Consequences and Goals

Over the course of the past eight weeks and collaborating with Karen from Canada to discuss issues and trends in Early Childhood, I feel that I have learned a lot about myself and about our field. Three consequences of this learning have been:
1. Realizing that as educators we are more alike than different and that when we are vulnerable and honest with one another, we can truly appreciate that others have the same hopes, dreams and struggles that we have in our day to day interactions with children and families.

2. Learning never stops. I have knowledge about this field that has come from my education and my experience, however, looking at this field through another person's eyes opened my eyes to different ideas of raising the bar in my community for quality education and interactions with families. It was easy to talk with Karen and one of my favorite aspects of this course.

3. A realization that I need to know more about policies and how they are created and implemented. Karen was very knowledgeable about Early Childhood policies in Canada and her specific community and that caused me to have a desire to learn more about this in the U.S.

One goal that I can recommend for our field is to collaborate more within our communities with other educators and across borders. With Facebook and other social media, we have an opportunity that has not been afforded so easily before. There are a ton of Facebook groups that include educators from other countries, with different beliefs and outlooks. If we can step outside of our comfort zones long enough to hear, really hear, what other educator's have to say, we might just learn something new! It is time we get involved and learn!

I wish you all well!

Getting to Know Your International Contacts Part 3

In speaking with Karen from Canada again this week, I have learned more about her and her goals as well as what Canada is working towards. I honestly believe that this portion of the course has been my favorite! J I asked Karen the questions from the Blog Assignment this week and here are her answers!

What issues regarding quality and early childhood professionals are being discussed where you live and work?

“We are working towards a universal early learning and childcare system.  Right now keeping fees affordable and providing enough subsidy money to families is a key issue.  There are not enough spots for all children.  With maternity/parental leave now extended to 18 months and full day kindergarten for four year olds we can now focus in toddler and preschool spaces” (K. Tegal, personal communication, April 18, 2017).

What opportunities and/or requirements for professional development exist?

“There are so many training opportunities available - there is a city wide training calendar and many organizations (Ontario Reggio Association, Forest School Canada, Toronto District School Board etc...offer many workshops).  We are required to provide proof of ongoing learning and funds for professional development must be made accessible (government requirement)” (K. Tegal, personal communication, April 18, 2017).

What are some of your professional goals?

 “Professional goals?  I don't see myself in any sort of admin or supervisory type role so I guess I just want to keep learning and growing as an educator” (K. Tegal, personal communication, April 18, 2017).

What are some of your professional hopes, dreams, and challenges?

“Challenge?  Resources - not enough money and space allocated for the youngest learners” (K. Tegal, personal communication, April 18, 2017).

As always, I was so glad to see that early childhood educators have some of the same issues regardless of where they are located. Money and space will always be an issue! I have enjoyed talking with Karen so much over these few weeks. I hope that we are able to continue to communicate and learn with one another! 

Sharing Web Resources Week 6

The National Institute for Early Education Research

Follow some of the outside links. Where do they lead?

The only outside links I was able to find were links to webinars and presentations. Some of them took me to YouTube videos of TedTalks and others simply downloaded information from presentations.

Thoroughly search one area of the site. What did you find?

One area of the site that I found interesting is the Preschool Yearbook area. This is an area that shows an annual publication that tracks the funding, access and policies of state-funded preschool programs. It was interesting to me that there was not a Preschool Yearbook for 2016 yet, but the Yearbook for 2015 discusses whether or not state Pre-K got back on track in 2015. The entire publication can be downloaded and there is a link for looking at individual states.

E-newsletter links. What new information is available?

I received an e-newsletter this week and the first story is a story about whether or not taxes on sugary drinks could be the future for funding universal preschool. It was an interesting topic and I was struck by the following statement. "All this means that initiatives like that in Santa Fe are not just a convenient way of raising revenue for a good cause, but a double barreled approach to supporting healthier development of our children -- expanding access to high-quality early care and education while discouraging consumption of sugary beverages that contribute to problems of tooth decay, obesity and diabetes" (NIEER, April 14 2017).

Does the website or the e-newsletter contain any information that adds to your understanding and excellence in early care and education?

YES! There are many more stories in the e-newsletter as well as on the website. The newsletter links stories directly to the website so they are easy to download and review. One story dealing with equity was entitled "Questions of Access and Equity: Suspension and Expulsion in PreK" I found it interesting, please let me know what you all think!
http://nieer.org/2016/10/26/questions-access-equity-suspension-expulsion-prek

What other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field did you gain this week from exploring the website and/or the e-newsletter?

I find something interesting every time I explore this website. I think the most powerful thing I find is that I am not alone in my concerns and struggles in this field. There are articles on Kinder readiness which is the current struggle I am having as well as just really good information on child development and the field in general. I will link the latest article/blog that I have enjoyed!
http://nieer.org/2017/04/14/data-literacy-just-test-results-important-early-childhood-education

Please let me know your thoughts! :)

Getting to Know International Contacts Part 2

This week I was able to have a conversation with my contact in Canada, Karen. She had excellent information to share with me concerning excellence and school readiness. She stated concerning excellence:

 “In Ontario to be an infant/toddler/preschool educator you need to have a 2 year diploma or a 4 year degree in early childhood education and you must be registered with the College of Early Childhood Educators - which sets code of ethics, ensures ongoing learning of educators and yearly license renewals - it regulates the profession and will discipline educators if needed. Our standards are high and our framework is solid.  There are challenges around providing adequate support for children with special needs and the high number of children in kindergarten classrooms” (Karen Tegal, personal communication, April 3, 2017).

I found this to be interesting and encouraging. When we have had conversations in the past, we have discussed that quality care requires quality educators. In Ontario, they seem to have a great accountability plan in place.

Concerning equity and school readiness, Karen had a lot of wonderful things to say, and I could not pick just one to share, so in order to do her words justice, I am directly quoting her again! J

”School readiness and achievement are only talked about as far as social emotional development and self-help skills in the toddler and preschool years. Once a year, early year’s settings in Toronto are rated on a 5 point scale - that focuses on the environment and the interactions/relationships.  These ratings are posted online.  If a centre chooses not to be rated they are not eligible for grants or fee subsidies.  The province also assesses and licenses each centre once a year - this is mandatory for all centres and they focus on health, safety, laws - ratios etc. Social emotional readiness is crucial and literacy and numeracy happen naturally through play.  Also there is a huge push for thinking more about outdoor play.  Toddlers and preschoolers are expected to be outside for one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon- but outdoor play spaces are often neglected when it comes to provisioning an enriched environment. If a child turns four before Dec 31 they are in FDK (full day kindergarten) - a two year program with a play/inquiry based curriculum where more "reading and mathematical" behaviors are expected and monitored through play based observations- no pencil/paperwork or tests (as far as I know). Every FDK class has two adults - one registered early childhood educator and one Ontario certified elementary teacher (with 6 years post-secondary education) and up to 26 children.

Also - only FDK is fully publicly funded and guaranteed.  For infant, toddler and preschooler spaces wait lists can be long and subsidy applications can be frustrating- this can be seen as a barrier to access as wealthy families can also apply to centres that don't accept subsidies as they can pay full fees” (Karen Tegal, personal communication, April 3, 2017).

I was surprised to hear that there are two teachers in each Full Day Kindergarten and the specifics of the credentials of each. I was also surprised to hear that FDK is a two year program that is play/inquiry based. How exciting! I wonder what difference we would see in our own communities if Kindergarten was 2 years long and play/inquiry based!?! It also seems like Canada struggles with the same issues with funding in preschool that we do. It is a universal issue for sure.

I am really enjoying getting to know Karen and hearing her thoughts! I hope you all are having success in this aspect of the course as well! 

Sharing Web Resources

This week I have continued to look at the National Institute for Early Education Research. I did not find the weekly email to be inspiring or question probing. Honestly, the website is a bit difficult to maneuver through though the information is wonderful. 
The section that seems particularly relevant to my professional development is the Preschool Matters Today blog. There are a ton of different topics in this section and I can scroll through them easily and simply open them up to read more. There is typically a new topic for each day.  One statement in a blog from March stood out to me as something we are doing together every week! "Collaboration also can be daunting, challenging us to share information with those outside our usual circle. Yet the rewards outweigh the risks. If we want to create a robust early learning system for all children, we need to share not only great ideas and strategies for implementing them but also mistakes made and how to avoid them" (Weisnfeld, 2017). This spoke to me because of some specific collaboration I am doing at work with the preschool teaching teams. 
There is also a section that provides podcasts and videos that I found to be interesting and made me think of the topic of economist in a different way. Steven Barnett is an economist and I found a video of him speaking about investing in early childhood. The video is entitled, "Ed:Talk: High Quality Pre-K: Taking the Road Less Traveled". I will link the video at the end of this post for you to check out! It made me feel less defensive about economist coming into the world of Early Childhood. 
There is an entire section set apart for journal articles. I was able to find articles concerning economics and finance, however I was disappointed that they were not current. The latest article shown was from 2011. 
I feel that as I am exploring this website, I am finding more and more out about NIEER. I have stated before that research is not a strong passion of mine, but I want to know more and feel more confident in conducting and reading about various research in our field. This assignment and this website is giving me a safe place to do so. For that I am grateful! 

Reference:
http://nieer.org/publications/blog

http://nieer.org/video-webinar/ed-talk-high-quality-pre-k-taking-the-road-less-travelled

Ed Talk