Time Well Spent

The picture above is a strong representation of my outlook on Early Childhood Education and what is best for children in this age group, as I have come to understand, appreciate, and respect greatly over this journey at Walden University. It is hard to believe this journey is drawing to a close already! In the grand scheme of things, this past year and a half has completely flown by! Week to week it felt overwhelming, stressful, and hard to see the finish line; however, overall it was a very quick and enlightening experience to which I am forever grateful and thankful to have taken part in.

Over the course of this program at Walden University, I have gained many deeply felt learnings and insights. First of all, my passion for education has grown greatly. Now more than ever I feel motivated and inspired to make a difference in the field of education. I feel passionate about what I believe is right and now have the knowledge and understanding to support my endeavors. Secondly, I feel encouraged and confident in my abilities to become an advocate for children, families, and the field of education. Once again, the knowledge and learning gained through these courses have taught me so much about myself as an educator, the field overall, and children and families that I feel I could utilize to help make a positive change. Lastly, the third major deeply felt learning gained is about play and it's importance, as well as child development. I had a slight idea about development and play, but my eyes were opened completely and I have a newfound respect, understanding, appreciation, and passion for play, developmentally appropriate child-centered curriculum, and their inclusion in the ECE classroom for all children's benefit.

Goals are a great way for individuals to continue to strive to learn more and improve, as well as keep their passions ignited and fueled to do better. One long term goal I have moving forward from this journey at Walden is to continue to be a lifelong learner, as well as a successful advocate for children and families. I had not had the confidence in myself as a leader or advocate prior to completing this journey at Walden but I now believe and have the confidence to do such things. I have created a new set of goals to accomplish and can even envision myself becoming more active in the community, rather than just in the classroom as I had previously thought.

Additionally, I have felt inspired and motivated continually by the professionals we have learned from in these courses. I have documented countless quotations from professionals in regards to passion, leadership, anti-bias work, equity, child development, play, communication, collaboration, and so much more. I have notebooks and papers filled with quotes to remember. These are of the utmost importance to me and are something I will treasure moving forward. In addition to those from professionals in these courses, I have displayed below a few quotes from other professionals and/or authors that stand out to me in some capacity about ECE, this journey, our roles in children's lives, and a positive outlook on the future. For example:

Lastly, I would like to take time to thank my professor, Dr. Hampshire, and my colleagues. Dr. Hampshire, thank you for being supportive of my chosen Capstone challenge and providing feedback week to week to help me along this journey. In addition, thank you for always being understanding of my questions and e-mails. It is much appreciated! To all of my colleagues: thank you for continuing to inspire, motivate, and encourage me daily and weekly throughout all the courses in this program. Without your continued support, understanding, and encouragement, I wonder if I would have made it to the end! More specifically, I would like to thank a few colleagues in particular from this final course, as you have made this daunting task of completing our Capstone and final course a challenge that I could complete successfully, rather than something to cower from and stress over.



- Rachael: From course to course we have both shared how similar we are and how much we have in common, both personally and professionally. I am continually inspired by your passion, dedication, and knowledge in the field of ECE. You have been an extremely supportive colleague through these courses and I cannot thank you enough for that. In some of the toughest moments, it was refreshing and comforting to share similar thoughts, concerns, and questions with you, knowing you would understand and be right there with me along the way. We have said this countless times but it is comforting to find such a kindred spirit and kind soul to connect with through this journey. I truly, wholeheartedly hope to remain in touch moving forward as I feel as though you are not only a colleague, but a friend. Please keep in touch and know that I would love to continue to support one another in some capacity in the future. Perhaps we could even somehow work together with our classes as pen pals or via Skype in some capacity. All the best and looking forward to finally meeting at graduation!! :)

- Allison: Even though we had just started working together in a group in this final course, I am extremely thankful for having met and working with you in this final step of the journey. As I mentioned to Rachael, I feel as though I can relate to you in many ways and have learned a great deal from you over the last eight weeks. I have so much respect and admiration for your knowledge, passion, goals and accomplishments. Additionally, I cannot thank you enough for reaching out to me via e-mail as you did earlier in this course as I truly feel it helped to make something so stressful and scary seem more achievable, as well as provided an opportunity to connect as friends as well as colleagues. I wish you all the best and then some for a successful future. I hope you are excited to continue and finish your wedding planning and have the wedding of your dreams because you deserve it! Hoping we can find a way to remain in touch as colleagues and friends moving forward. Excited to meet you in person at graduation! WE DID IT! WOOT WOOT! :) ;)

- Julie: Despite the fact that we were in the same class for our final course in this journey, we were in separate groups. Yet I still feel compelled to thank you because you have had a major influence and impact on my Walden journey! From the very first course, I came to recognize what a powerful, inspiring, motivating, passionate, and honest educator and individual you are. While I was disappointed to not have the opportunity to work directly with you, I do feel compelled to thank you because I feel as though you had a major impact on my confidence and passion throughout this journey. You were continuously supportive, challenging and encouraging me along the way. You always provided opportunities for me to comfortably open up, be honest, and express my concerns. I admire you greatly and think you are an outstanding educator. I am in awe of you, your passion, your knowledge, your confidence. I know you will go on to do marvelous things. I hope we can remain in touch so we can continue to learn from one another and support one another in our future endeavors. All the best and looking forward to seeing you at the finish line on graduation day!!! :)



In closing, I would also like to take a moment to thank my wonderful fiancé and family (mom, dad, brother) for being so supportive throughout the last 18-20 months of this journey. It has not always been easy, I have been stressed, exhausted, and hard to find due to the consumption of my time this has taken but none of you faltered in supporting me, even when I wanted to give up some days. Without you, I never would have been able to begin or complete this journey. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Love you all.


Well…that's all folks!!! WE DID IT!!! WE MADE IT TO THE FINISH LINE!!! CONGRATULATIONS AND SEE YOU IN JULY FOR GRADUATION DAY!!!! :) :) :) :) :) :)

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

As we work in week 6 of our Capstone course, we were given the task of taking our job search within the ECE community a step further, beyond local and national levels on to the international realm. Once again, we needed to research organizations and agencies that work with and for children, families, and/or the ECE community worldwide. Next, we needed to focus on at least three organizations that we are interested in and share job opportunities available in these organizations.

First of all, I chose to focus on one of my favorite organizations that works both nationally and internationally - Save the Children. I had listed this organization as one of my national organizations but I have so much respect for the work they are doing internationally, as well. I have researched this organization in prior courses and have been following it closely since discovering it over a year ago. The Save the Children organization works in "120 countries, including the United States" working to "put children first - giving them what they need to grow up happy and healthy" (Save the Children, 2015, p.1 para. 2-3). One of my favorite parts about this organization is that it is working within the United States to help children here, as well as reaching out to over 100 countries throughout the world to help children and families in any way possible. It is inspiring! In looking into their job and career opportunities, you can search for jobs within the United States or jobs world wide. Globally, there are a  variety of positions available, such as an Education Manager needed world wide, a Legal Volunteer needed in London, Child Protection Advisor and Child Protection Coordinator in Central African Republic, Response Team Leader in Syria, and more. Of all the positions I had discovered on a global scale, I was most drawn to the Education Manager position, which can be completed world wide as needed,  but is currently based out of Syria due to the crisis taking place there. This position would require the individual to help train and create a successful program, suitable to the needs of the children and families there. It would require training individuals to teach and finding and providing a location, resources, and more. I think it would be a wonderful way to experience helping children and families in a different capacity!

Secondly, I also chose to research FHI 360, or the Family Health International, organization for my second resource. As stated on the Vision and Mission statements of the organization's webpage, "FHI 360 envisions a world in which all individuals and communities have the opportunity to reach their highest potential…to improve lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions for human development" (FHI 360, 2015, p. 1 para. 1-2). This organization believes in key characteristics and ideas, such as mutual respect, passion, and teamwork, which I believe wholeheartedly are at the core of any successful endeavor. Immediately I was drawn to this organization based on their values, vision, and mission. This organization has positions available in close to 50 different countries, including the U.S. When researching job and career opportunities, once again I found a variety of positions available, such as intern, management, director, and other positions located in a variety of countries. The position I found most interest in was the Partnership Associate who oversees many operations and the relationships and partnerships created in the process. This position is located in Washington, D.C. but does work internationally.

Lastly, a third organization I was interested in and began researching is called the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI). Once again, this is an organization I had researched and followed on a national and international level since early on in my Walden courses. ACEI is an organization that is focused on the educational opportunities young children receive worldwide. "ACEI is a global community of educators and advocates who unite knowledge, experience, and perspectives in order to exchange information, explore innovation and advocate for children…our mission is to promote and support the optimal education, development, and well-being of children worldwide" (Association for Childhood Education International [ACEI], 2011, p. 1 para. 2-3). Additionally, ACEI shares that their vision is that "every child in every nation will have access to a quality education. This education will prepare children to become responsible and engaged citizens, ready for life in a changing world" (ACEI, 2011, p. 1 para. 4). This organization is also near and dear to my heart as I wholeheartedly believe in their mission, vision, and basis for creating their organization. ACEI does not have any job or career opportunities listed, that I could find, on their website; however, there are opportunities to join as a volunteer, sign up to be a member and receive publications and attend conferences, or become an intern. To be an intern, you must work and reside in Washington, D.C. area for 8-12 weeks, often during spring and summer months, to complete internship. Often times, the work of an intern is based around data, research, and attending or running meetings. Volunteering can be done directly with the organization, in affiliation with the organization, or independently through a recommended list of volunteer opportunities, such as holding a "Mini Summit for Childhood" or an Education Diplomacy Day, organizing a book drive,  creating a book club or education club about important concerns and issues within ECE, and more. Of these opportunities, I think it would be enlightening and interesting to spend a summer interning in Washington, D.C. for ACEI. I feel there would be so much to be learned about education internationally and what could be done to improve it!

Once again, I feel as though this experience was interesting and a great opportunity to consider what educators and advocates can do outside of the classroom atmosphere to help make a difference for children and families. It is nice to have additional options and perspectives to consider as we near the end of our Walden chapter in this education journey!



References:

Association for Childhood Education International [ACEI]. (2011). About us. Retrieved from http://acei.org/about-us/about-us.

FHI 360. (2015). Vision and mission: FHI 360. Retrieved from http://www.fhi360.org/about-us/vision-and-mission.

Save the Children. (2015). About us - Save the Children. Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6146405/k.C7E9/About_Us.htm.