and other Regulations

Working knowledge of the Improving School Readiness for Head Start Act of 2007 as it applies to all facets of Early Childhood Education, Family Engagement, Collaboration and Professional Development

Qualifications Required

Demonstrate knowledge/education in working with infants/toddlers and or preschoolers

Demonstrate experience working with special populations or children in different learning environments, such as children with disabilities, children who are dual learners, children in family care settings, and or children who are homeless.

Qualifications Required

Bachelors’ degree in ECE or child development

5 years working in a program serving young children

Obtain and maintain CLASS reliability certification

Shine Early Learning…… Family Engagement Advocate

An inspired and collaborative leader to join our Shine Implement Team. To support and empower families in their role as primary educators and advocates. To build home-school connections that promote children’s school readiness and healthy development as well as enhance family well-being.

Duties and Responsibilities

To meet with dual-language families to learn about their cultures, beliefs, and child rearing experiences

Get to know diverse families to allow information to be given to the classroom teacher before the child enters the class.

Giving information about the family allows teachers to prepare for what the child may be bringing to the class

Promote Family Environment that enhances children’s development

Engaging families to enhance parent/child interactions that research shows foster school readiness through the family routine, positive guidance, home rich environments and literacy activities.

Program Collaboration- work side by side with health education and other members of the family engagement team to support families to be fully engaged in all aspects of the program.

The jobs I’ve chosen will allow me to promote, support, engage, collaborate and advocate for the children and families in my program.

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

I chose to explore the Center Manager position at Total Community Action, Inc. Head Start Program. The Center Manager is responsible for the day to day operation of the center. He/She is responsible for ensuring the center adheres to all performance standards and regulatory compliance, as well as, implementation of the training center responsive to the childcare community training needs.

Specific Duties and Responsibilities:

Provide guidance and leadership to staff emphasizing the importance of high-quality service for children and families

Develop in conjunction with staff, professional development plan designs to assist with optimal functioning.

Support parent committee

Educational and Work Experience Requirements:

Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, Child Development, Day Care Administration or related degree and three years experience managing a child development center or supervising staff, and experience working with diverse staff and families.

https://www.tca-nola.org

The next organization I chose is Kingsley House

Director for Early Learning Services:

The Director for Early Learning Services assists the Program Officer for Early Learning Services in building the capacity and strengthening the overall early learning programs. He/she assists through the provision of innovations and initiatives that contribute to the program’s Continuous Quality Improvement and Strategic Management Alignment. The Director for ELS is a visionary leader who will aid in maintaining the program while also bringing it to a new level that will impact positive outcomes for children and families enrolled. The Director for Early Learning Services provides direct leadership and oversight to the Education Supervisors, Health Services Specialist; Disabilities Specialist; Data Entry Specialist and other key personnel to ensure compliance with all daily procedures in accordance with Early Head Start and Head Start as determined by the Federal Head Start Program Performance Standards and policies established by Kingsley House.

Required Skills and Expectations:

Ensures full implementation of the program’s programmatic core features.

Ensures staff meet the necessary Head Start qualifications and implements and monitors ongoing professional development opportunities and other trainings, to included staff progress towards reaching individual and programmatic goals.

Education Requirements & Experiences:

Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education or Master’s in elementary education with at least 18 hours of training/education focused on early childhood education, child development, or related field; three to five years of experience in administration and supervision; experience working with infants and toddlers preferred.

http://www.kingsleyhouse.org

The last organization I am interested in is InspireNOLA the highest performing charter network in the city of New Orleans, InspireNOLA Schools is working to inspire and transform an educational movement where students can develop the academic and personal skills necessary to be prepared for college, their community, and the world. InspireNOLA is achieving outstanding results and is a model for excellence within the education community.

InspireNOLA Charter Schools is seeking a passionate, talented, and dedicated Pre-Kindergarten teacher for the 2017-2018 d academic year. We are seeking candidates who are committed to the intellectual, emotional, physical and social growth of our youngest students and who have a strong desire to continuously develop in their profession.

Qualifications:

Belief in the mission and values of InspireNOLA

Bachelor’s Degree (required)

Two or more years  teaching experience (preferred)

Louisiana Teacher Certification or in progress for PreK/LA4 (required)

inspirenolacharterschools.org

I chose the three organizations because I am experienced in all three, I will in the future apply with inspireschools.org for the simple reason of being on summer vacation for a few months, the job where I am employed works year round and that stressful.

Reference

Total Community Action, Inc. Head Start

https://www.tca-nola.org

Kingsley House

http://www.kingsleyhouse.org

InspireNOLA Charter Schools

inspirenolacharterschools.org

Reflecting on Collaborating and Communicating

As I look back over the last eight weeks, I’ve learned how to communicate more effectively with my families especially those of diversity. I’ve learned to listen more attentively rather than jump in before they finish what they are saying. I used to correct the conversation before my partner can finish their sentence, knowing what the answer should be. I found that in an effective conversation you must allow your partner to finish the statement they are saying before you jump in. That the 3 R’s, being that I am a respectful person I should already know this. I did, just was impatient, ready for the conversation to end. When you know better, you do better.

I would like to THANK all my colleagues that offered words of encouragement to me during the eight weeks we were together. I appreciated every kind word that you use to help me in this field and all the questions you ask to peek my curiosity about the early childhood field. This new school year has been a struggle for me and my assistant teacher due to the fact that we have a new third person on our team and I don’t think she has a clue about developing young minds. Her perception of young children is that they should already know what a circle is or the colors red, blue, yellow or green is. You need to understand that we are working in an environment where the socio-economical status is poverty no one in this environment cares if their babies learn shapes or colors before they enter preschool. Hopefully, she’ll get the picture and get some compassion for these babies, as I conclude it’s been real being in this class and I ‘ve learned a wealth of knowledge I will continue to take back to my team. I’ve even talked to the usher’s ministry director about helping her with team building strategies, and she’s agreed. To all of my colleagues, may God continue to bless us on this journey to receive that Master’s Degree we are all striving for. Blessing All!!!!

It’s so hard to say goodbye

As I think back to when I first started working with young children I was told, you’d make a good teacher. I started as a parent volunteer, I enjoyed working and helping the children in their classrooms. I was interacting with young children before it became a strategy to help children develop and grow. I was told to apply for a position of a teacher assistant, the teaching team I had the opportunity to work with showed me the ropes and from there I took it upon myself to do everything in my power to become a great teacher. This was the beginning of a great team, we got together and planned activities with our parents to make our center great. We always won 1st place trophies at our Annual Parents Conference given during the Christmas Holidays making everything festive. Other centers always wanted to know how do we do it, “Team Work makes the dream work”.

After many years of working together with that team of teachers, our center had to close because where it was located it had to be demolished because of plans to construct condominiums in the area. It sadden  us because we had built a trusting relationship that one couldn’t fall without the other. We were there for each other we were a family, we knew we were going to work for the same program but we didn’t know where we were going. We became separated but we met up during workshops and conferences, besides we were able to keep in touch with each other. It wasn’t the same not seeing your co-workers that you were used to seeing daily, it took a lot out of us emotionally. This was the hardest group to leave I thought I would never be able to get back into the swing of things but I did.

I wish we all could have gotten together and did a weekend getaway or retreat or something of the sort. We all reported to our new center in hopes of building trusting relationships with our new team members, it wasn’t the same.

In adjourning from the group of colleagues that I affectionately respond to weekly and have formed while working on my Master’s degree in this program, my hopes are to meet each of them during our graduation ceremony. The adjourning stage of team- work is essential because it is the end of the journey that we started together and have grown to know each other perspectives in the early childhood field. We have heard and felt each other struggles as we meet the needs of families and their children. In adjourning we will wish each other our best that they will be successful in their future endeavors.

A Personal Disagreement

The strategy I’ve always used to manage or resolve a conflict or disagreement is the compassion that I have for others and their feelings. I’d rather walk away than stand there and go back and forth solving nothing. My response to conflict would be a positive reaction by keeping calm when a person see they can’t ruffle your feathers they tend to calm done themselves. I listen attentively to what is said before I respond.

My sister and I are having disagreement about inherited property, the house I reside in was inherited by my dad, two sisters and myself. My family signed their shares of the property over to me. My sister is now having hardship and she wants me to sell my house in order to give her her share. In a binding legal document, she doesn’t have a share she signed that document giving me her shares. I used the  NCV skills I’ve learned and compassionately asked her if she wants me to contact human resources where I work to help her get a job. Very abruptly she said “I ain’t working for nobody”, she said to me because you are a Christian you should consider my needs. I never showed any kind of anger due to the fact she didn’t care if I was homeless. I remain very respectful and said to my sister, I pray you get yourself together and realize that without a job you will experience hardship.

To you, my colleagues can you give me some advice or would you say I handled this conflict the NVC skills way.

Similarities and Differences in Communication

On the Assessments of Communication Anxiety Inventory and Verbal Aggressiveness Scale, I scored moderate on both. I maintain a good balance between respecting and having considerations for others. As an educator and a person that have morals and values in life, I feel the needs of others, I have nothing but respect for the families I serve and the people that I am around whether I know them are not. I will never  disrespect myself or anyone else.

My co-worker evaluated me as high, she says I speak in a calm voice never raise my voice above a whisper even when I am interacting with the children. She says I am empathetic and shows much concern for others, she says I am a great listener and never pass judgement on anyone. I always tell the truth and I will not sugar coat the truth for your satisfaction. I speak the truth, Let’s keep it real!

A Family Culture

Upon meeting my daughter in law’s family for the first time, I didn’t know the culture of the Japanese. I extended my arms as an indication of a hug. I put my arms around the mother first then reached for the father, when they backed away the two went down into a bow together. My son said mom, this is the way they greet you, I said okay and bowed to them. My daughter in law parents doesn’t speak English, but Hitomi (daughter in law) does, she translated for us and the evening went well. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be communicating with someone that doesn’t speak your language. In communicating with the parents I used eye contact, body movement, facial expressions and a lot of nodding. I used every means possible to make  communicating effective, without offending the family.

The family took me to Yokohama where we visited Chinatown, there we had a nice dinner and they allowed me to order American food first then they order their Japanese cuisine. I had a really nice time with the family and from my standpoint, there was no difference in the way we felt about each other it was just a language barrier and that was not a problem because their daughter was our translator. The family treated me as if they had been knowing me a long time. Before I returned back home I was invited to the families home where they prepared for me a meal that consisted of, stuffed eggplant that was very good, fried chicken nuggets, shrimp fried rice, Japanese veggies and all types of pastries that was garnished with fresh fruits. They eat around a huge coffee table seated on the floor but they let me sit on the couch, we ate drink and was very merry. They treated me like family, I felt so welcomed in their country as well as their home.

 

Non-Verbal Communication

As I watched a portion of an old movie, I assumed the three characters in the movie were in the jungle looking for something or someone. It a was a lady and a man dressed in safari attire carrying rifles and the other man in nothing but  loin-cloth,  when I realized the attire I remembered, it must be a Tarzan movie. As the three traveled through the jungle, Tarzan made a sudden stop putting both hands out making a motion for the two to stop. He took their guns, stepped forward and placed them on the ground. He backed up to the man and lady and waited, a man and three tribal people with long branches that looked like something could be blown through it, they stood up from out of the bushes with facial expression as to say who are you and what do you want. The lady stepped forward with an expression on her face as if she knew who he was. The body motions and facial expressions showed that the man was guilty of something and didn’t want the others to seek him out. It seemed as though there was  conflict between the lady and the man being sought after. Why was the tribal people with this man, what was he protecting, the three were taken to the man campgrounds where they all were resting. The monkey that was with Tarzan found an airplane  that had crashed in the jungle, and some money apparently the something that the three started off looking for; the plane and millions of dollars. Morning came and the man that the lady apparently knew came into her tent, her facial expression showed that he wasn’t suppose to be there. He pointed to a shower and the next scene she was taking a shower. The other man in the safari suit entered and started throwing stuff around, the lady heard the noise and came out of the shower with the towel pulled tight around her body with an expression on her face, like what are you doing in here. She looked around the room and started to wave her hand using body language did you do all of this. He found a box of diamonds and she snatched it from him and looked in it. The man with the tribal people was exposed  he tied the three up and tried to escape. Now Tarzan who is king of the jungle didn’t let that happen, his trusted friend the monkey brought him his knife and the three escaped. The end of the story the lady and the man at the campground fell in love and got married, the man in the safari suit was with the lady because he knew of the diamonds and the money in the plane but he didn’t know he would encounter Tarzan. As I said earlier in the story the lady facial expressions showed that she knew this man, well the man was a good friend of her brother that was killed in the plane crash. They were on their way from the jungle searching for diamonds, the money was picked up for the sale of the first set of diamonds.