International Web Resources

Australian Early Childhood Network

I chose to learn more about the Australian Early Childhood Network (https://www.facebook.com/AustralianEarlyChildhoodEducationNetwork). I am currently following them on Facebook and have learned that Australia is facing many of the same issues and inequities that child care centers in the US face such as higher child to staff ratios, lower pay, lack of professional recognition, and endless paperwork. Despite that their government pays salaries of some child care staff, there are still issues with qualifying for funding and meeting paperwork requirements. The teachers also stated that they do not feel they have enough quality time with the children as they are continually completing reports.

Their focus is be "an online community for Early Childhood Educators everywhere to share information, resources, ideas, views on the National Quality Agenda and their own personal passion for early childhood education." I have asked them about how they include families from diverse cultures or if they had a range of diversity in their centers, but have not gotten a response yet.

Establishing Professional Contacts

Part #1
I have to admit that this has not been as easy as I had planned to locate professionals outside the US. I was very eager to find professionals from Australia and England and started with the sites in our blog resources. I selected OMEP sites for the 2 countries and emailed both agencies, but to no avail. I did not received responses and decided I did not want to wait much longer. I ended up on Facebook and found the PACCA page (Pennsylvania Child Care Association). PACCA shares articles on a variety of ECE topics and they happen to be covering the Big Steps initiative in Australia. From what I have gathered so far, they are working to bring attention to the professional attributes of child care and calling for increased wages. I reviewed their page and found a link to the Australian Early Childhood Education Network and private messaged them. They are eager to work with me and answer whatever questions I have. As I felt successful with Facebook, I searched for England Child Care and game across a child care named the Grafton House Day Care Nursery. They offer free child care for children ages 2 and 3. I reached out to them as well and they have responded positively. I am looking forward to learning more about each country and what their successes and challenges are.

Part #2
I chose to research http://www.early-education.org.uk/ because I have researched the High Scope program and many of the training materials are based in English Child Cares. I am eager to learn more about their systems.

Questions...
I am interested in learning about their ratios, pay/benefits, training requirements and general working conditions. I am also interested in learning about the perception that parents and government have on child care in these countries and their funding sources as well as QRIS.

My Supports

The Simple Things

When I think about my day and the things that help me make it through another day, I am thankful for simple things like my alarm clock to help me get my day going. Often times I wake up before the alarm sounds and realize I have an extra 30 minutes to sleep. If it weren't for my alarm, I would sleep longer. Other simple things include lists and chocolate. I have lists for my lists and find great satisfaction for crossing items off. About mid-day, my sweet tooth kicks in and I reach for chocolate. It gives me the zip I need to make it through the afternoon. Going to Hershey Park is a dangerous vacation for me!

The Foundation of Support

I also have the bigger things in life that support me such as my friends and family. I knew today was going to be a tough day and when I entered work, I had a song in my head that my kids had changed the words around to be a silly nonsense song about needing waffles instead of love. It made me smile and go into my first meeting less stressed. I also have several other director friends that we affectionately and collectively call ourselves "The Bottom Feeders". They are my go to people for work stress as there are no friends at the top and I don't believe it's professional to vent to staff about work issues. My husband and my mom are my biggest supports as they will listen endlessly, give me time to settle and also let me cry

 

when it all gets to be too much. They love me unconditionally.

 

What If?

My organization is going through an affiliation right now and things are constantly changing and jobs may be lost in the process as they look to streamline processes. Keeping that in mind, I chose to think about what my life would be like if it were my job that was cut. While child care doesn't pay a substantial income by any means, it still helps to pay the bills I do have and the little extras for our family. I would need financial supports to keep our house, vehicle, and food on the table. I believe that I would be stressed out and have high anxiety by wanting to provide for my family and not have the means to do so. I believe my in-laws would attempt to help where they could, but I also believe that my pride would get in the way of taking that support. I would need support in locating another full-time position in the child care field, but may change career paths if the offer was right. I know that we would cut out the extras and strip expenses where possible, but the emotional aspect of not being employed would be tremendous.

My connections to play

"Play is the answer to how new things come about." - Jean Piaget
My play time always encompassed the opportunity to explore my surroundings and use my imagination. I reminisce about playing in the woods at my grandmother's house for hours and learning new trails or riding my bike until the street lights came on. Each time I would find something new that I hadn't found before.

"Logic will get you from A to Z, but imagination will get you anywhere." - Albert Einstein
I would make play houses out of folding lawn chairs and play for hours with my Barbies or would tie a blanket around my neck, add some bracelets and become "Wonder Woman" - completed with my underoos! My cousin tells the story of how I had an imaginary friend named "Marcia" and would talk to her late at night when she would babysit me. She says I would have very in depth conversations with her like she was a real person. Apparently, it had scared my cousin several times as she thought I was talking to a ghost.

Toys that made my day:

Mrs. Beasley was one of my beloved dolls. I slept with her every night and played with her everyday until she fell apart and could no longer be salvaged. I remember my mom talking me into throwing her away then me changing my mind on garbage night. My mom went out into the rain to retrieve her for me before the garbage truck came.

 
I loved to make tents anywhere in my house. Some of my favorite memories include my younger brother and I making tents in our bedroom between 2 beds, watching the Jetsons and eating Doritos. It was such a place to get away from everything.


My other favorite doll was Baby Crissy. She had a long ponytail that would "magically" disappear when a string was pulled on her back. She could change her hairstyles instantaneously. I loved her so much and loved playing with her hair until...I got the scissors and permanently cut her hair. She wasn't as much fun after that.

My Supporting People
I remember learning to ride my bike without training wheels and watching my dad push me around the yard. I would always look back and check the shadow to see if he was still holding on. I miss him dearly. He also made sure my swing set was put together before he went into the hospital for a heart surgery as he wanted to make sure I had a happy birthday. While I don't remember too many playtimes with him, I remember him giving me the tools for play.

I had many friends in the neighborhood that I played with. Chris and Heidi taught me how to roller skate in my driveway. I loved to play Barbies, but Chris was never allowed as his dad was a police officer and had strong feelings about boys playing with Barbies. We would hide behind the walls of my porch so he could play and scramble to clean up when we heard noises. Dan and I would ride our bikes all over town along with Tiffany. I loved seeing the new sites and pretending I was on an adventure with them.

Past and Future
I loved having the freedom to ride my bike or take a walk for miles. I could be gone for hours and my parents never seemed to mind. I made the right choices....most of the time. It's sad that our society has changed so much that I wouldn't dare let my own children do these things now. I feel that I can't even let my children play in the yard without watching them every minute for a stranger to come by. I see children so wrapped up in media that they have never learned how to make a mud pie or had the opportunity to play tennis off the garage door while pretending you were in Wimbledon. The magic of imagination is all but disappearing from our children's play just like our connections with nursery rhymes.

"Life must be lived as play." - Plato
I am proud to be a mother and a director of a child care. I hope to always let my inner child shine. Just recently, we had numerous days of rain and my children were bored, complaining and fighting. I was busy doing homework and decided we needed to change things up. I invited them outside. My oldest child, age 10, looked at me like I was crazy. I ran out the door, up and down the driveway and splashed in puddle after puddle. He paused briefly and joined me giggling the entire time. Within minutes, my other children join me and we played for an hour in the rain, just splashing away. We filled buckets and dumped them on each other, slid across the grass like a make-shift slip and slide and had the time of our lives. It is my hope that I will never loose my inner child and they will cherish these memories over making the high score of a video game.
 

Relationship Reflection

Relationships take time to nurture and grow. There are times where distance can separate friends, but then life has a crazy way of reconnecting us. These are my friends from high school and we each share crazy stories of our high school days from 20 years ago. We take the time each year to get together when our friend Stephanie comes in town. These friends have gotten me through some tough times. I remember Stephanie loosing her mother to cancer in high school and when my dad died when I was in college, Stephanie had the words of wisdom I will never forget...."You've got to talk about it." Most of that time was a blur, but I can remember that conversation like it was yesterday.

If I've learned anything, relationships take time. They morph as time goes on and we grow yet it's the true friends that always come full circle and have your back when the world has turned on you. We have Facebook to keep in contact so that we always know what is going on in each other's lives and while we may not be there to give a hug when life throws a curve ball, we have the words to say "I'm thinking of you". I had other friends that I thought were my true blue friends from those days and have realized that we have grown apart and our values have changed. The success of friendship requires both people to work at. I lost what I thought was a good friend because I became tired of always being the one to work at it. I often question where I went wrong. I guess I'll never know despite attempts to find out.

 

These are my director friends from various backgrounds. Annie and I met at trainings and stumbled across our friend Susan at another training. She was from out of town and happened to be in our group for the class. I remember having discussions with her about a state funded program that I hoped would fold, but she needed it to sustain her facility. Later on we all had contact with Kathy, who became our state level designator for quality improvements. These are the people who get it. They understand staffing issues, program problems, parent complaints and the happiness I get when a child hugs me. They have each called me with their stresses and sometimes just ask for a moment to listen. We never judge each other for our mistakes and we have all grown in our field because of our support system. We also tend to question the norm and often get into trouble for asking questions. Somehow we've dubbed ourselves after superheroes. I'm Batman, Susan is Robin and Annie is the Joker. Kathy...she just laughs at our antics and fuels our fire to change the world.

 

All in all, I can't imagine my life without any of them. Each of them has worked to mold me into the person and professional I am. I am thankful for each of them...and always will be.

It's all about the children

When I think about children and all of their wonderment I reminisce about the days of watching Mr. Rogers and wishing I could live in the Land of Make Believe. The world needs more people like Mr. Rogers. The following is a link that I hope all of you will love as we reflect on our purpose.


21 Heartwarming and Beautiful Facts about Mr. Rogers that will Brighten the Crummiest of Days

I would like to thank everyone in my group for taking the time to read my posts both here on the blog and on the discussion boards. I have learned so much from each of you as you shared your insights over the last 8 weeks. A special thank you to Darrell as I feel I related to your family values and how you put your family above all else and want what is the best for them. Thank you to Jaime as I love your compassion for this field. I can sense you want to bring the best to your children. Finally, thank you to Selena. I look forward to reading your blog posts each week and you were always a classmate who had their blogs done early! You add such creativity and compassion to your blog. I hope that we cross paths again :)

Teaching the Test

As I reflect upon assessments, I think about some of the very first paperwork that comes home each school year identifying the dates of our states PSSA assessments for children in grades 3-5. We are told we cannot schedule vacations or take time off during the testing window and must sign an acknowledgment form stating we understand the policy. As the time frame comes closer, additional information comes home on healthy eating, breakfast options and good sleep habits along with a sign-up sheet to bring snacks to school for the class during testing. Within days of the test, my son shares with me how important these tests are because "the President will see them". I am floored! What pressure to put on a 3rd grader! He has finished 4th grade and the testing window has increased and parents are informed that science will be taught for half the year and social studies the other half. Maybe that's the problem with this nation as we seem to be too focused on testing and not enough on the arts and sciences. I was also discouraged to hear that when 9/11 passed this year, my son's school made no mention of the event. This was living history and lessons to be learned, yet because it wouldn't be on the PSSA, it wasn't worth discussing and exploring. I feel too many teachers are forced to teach the test.

I see the pressure of standardized tests and assessments trickling down to preschools and infant/toddler programs as we must report our results to the state to continue to receive funding. While I understand we must observe children to find their strengths and areas of development, I also believe that activities can be just activities and not needed to be set up to assess everything. I feel that our school age children are lacking creative skills and the ability to think outside the box. Personally, I feel that classroom teachers should observe children and begin to use the child's feedback in determining curriculum if we are truly looking at the whole child.

The more I read about the Montessori approach, the more I believe our schools need an over haul. I was intrigued by their learning and reflection process. It seems children have a love to learn with this approach. One student commented how much learning meant to her because she controlled her learning at her own pace. She felt that teachers take responsibility and ownership away from the students by controlling what and how they learn. It all boiled down to what marks were given on the report card instead of the intrinsic learning (The Montessori Society AMI UK, 2010).

I chose to continue my research on Germany and found that they face many of the issues the US faces with standardized tests. Their educational system is set up that preschool is not free and Kindergarten in not mandatory; however every child has a space available if needed. They attend the elementary school and are tested using the Trends in International Math and Science Study (TIMSS) and Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS).  Germany found themselves not fairing as well as other nations and worked to develop mandatory testing of their 16 states. Testing is conducted every spring for all children in grade 3 and some states test again at grade 6. It was interesting to read that they have the option of entering 3 different tracks for secondary school based on their desires and typically the positions of their socio-economic class (OECD, 20110).

References

OECD. (n.d.). Germany: Once Weak International Standing Prompts Strong Nationwide Reforms for Rapid Improvement. Retrieved from Pearson Foundation: http://www.pearsonfoundation.org/oecd/downloads/Germany_strong_performers_US.pdf

The Montessori Society AMI UK. (2010). Montessori Approach to Assessment and Learning. Retrieved from Montessori My School: http://montessori.org.au/schools/MAFeArticle1001.pdf