The web site I chose to explore further was the High Scope page. The section that seemed relevant to my current professional development was the section on the six curriculum content areas and the 42 key developmental indicators (KDI’s). I have been an early childhood teacher for almost 20 years but this is my first year using the High Scope Curriculum. I believe that early childhood education should be a federally mandated and funded opportunity for every child and a universal curriculum should be used to teach all children 0-5. High scope provides a curriculum that is high quality, culturally responsive, and encompasses everything an early childhood experience that is rich in experience and developmentally appropriate should provide.  

On the High Scope page there is a resource that provides you with information on how high scope aligns with each states early childhood standards. If universal standards were in place you would not have a need to have all of this cumbersome information. One set of standards would not only be easier to assess but easier to apply. This resource did not seem controversial to me but it did make me think how can something seem so simple to me but be so cumbersome to politicians and law makers?

Politicians support is necessary for universal standards to be set and early childhood education to be a reality for every American child. Economists must explain how a universally designed program will meet federal standards and give the most human capitol returns. A lot of work went into designing a universal program (social security) for our oldest citizens and I believe with a little elbow grease and tax payer support we can design a universal program for our youngest citizens that will not only give us a leg up in education but it will set American children apart from other children globally.

Some other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field that I have gained from exploring the website are: an article on childhood obesity and how being overweight has long lasting affects into adulthood (http://www.highscope.org/file/NewsandInformation/HotTopics/MovementAndObesity.pdf) and a study of how a home literacy environment can improve as a result of parent and child engagement. (http://www.highscope.org/content.asp?contentid=907)

References:

http://www.highscope.org/

http://www.highscope.org/

New insights and information about issues of poverty

My conversation partner for this section of my blog posts is going to be Chris Bayes who is an ECE professional in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Chris teaches four year olds in the Foundation Class at Diocesan School for Girls. She has worked for the Ministry of Education as a Senior Advisor and as a Facilitator for Professional Learning.

We are conversing via email. I emailed Chris my questions about issues of poverty in her country and she thought they would be better answered by one of her colleagues who specializes in the area of poverty and I am still awaiting her response.

In the meantime I will discuss some information and new insights that I have gained about poverty in New Zealand and how it might affect young children and their families. The National Children’s Nutrition Survey said that “1 in 5 families studied said they could only sometimes afford to eat properly and that their food sometimes ran out because of lack of money.” (National Children’s Nutrition Survey, 2002)

One of the major concerns for children and families in poverty in New Zealand is the cost of living is so high that after housing is paid for there is little left for day to day expenses like heat, electricity, food, clothing, and other essential items required to live our day to day lives. The child poverty monitor lists this condition of poverty as material hardship. This led me to explore material hardship a little further in the area where I live and I realized this a real thing here as well. Once people find housing it is very difficult to keep it due to the high cost and the need for other essential living expenses. (Child Poverty Monitor, 2015) (sharinghouse.org)

References:

Internet Site : National Children’s Nutrition Survey (2002) http://www.moh.govt.nz/notebook/nbbooks.nsf/0/658d849a2bac7421cc256dd9006cc7ec/$FILE/nzfoodnzchildren.pdf

Internet Site: Child Poverty Monitor (2015) http://www.nzchildren.co.nz/

The organization I selected was High Scope (Inspiring educators to inspire children). High Scope provides a child directed preschool curriculum as well as assessment tools and up to date research and information in regards to current trends in early childhood education. Below is the link to the High Scope web page: www.highscope.org

I enjoyed watching the preschool comparison study that High Scope conducted on students who were through the age of 23. The study showed that students who participated in High Scope and other nursery schools that were child led were more likely to be successful socially and obtained higher education as well as less occurrences of teenage rebellion and less incarceration.

A current trend that was discussed on the web site that caught my attention was an article about High Scope developing six new key indicators in the area of Social Studies. These six indicators focus on integrating cultures and values into the classroom and honoring diversity. All six of these indicators relate to this week’s learning resources. One of the new indicators was telling stories. Stories relate directly to cultures and diversity and that is how information is passed down from generation to generation; so the ability to tell stories directly relates to our current learning resources. I think back to the story of the family that immigrated to the United States from Mexico. The stories they told their children about religion, their culture growing up, and their families were all stories that preserved their history for future generations.  (http://www.highscope.org/content.asp?contentid=839)

References:

http://www.highscope.org/file/NewsandInformation/ReSourceReprints/Spring2013/ReSourceSpring2013_TeachersCorner.pdf

www.highscope.org

Making Global Professional Connections

I was extremely excited about this assignment to make global professional connections. I have been in the early childhood field for nearly 20 years and I have always been fascinated by early childhood programs in other countries. Globally, there are several universal preschool models and I feel like the United States is antiquated when it comes to early childhood development and the importance of early intervention.

With that said I would like to share the reason I relocated to Seattle to be an early childhood teacher. Seattle recently rolled out a Universal Preschool model that is funded by the city and open to every 4 year old. In becoming a part of uncharted waters in a large city I have the benefit of being part of something from the ground floor up. When you are part of something new it is exciting but sometimes frustrating so it is important to make connections with other professionals who have done what you are doing.

I am blessed to have an education coach with lots of connections and she has so graciously helped me with this assignment by helping to make professional introductions with Chris Bayes. Chris teaches four year olds in the Foundation Class at Diocesan School for Girls in New Zealand. Her background has been working for the Ministry of Education as a Senior Advisor and as a Facilitator for professional learning.

Chris was first introduced to the pedagogy of Reggio Emilia in 1994 when the Hundred Languages Exhibition and conference was held in Melbourne. After visiting Reggio Emilia in 1998, she began an adventure that continues to inspire and challenge her.

For my second connection I am attempting to find a connection in Japan. Japanese culture values education, therefore early childhood education has been a very important educational developmental milestone that is taken very seriously. I have sent several emails and hope to receive a response by the first of the week. I am hoping to hear back from Yoko Shirakawa, a professor of Early Childhood Education, at Konan Women’s University.