Final Blog Assignment

It was interesting to develop a professional relationship with someone from Bulgaria.  There were many differences between us; culturally and professionally.  I feel that when developing any type of relationship with anyone, there are many consequences.  In this case, they were both personal and professional. 

Professionally, I feel that my conversations with Emil have opened my eyes to the role that many advocates play in the field of early childhood studies.  Emil spends the majority of his time traveling around the world; attending conferences, developing professional ties, resolving challenges within the field, and advocating for children.  I have developed a deep respect for the role he plays in this field and envy his mobility.  Although, early in our conversations, Emil claimed that he felt there was “no solution” to the issue of Roma children being integrated into Bulgarian schools, he has attended many conferences in order to advocate for them and try to find an answer to the problem.  Professionally, my interest in world matters regarding my field has been sparked.  I have come to realize the importance of advocacy and my eyes are open to how big my role could be.  I don’t have to stand on the sidelines; I can play an intricate role in the solution to our world’s issues in education.

Secondly, my relationship with Emil has also affected the way I view men in the profession of early childhood education.  My experiences have included very few men, and the men I do have in my school are in administration and have never taught in a preschool classroom.  Emil has worked so hard in his profession and has strived to reach further and touch more lives.  My idea of the role of men in my profession was that they did not have to try to obtain any professional development or better themselves because they were given the golden ticket, simply for being a minority in the field.  I now see that this is not the case.  Also, it is wrong of me to marginalize the men in my field and assume that they choose not to further their professional development, when in all actuality, many men within the field are those making some of the big decisions about it. 

Lastly, developing my friendship with Emil has been personally rewarding.  It has been wonderful to exchange ideas with someone with a vastly different outlook than my own, that has experiences that are unique from mine.  I feel that this should be a practice that all teachers are able to have.  I feel as though he has been able to touch my personal life, as well as my professional goals and aspirations.  I hope to someday live up to the model that Emil has set for advocacy.  I also hope to continue my relationship with him in order to be able to exchange ideas, speak of world issues, and develop a friendship.

In the end, I am left with one goal; I wish to become increasingly connected to the issues surrounding our field on a global level.  I have come to realize the importance of advocating for the children in our country and in order to effectively do so I will need to be up to date with the happenings occurring throughout our field all over the world.  I want to continue to build relationships with international contacts and acquire knowledge of how all programs our run so that I can advocate for the best possible practices for the children in our country.  This has been a rewarding experience for me; I’ve enjoyed getting to know my international contact, as well as learn from all of my colleague’s postings.  

Getting to Know International Contacts- Part 3

The main issue being discussed in Bulgaria at this time, is the inclusion of Roma children into early education programs.  These children are suffering due to their lack of exposure to early childhood education and are, in some cases, not even continuing on to grade school.  The gap between Roma children and the rest of the population is great and closing that gap seems to be of the highest priority in the Bulgarian school systems.

In regards to early childhood professionals, my contact believes that Bulgarian teachers are well-educated and effective teachers.  One hundred percent of all early education professionals in Bulgaria have received training in their field.  In most cases, teachers hold either a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Early Childhood Studies. Children also do not begin kindergarten until they are six or seven years old.  This gives teachers more time to properly prepare them for grade school, as well as giving the children more time to enjoy their childhood.  Teachers in Bulgaria are also in constant contact with parents.  This means that they are consistently reporting to them, (once a week), and compile a pedagogical profile on each child at the end of the year pinpointing their development.  Because of these requirements, teachers are well-versed in what is developmentally appropriate for their students and more in tune with how to speak to child development with parents.  

My contact spends a lot of his time attending professional development seminars all over the world.  These workshops and conferences are often attended by early childhood directors, but teachers are also in attendance.  He was not specific about a required number of hours, however, all of the teachers are highly educated and qualifies.  He was shocked to hear that in some cases in the United States, early childhood educators do not even hold an Associate's degree.  

My contact believes that he has met most of his professional goals.  He hopes to help the Roma population integrate into mainstream schools, although he doesn't seem particularly hopeful about the outcome.  I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know this man, and plan to continue my communication with him as long as possible.  

Sharing Web Resources

I have been following the Pre-K Now website for six weeks now and I have learned a great deal.  There is a plethora of information available about children, teaching pre-K, being a parent of an early childhood student, policymakers, etc.  This week's assignment has provided me with the opportunity to see where the Pre-K Now website can lead me and what other resources can be located and utilized through the consistent viewing of this website.

One of the sections of this website is called, "Pre-K News Stand."  This section's goal is as follows; "The pre-k movement grows daily. In an effort to keep advocates, policymakers, and educators informed, Pre-K Now sends an email every business day with short summaries of the best 10 to 25 stories on pre-k and related programs. We include stories from all media sources (newspapers, radio, television, and online publications) and links to full articles for additional reading."  (www.preknow.com)  This has been my favorite link to outside resources provided by preknow.com.  I love that it utilizes all forms of media to keep educators up to date with information pertaining to pre-k programs.  It includes articles pertaining to Pre-K age children, teachers, policies, etc. from other notable early childhood education websites.

For example, when considering this assignment, I chose to click on a link under "Pre-K News Stand" that brought me to an article on www.edweek.org.  The article was entitled, "Head Start Supporters Fear Impact of Threatened Cutbacks."  It spoke of how budget cuts within the Head Start program could ultimately affect Pre-K classrooms and after school programs at the elementary level.  Many of the articles I have found through searching this link have provided me with information about how early childhood programs are linked to elementary school and higher education.  I enjoy reading about the impact that early childhood programs have on our children's development and how necessary they are in order for children to be successful throughout their education.  These articles provide me with validation and make me feel as though I'm truly making a difference.  They also equip me with information about the downfalls of my field and how I can advocate for fellow educators, children, and families.

While reviewing my newsletter this week, I read an article entitled, "House quietly drops popular plan to launch statewide pre-K rating system," by Beth Hawkins  This article directly tied in with some of the suggestions my colleagues and myself were making in regards to inequities in early childhood education.  I had felt that there should be a rating system that every licensed early childhood care center or preschool would have to be run through.  This article has informed me that "with members of both parties in agreement that early childhood education is key to closing the achievement gap, pre-K would finally get a place at the big kids’ table."  This, however, did not happen; "the House GOP leadership quietly killed most of a bill to create a statewide rating system to identify high-quality early-ed programs, steer the fragile families that rely on public child-care subsidies toward them and reward providers that deliver top results."  This is unfortunate and obviously not looking out for the best interests of the children involved.  Instead of concerning themselves with the issue of tenure, the House GOP should have been more interested in the bill that would provide our children with the privilege of attending programs that live up to standards and institute best practices.  


Aside from the article mentioned above, I also found information on preknow.com about pre-K advocacy and ways in which students can have low cost early childhood programs provided to them.  This has been an issue that I've repeatedly visited throughout this course; the disparities between the rich and poor and how it affects their children and their education.  This link on the website provided information about different opportunities available to parents of pre K students, as well as links that will provide them with additional resources.  


I am excited to read about everyone else's resources and to further build upon what we  have learned together.  




References:
www.preknow.com
http://www.minnpost.com/learningcurve/2011/03/31/27060/house_quietly_drops_popular_plan_to_launch_statewide_pre-k_rating_system

International Contacts: Part Two

I was able to speak with my contact from Bulgaria this week, but I am still trying to build a solid connection to my contact in Denmark.

When I tried to discuss inequities with my Bulgarian contact this week, at first, he did not believe that there were any.  After further explanation of what inequities are and giving several examples from what we've been studying this week, he believed that there were a few that "I" may consider an "inequity."  His examples were that the majority of teachers, (99.5%), are female while a similar statistic shows that the majority of administrators are male.  He was correct in thinking that I would consider this an inequity.  I feel that it's important, in any country, to have male teachers.  I don't understand why teaching is a field filled predominantly with women.  Children need to build connections with males as well and I feel that with many fathers being the parent that works, and many teachers being female, children are missing this opportunity.

Another inequity in Bulgaria would be the gap between those children who are from a low socioeconomic status to those that are affluent.  It was, formerly, a very large problem in Bulgaria.  However, my contact has informed me that there have been many changes in recent years to offer monetary support to low income families, thus enabling their children to attend public preschools.  Although many families are receiving this support, the Roma children are still suffering.  I have chosen not to really push this topic with my contact, as it seems to be of a sensitive nature.  However, he is currently attending a conference to help the inclusion of Roma students and I look forward to discussing it with him when he returns next week.

Since our conversations are brief and sporadic, I thought it would benefit me to do a little research on my own about the Bulgarian education system.  Since much of my application assignment discussed the need for teachers to possess higher education, I decided to see if Bulgaria experienced the same inequities that we do in our country regarding this issue.  In Bulgaria, according to the statistics I've located, one hundred percent of teachers have gone through training in the early childhood field and the majority of them hold a Bachelor's or Master's degree.  This is greatly different from our early childhood education system, in which some teachers do not hold any degree at all.  I have emailed my contact about this topic and am waiting to hear his thoughts and I will share them with you as soon as I do.

Learning about early childhood education in other countries has been a rewarding experience.  I feel that as an American, I have sometimes had the ethnocentric idea that "America does it best."  It's interesting to truly see our shortcomings and the room we have to go.  It's inspired me to think of ways to advocate for other professionals and make a difference in our field.

References:
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001471/147161e.pdf
personal contact with Emil from Bulgaria