Rekindling Passion

As I reflect upon my learning from contact with several international and national ECE organizations, I realize that I have a heightened awareness of issues and trends in the early childhood field, which are universal around the globe. Many of the issues were concerning and rekindled my passion to make a positive difference in the lives of children and families; thus, creating a brighter world. I have grown personally and professionally in my understanding of the impact of the various issues and trends on children’s development and the need to address the issues through best practices and legislative/policy changes, as well as an understanding of recommendations including possible unintended consequences. I am finding myself more motivated to work toward addressing issues related to quality, excellence, and equity in early childhood education in my work with young children and families, in advocating for policy and legislative changes at the State and National level, and by inspiring others to do the same locally, nationally, and globally.

Savethechildren.org

• Heightened Awareness • Personal/Professional Growth • Motivation

 

 My goals are to develop global connections with professionals in the early childhood with the purpose of collaborating to create a heightened global awareness of issues and trends while fostering professional/personal growth.  This will motivate  myself and other ECE educators/professionals to address issues related to quality, excellence and equity in early childhood education in their work with young children and families, and to  advocate for policy and legislative changes that will encourage “all” children, families, and communities across our nation and around the globe to thrive and reach their unique potential.

ZerotoThree.org

 As another aspect of our journey closes this week, I would like to thank each of my colleagues and Dr. Shephard for your support, encouragement, and the insight you have shared. It has been enlightening and a pleasure. As we move forward on our journey, I wish everyone continued success. See you in the next course and happy blogging!

Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 3

I still have not received a response from any of the international early childhood professionals that I have tried to establish contact with; therefore, I proceeded this week with reviewing  UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education” webpage at http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/ themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood as assigned. However, the link came up forbidden so I continued with internet search untill I found what I needed. UNESCO advocates for Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programs that attend to health, nutrition, security and learning that provides for children’s holistic development. 

I discovered that most countries around the globe are struggling with the same issues that we are regarding access, equity, quality, and inclusion for all children. The 1990 Jomtien Declaration for Education for All stated that learning begins at birth. A decade later, the 2000 Dakar Framework for Action reaffirmed the importance of early childhood by including the development of early childhood care and education as the first of its six main goals. Participating countries committed themselves to “expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children.” Governments were particularly urged to expand equitable access to quality early childhood services underscoring the importance of instituting policy in favor of the poor. Countries often promote alternative services for poor children with limited or no access to mainstream early childhood services.  While this can be cost-effective and pedagogically groundbreaking, it raises concerns about sustainability and quality.  In cases where the government has limited resources, a pro-poor policy can redistribute resources by reducing state support for the more privileged, thus creating inequities. Additionally, while ensuring an equitable distribution of resources among different populations and especially those who live in the most disadvantaged regions seeks to expand access without creating serious regional inequities may be important; where there is universal provision for a certain age group while the overall enrolment in other age groups is low can create inequities. While advantaged children of the target age group benefit from state investment, disadvantaged children in non-targeted ages receive limited government attention. UNESCO proposes that a policy of universalization with targeting can minimize issues of inequity in governments that aim for universal access among the target age group while simultaneously prioritizing the poor.

UNESCO points out that there are no universally agreed criteria for quantifying ECCE quality, yet emphasizes useful factors to consider including pedagogy materials, personnel training, service setting, and parental education and involvement. They stipulate that learning materials should be quantitatively, culturally, and developmentally adequate with a focus on child-centered interactions. They also stipulate that active involvement from parents, communities, relevant play, and learning materials ensure that early childhood services remain relevant to the needs of the children, all other stakeholders, and increases sustainability.

The website has much information regarding early childhood education around the world including country profiles, public policy, country policy reviews, various publications, and more.

Early childhood care and education (ECCE) is more than a preparatory stage assisting the child’s transition to formal schooling. Early childhood policies are placed within a broader context of social development, gender equity and poverty reduction. UNESCO leads the international policy drive for an integrated early childhood care and education system that encompasses both the well-being and the development of the whole child. Their mission is to support early childhood policy development with the aim of building a solid foundation for all children’s lifelong learning.  UNESCO actively works with Member States in their efforts to develop and strengthen their national capacity to meet the first goal of the 2000 Dakar Framework for Action, which aims to expand and improve comprehensive early childhood care and education for all.

These points support and align with our studies and my ultimate professional goal which is to make a difference in the lives of children and families for the better, thus, creating a brighter future for children, families, and society. It also supports my second goal which is to create, maintain, support, and advocate for high quality, responsive, culturally, developmentally, and individually appropriate learning environments and experiences that will positively influence learning and development in all areas while promoting health and safety for “all” children.

Reference

UNESCO. (2016). “Early Childhood Care and Education” Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/ themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood

Zero to Three News

This week I explored ZERO TO THREE’s podcast series (for parents), Little Kids, Big Questions. The podcasts address some of the most common and challenging issues facing parents of babies and toddlers including: helping a baby learn to sleep through the night; dealing with a picky eater; and learning to set limits on children’s behavior. These questions and more are covered in a series of 12 podcasts, hosted by Ann Pleshette Murphy, a past contributor to ABC’s Good Morning America Parenting Segment and Vice President of the ZERO TO THREE Board of Directors.  Each podcast features an interview with an expert that focuses on how to apply the research of early childhood development to your daily interactions with your baby or toddler and additional resources on the topic. This is a wonderful resource to share with parents.

I did receive an enewsletter this week, Zero to Three: In the News. The newsletter contains highlights from new research, articles, and other recent news items of interest for professionals working with expectant parents and parents with infant and toddlers. The current issue contains the latest research related to breastfeeding, maternal infection during pregnancy, diagnosis and treatment of ADHD, and resources related to poverty in the United States and its impact on infants and toddlers. There is a brief from The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) called, Disparate Access: Head Start and CCDBG Data by Race and Ethnicity, that relates to this week’s learning about inequities in access in the newsletter. CLASP finds that access to child care subsidies and Head Start is sharply limited for all eligible children and even more so for particular racial and ethnic groups and in particular states. The report confirms low levels of access nationally to Head Start preschool, Early Head Start, and child care funded through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), because of the large gap between current investment and need. It also finds distressingly low levels of access for particular groups of children. Most striking is the low level of access that eligible Hispanic or Latino children have to childcare subsidies, especially in some states including Mississippi, Oregon, South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, and Tennessee. Less than half of eligible preschool-aged children participate in Head Start, less than one in six eligible children receive child care subsidies funded through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), and fewer than 5 percent of eligible infants and toddlers participate in Early Head Start (EHS). The report offers early insights about the reasons for these disparities and notes that more analysis is needed to fully understand and fix them. “Stagnant federal funding and antiquated funding formulas for both child care and Head Start prevent states with growing or diversifying child populations from targeting new resources to underserved communities. State-level decision making in CCDBG may result in state policies that contribute to inequities in access,” said Stephanie Schmit, senior policy analyst at CLASP and co-author of the report.

This website contains a wealth of information regarding issues and trends related to infants and toddlers that collaborates and expands on the topics we have been studying. The information is very useful to parents and professionals in the field.

CLASP. (2016). Disparate Access: Head Start and CCDBG Data by Race and Ethnicity. Retrieved from –

http://www.clasp.org/issues/child-care-and-early-education/pages/disparate-access

Zero to Three: In the News. (2016). Retrieved from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=17904.0&dlv_id=49145

Professional Global Web Contact Part II - Saving Brains: Center on the Developing Child @ Harvard University

Following exploring Save the Children report and Voices from the Field, I explored the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.  The center proposes, “Coordinated strategies to support child development can multiply the effects of investments in child survival, health, education, and economic development.  We need to protect children from significant adversity, in addition to providing them with enriched learning opportunities.  The early childhood years are critical building blocks for lifelong health, not just school readiness.  These propositions guide their work internationally.  As I explored, I discovered a program called Saving Brains that struck my curiosity so I explored a little further.  Saving Brains is led by Grand Challenges Canada seeks to improve outcomes for children living in poverty through interventions that nurture and protect early brain development in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.  The Center on the Developing Child is part of a team that supports a dynamic learning community of Saving Brains innovators to help them advance the impact and scale of their work in countries around the world.  The partnerships are currently working with the community creating a suite of interventions for nurturing and protecting early brain development.  Currently, projects are being implemented in low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America.  I began by watching the video on the Science behind brain development and I urge you to watch it.  It is quite informative.  I found it alarming that over 1/3 of the children in the world never reach their full potential.  It discusses brain plasticity and the fact that the brain actually physically and functionally changes with experiences beginning at birth and continuing throughout life.  It identifies three types of stressors that influence development of the brain.  The third type, toxic stress, which includes violence, abuse, neglect, and war stood out to me as I related it to the children in Syria and it very often negatively influences young children’s brain development because they have a weaker platform from which to launch.  This disadvantage can play out in multiple ways as life goes on.  The children experiencing toxic stress need protection to prevent or limit damage to the developing brain.  Saving Brains believes the answer globally is twofold: Firstly providing a platform of health and nutrition and secondly creating a stronger focus on play-based responsive stimulation.  The speaker points out that it is never too late.  Starting an earlier combination of play, health, nutrition, and early childhood education, as well as responding, engaging, and nurturing the children, teenagers, and adults in our lives can change brains for the better across the lifespan.  The speaker states a Chinese proverb that says...”The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.  The second best time is now.”  Saving Brains is definitely something to think about.  The video entails the science behind brain development and evidence that supports their beliefs and program.  It is quite informative and interesting.  I pray that Save the Children can reach Syria’s children implementing these strategies to create a better life for them in their future.

 Reference

Center on the Developing Child. (2016). Saving Brains. (2016). Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/about/what-we-do/global-work/saving-brains/

Professional Global Web Contact Part I: Save the Children: Children Under Seige in Syria

Report: Save the Children
Organization

A new report from Save the Children reveals that barrel bombs, air strikes and shelling are the greatest issues for the more than a quarter of a million children estimated to be living in the besieged areas in Syria.  Parents share the horrors of family life under siege including dealing with the psychological impact on children terrified of explosions and the severe consequences of being deprived of food, basic medicine, and clean water.  A Syrian aid worker describes what it is like to live under siege (2016), “There are snipers shooting at anyone on the road, and landmines in the fields.  Checkpoints stop everything coming in – food, medicine, fuel; everything needed for life.  They stop people leaving, even sick children in need of medical help.  Homes and schools lie in ruins from bombing.  Children are starving and the markets are empty.  It is the 21st century but here it is like hundreds of years ago.  This is what it means to live under siege” (p.3).  The children are the most vulnerable.  “Children are living on the verge of death.  They are forced to eat leaves – even flour and milk is forbidden to bring in” (Syrian aid worker, n.d).  A child states, “When I hear the sound of a shell or a plane, then I get very afraid and I hurry to escape and hide under my bed” (Ahmed, a boy in Duma).  A mother reports, “The wounded are left to die because there is no medicine to save their lives” (Haya, a mother in Eastern Ghouta).  This year marks the fifth year the country has been under siege.  The conflict in Syria is the biggest humanitarian crisis of our time.  Indiscriminate, brutal violence against civilians and the denial of aid has forced half of the population to flee their homes, with 6.6 million people displaced inside Syria.  A mother states, “Fear has taken control.  Children now wait for their turn to be killed.  Even adults live only to wait for their turn to die.  When will my turn come” (Rihab, a mother in Eastern Ghouta).  It is believed that between 250,013 and 470,014 have been killed.  The crisis is deteriorating even further with the active involvement of the Russian military, which is the latest in a seemingly never-ending spiral of military escalations.  At least 14 nations, including four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, are now militarily engaged in Syria.  Another 4.7 million refugees seeking safety and assistance are in neighboring countries and in Europe.  Children and their families are literally facing every issue we have discussed so for, changing demographics, poverty, hunger, lack of access to school, medical care, basic medicine, toys, and more.  They are denied the right to work and to go to school.  They are not able to meet even their most basic needs.  This is horrific and no child or family should have to undergo this.  While they should have been growing and learning during the critical first 5 years of life, Syria’s children have known only 5 long years of war.  I cannot even fathom the detrimental effects on all areas of children’s development; they are clearly suffering from trauma.  While they should have been growing and learning during the critical first 5 years of life, Syria’s children have known only 5 long years of war.  Here is the year-by-year account:

CHILDHOOD: The Greatest Casualty of Syria’s War
LIFE	Age	WAR
FIRST STEPS One of many happy milestones in a child’s first year of life	YEAR ONE	FIRST SHOTS The terrifying sound children heard when Syria’s civil war erupted in 2011
A DOZEN WORDS What a child learns by age 2, plus how to walk, run and jump	YEAR TWO	DOZENS OF CHILDREN The number reported in The number reported in 2012 to have been used as human shield

GEOMETRIC The kinds of shapes 3-year-olds like to sort, while playing with puzzles and games	YEAR THREE	CHEMICAL Weapons used in civilian attacks killing 426 innocent children in 2013
ABCs What a child starts to recognize by age 4, while singing songs and learning stories	YEAR FOUR	BOMBS Explosive weapons targeted on schools, leaving 1.6 million children unable to learn in 2014
TEN How many objects 5-year-olds can count, plus proudly say their name and address	YEAR FIVE	ONE The shocking photo of Alan Kurdi, whose tiny body washed ashore in 2015

Table: Save the Children.org

Save the Children workers are engaged in relief efforts inside Syria and in neighboring countries refugee camps.  To date, they have supplied 130,000 people with clean water, 34,500 children with a place to learn 3,500 emergency patients with care each week, 145,000 people with warm clothes and shelter, and 16 centers supporting traumatized children.  However, the war continues in Syria and the United Nations estimates there are 6.5 million displaced people in besieged or hard-to-reach areas.  Many live in dire need in abandoned buildings, open spaces and in informal camps mainly in the north near the border with Turkey, where there are few or no services available.  Some families are resorting to such negative coping strategies as eating less, marrying off girl children, and sending children to work in exploitative labor, which breaks my heart.  Getting the much-needed help to Syria is critical for the immediate and future well-being of children and families.  I urge you to read the report and check out the Voices from the Field blog.  While it is heart wrenching, they provide a very clear view of the many issues children are facing internationally and a glimpse of what is being done to help.

Reference

Save the Children.org (2016). Retrieved from  http://www.savethechildren.org/site/ c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/ b.7998857/k.D075/Syria.htm